Archive for the ‘Industry’ Category
Black Diamond Advanced Technology Launches Updated Website
Thursday, November 5th, 2015UPDATED – Major International EOTech Distributor Ends Relationship
Thursday, November 5th, 2015As you may recall, we recently published an article regarding L3 Communications’ EOTech sights. In that article we shared L3’s SEC filings, changes in their user manuals and a USSOCOM Safety of Use Message which mentions Point of Impact shifts in both the low and high temperature ranges of EOTech holographic sights issued to the government.
But apparently, issues surrounding the sights have been brewing since at least Spring. In a recent memorandum to customers obtained by SSD, distributor Elite Defense discloses that EOTech has not been delivering product since April of this year. It’s our understanding that Elite Defense is the single largest distributor of EOTech sights with extensive international sales of the brand. Even more interesting than the secession of deliveries, is that Elite Defense has chosen to terminate their long distributorship. Unfortunately, it seems EOTech has not acknowledged this action, nor Elite Defense’s proposal to convert their customer base to direct sales with EOTech. It’s like they’ve gone radio silent.
When queried, Elite Defense offered no comment regarding the memorandum other than to ask where we obtained it. That, we’re keeping to ourselves.
UPDATE – We just received this message from Elite Defense:
When Elite Defense released the letter to our international customers on 11/3/15 (published by SSD 11/5/15), we had not received any formal contact from EOTech about the termination of the relationship or our proposed transition plan. However, on the afternoon of November 4, EOTech reached out to Elite Defense. Elite Defense and EOTech are now working together to develop a plan that will focus on what is most important: a smooth transition for our customers.
ADS Inc Completes Acquisition of Theodor Wille Intertrade
Wednesday, November 4th, 2015VIRGINIA BEACH, VA–(Marketwired – November 03, 2015) – ADS, Inc., a leading provider of value-added logistics and supply chain solutions, announced today that it has closed the acquisition of Theodor Wille Intertrade (TWI). In September 2015, ADS entered into a definitive agreement with TWI shareholders to acquire all of TWI’s outstanding shares. Headquartered in Zug, Switzerland with operations in Germany and the United Arab Emirates, TWI will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of ADS, Inc.
TWI is a global provider of integrated supply chain solutions to customers primarily operating in the United States European Command (EUCOM) and the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) regions. As an ADS subsidiary, TWI will continue to operate its business as a division of ADS.
TWI delivers construction materials, equipment, hardware, food and food services, as well as providing logistics and transportation management services to the U.S. military and other large government contractors operating in the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) regions. TWI’s existing business and pipeline will complement ADS’ current portfolio of contract vehicles and provide both companies with exciting new business development opportunities.
Headquartered in Virginia Beach, Va., ADS provides equipment, procurement and support solutions to Department of Defense (DOD), other U.S. Government agencies, defense contractors and foreign governments. The company ensures mission success, operational efficiency and cost savings for its customers. The ADS team is comprised of dedicated professionals, veterans and retired government personnel with unmatched knowledge of suppliers, products, procurement, budget processes, supply chain management and logistics.
Joining forces with TWI allows ADS to immediately diversify its business into the food and subsistence market. The ability for ADS to combine its global capabilities with TWI’s existing logistics, transportation and supply chain management services expertise in local markets throughout Europe, the Middle East and Central and Southwest Asia will bring tremendous benefits to its customers and partners.
“Now that the acquisition is officially finalized, the entire team is eager to commence with plans to integrate these two highly complementary businesses,” said Karan Rai, ADS President and CFO. “While our focus will be on successful integration execution in the short term, I am genuinely excited about the long-term growth opportunities for this combined ADS and TWI platform.”
ADS and TWI have a long history of building customer loyalty; both are two of only 15 companies recognized as a Gold-Tier supplier for the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) as part of the Department of Defense’s Superior Supplier Incentive Program. The Gold-Tier distinction is the highest honor awarded to a supplier by DLA.
The Gold-Tier program is designed to identify the highest performing suppliers measured in areas such as cost, schedule, performance, quality and business relations. To be eligible, companies must have significant DLA contracts, a proven track record of performance and an established rating with the federal Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS). More than 150 suppliers were considered for these awards, with only the top 40 selected as DLA’s Gold-Tier suppliers. The Gold-Tier distinction is the highest honor awarded to a supplier by DLA.
“We’re excited to welcome TWI to the ADS family,” said Damian del Toro, ADS Vice President. “TWI is an amazing company with fantastic people. When combined with the industry-leading team at ADS, we have a unique opportunity to further enhance our global services to solve our customers’ challenges while achieving our strategic growth plans.” Mr. del Toro will be spearheading the ADS-TWI integration and will serve as the TWI Division General Manager.
Caveat Emptor – Counterfeit FREE Jackets
Monday, November 2nd, 2015
We take the subject of counterfeit equipment making its way into the supply chain very seriously. When we found out counterfeit Massif FR garments had started popping up, we knew we needed to put the word out.
Like most counterfeits they are pretty good and will fool you at first glance. These garments were manufactured and labeled to appear to be authentic Massif Flame Resistant clothing, but they are not. So far, we haven’t seen any show up on the backs of service members and we want to see it stay that way because these garments are likely NOT FLAME RESISTANT. That could end up being a real tragedy.
We’ve received this alert from Massif.
We are concerned for the safety of our soldiers and want to spread the word.
Any Massif branded jacket or trouser labeled with content “65% Polyester 35% Cotton” is NOT a Massif FREE garment. This is a counterfeit.
Visit www.massif.com/news for photos of the counterfeit label.
In addition, if any Massif garment does NOT include a Garment ID#, please contact Massif so we can investigate accordingly.
Massif takes pride in the protective nature of our garments. We control all flame resistant inventory carefully and can assure you the counterfeit garments did not come from within our Supply Chain.
We warrant and guarantee Massif gear purchased directly or through authorized dealers (www.massif.com/about/authorized-dealers)
If you need FR protection, don’t try to save a buck and cut corners by buying it from an unauthorized source. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
SSD Visits The PRO Tapes Manufacturing Facility
Thursday, October 29th, 2015
PRO Tapes, located in North Brunswick Township, New Jersey, is a manufacturer of pressure sensitive tapes and other specialty materials. They provide products services to a variety of industries, including entertainment, medical, and defense, as well as functioning as an OEM for many recognized brands. The main intent of our visit was to observe the manufacture of the MultiCam Cloth Repair Patch Kit, although we were also given a tour of their entire facility, which consists of 150,000 sq ft of manufacturing and storage/shipping capability.
The first stop in our tour was to check out this Rotary Die Printing Press, which is used to manufacture the MultiCam Cloth Repair Patch Kits. The adhesive-treated MultiCam fabric is pressed by the machine onto the backing paper. This combination is then fed through the die, which cuts the specific shapes for the patches, which are retained on the backing paper. The waste material feeds through the top and is collected on a separate spool. Using this machine, PRO Tapes is capable of producing around 5000 units a day.
The main factory floor featured a wide variety of state-of-the-art equipment, capable of custom slitting, laminating, die-cutting, and printing. To give you somewhat of an idea of their manufacturing capability, they can make slit widths from 6mm to 300mm (.24 in to 11.8 in); core sizes for tape from 1″, 1.5″, and 3″, up to 14″; sheeting up to 300mm x 914mm; and much more. Their machinery is incredibly precise, and some machines are capable of handling the entire process from manufacture to packing of completed products.
This equipment represents an investment on the part of PRO Tapes exceeding $10 million, with their capabilities growing annually.
The PRO Tapes facility also houses an impressive storage warehouse. Rack upon rack fills the warehouse area, along with material components which will eventually be used to manufacture more product. A fair number of products are made to order by PRO Tapes, although they do also house packaged products to meet the demand of their retail and OEM partners.
As an aside, we were told that when PRO Tapes receives MultiCam fabric material, it comes in rolls of this size, showing the volume of material they’ll work with when manufacturing cloth tape and repair patches.
We also had a chance to observe the outbound orders section of the warehouse. The entire section is filled to capacity with product multiple times a day, which is shipped with the same regularity.
In addition to their extensive product offerings for various industries, PRO Tapes produces many products intended for used in the Military/Tactical industry. PRO Tapes is the largest manufacturer source of “100MPH Tape” in the USA, and also offers a range of PRO Cloth Concealment Tape, which is the same as MultiCam Cloth Concealment tape but is offered in 14 base colors and 5 fluorescent colors. PRO Tapes also manufactures PRO non-adhesive Self Fusing Silicone tape, PRO 15 Heavy Duty Grit Tape, PRO 120 High Performance Duct Tape, and PRO Plus Electrical Tape. We also briefly discussed an upcoming product, PRO X-PLO Tape, a double coated demolition tape which is designed specifically for use by Breachers. We’ll have more info on this product as it becomes available.
Chris Falletta – ‘National Director of Sales – Military, Tactical and Outdoor Division’ for PRO Tapes had this to say about their involvement in the Defense and Tactical industries:
Although PRO Tapes has worked on Government and Aerospace contracts directly in the past, in addition to working with many present vendors who sell into the Military, Tactical, and Outdoor markets, over the past two years we have made a concentrated effort to expand our footprint into these markets on a much larger basis. This effort has manifested into our arrangement with Kryptek Outdoor Group, and our recent exclusive agreement with MultiCam brand, to manufacture product with their proprietary patterns, which has brought us to the forefront of this market.
PRO Tapes manufacturing capability is impressive, as is the sheer variety of products they are capable of making. It’s always a treat to see exactly how everyday products are made, especially when it involves mainstays in the Tactical industry, such as 100MPH Tape and Cloth Camouflage Tape. Look forward to future developments from PRO Tapes to be featured here on SSD.
If you’re in the tactical or defense industry, and are interested in utilizing PRO Tapes’ OEM capabilities for your products, you may contact Bob Bullion – Global Sales Manager of Tactical & Outdoor Products Division at bbullion@protapes.com.
U.S. Small Business Administration Veterans’ Small Business Week Event
Wednesday, October 28th, 2015
Vets Corps brings together the SBA and AUSA to host a Veterans Small Business Conference. Vets Corps founder and S.O.Tech President Jim Cragg saw an opportunity to give back to the Veteran community in organizing this event. Most of these events are bland discussions about how to seek funding and register for set asides. So I set out to bring the Association of the US Army to bring a military-speak aspect to the presentation of good information. Brigadier General (ret) Jim Combs will be the keynote speaker and panel speakers will cover everything from mentoring for small business start-ups to how Veteran businesses should engage aerospace and defense industry opportunities. Veterans are twice as likely as their civilian counterparts to start a small business. Vets Corps believes that we need to support our servicemen and women who wish to continue their tradition of leading by becoming business leaders.
The Veterans Small Business Conference will be held November 2 at the Bob Hope Patriotic Hall in Los Angeles, California. All Veterans are welcome to this free event, whether you are thinking about starting a business or looking to expand your existing business.
www.eventbrite.com/e/sba-national-veterans-small-business-week-tickets
TNVC Welcomes Don Edwards As Director Of Military/LE Sales And Training
Wednesday, October 28th, 2015TNVC has announced the hiring of Don Edwards at their Director of Military/LE Sales and Training. Congrats, Don! The full release can be read below:
Please welcome our newest TNVC Team Member Don Edwards. He will be our Director of Military/LE Sales and Training and is also a huge avid hunter as well. If you take a 2016 TNVC Night Operators Course, odds are you will get to meet Don up close and personal. A great guy and an impressive background serving our great country!
Don Edwards is a 20+ year veteran of US Army Special Operations. He began his career in the 75th Ranger Regiment where he was a participant in Operation Just Cause. Retired from 20th Special Forces Group where he served as Team Sergeant during combat operations in Iraq. He has been a training manager and primary instructor at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, GA, and has been an Operational Advisor to the US DoD from 2008 to 2015 advising and assisting combat units in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Don has developed numerous firearms and tactics training programs and is a co-developer of some of the leading Night Vision training programs being taught today. An avid hunter and outdoorsman, Don enjoys using the latest Night Vision and Thermal technology to pursue wild hogs and predators. He lives with his wife and two children in Jacksonville Florida.
We here at TNVC want to thank you all for your continued business. We are proud to continue to hire Vets and Don is a tribute to one of the best leaders in the NV world with emphasis in tactical and hunting environments.
Blue Force Gear At NASGW 2015
Wednesday, October 28th, 2015
From October 28 to 30, you can meet with your BFG representative at the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers 2015 Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Ernest N Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. Stop by Booth #375 to meet the BFG team and learn how to become a part of the fastest growing brand in tactical nylon and weapon slings. Limited Distributor slots are available.
Email Sales@BlueForceGear.com to make an appointment now.
