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Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition is Looking for a Few Good Companies

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013

The Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition will be at SHOT Show recruiting new members to join their association of industry leaders advocating for the individual equipment needs of the warfighter. Here are some details they provided to us.

The Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition (WPRC) is the unified industry voice engaged in advocacy, industry education, and grassroots efforts focused on our mission – to support warfighter readiness by ensuring American service members continue to train and fight with superior gear. Amplifying your company’s voice through the Coalition on issues such as needed funding lines and procurement reforms will increase the pace and probability of improvements and positively impact your business.

With the severe defense budget pressures and force drawdowns, significant risks and uncertainty exists to the current standard of operational equipment providing tactical advantage to the warfighter. This standard must be maintained to ensure warfighters never again enter conflict insufficiently equipped.

The WPRC is engaging the newly sworn in Congress to expand our successful multi-year efforts to build “on the record ” awareness for the need to continue funding for individual and unit level equipment while also improving related procurement processes to ensure industry can best innovate, produce and deliver superior equipment in the future.

Add your company’s voice to the Coalition. A unified industry voice in this sector is a critical and historically missing component of warfighter readiness. We welcome the opportunity to discuss WPRC membership with you at the SHOT Show. To set up a meeting and learn more, please contact Craig Heilman at craig.heilman@warriorprotection.net and see our website at: www.warriorprotection.net

The WPRC members are: ADS, Inc., ArmorSource, LLC, Bates Footwear, BAE Systems, Benchmade Knife Company, Bluewater Defense, Brookwood Companies, Inc., Ceradyne, Inc., Darn Tough Vermont, Drifire, DuPont, Duro Textiles, LLC, Eye Safety Systems, Inc., ForceProtector Gear, Gerber Gear, Glen Raven Inc., Insight Technology, Inc., International Textile Group, Inc., Leading Technology Composites, Inc., London Bridge Trading Company, Milliken & Company, New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc., Otis Technology, Inc., Outdoor Research, Pelican Products, Inc., Polartec, LLC, Silynx Communications, Inc., Smith Optics, Surefire, LLC, Survival Armor, TenCate Protective Fabrics, W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc., Wilcox Industries Corp., Wild Things Tactical, and Wiley X, Inc.

Tags: SHOT Show, Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition
Posted in Industry, SHOT Show | Comments Off on Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition is Looking for a Few Good Companies

FirstSpear Expands Technical Apparel Line – Announces Line Manager

Monday, January 7th, 2013

FirstSpear, has announced the expansion of their technical apparel line with the addition of 20-year textile industry veteran Kate Paterson to serve as their Apparel Product Line Manager, developing and managing a new suite of mission-specific, custom product that the company will be launching in the near future. I am super stoked about this news. I’m already a fan of FirstSpear and I’ve known Kate for several years now. She’s a superstar and I’ve learned a lot from her. She’s going to bring a lot to the brand.

The new pieces will utilize the latest in performance enhancing materials and design techniques, complimenting FirstSpear’s existing apparel products and their unique, lightweight load carriage systems. One of the advantages for FirstSpear is that they already specialize in body armor systems and this new line will seamlessly integrate with current industry armor systems and may serve as standalone technical garments for customers. Paterson will work to ensure that the effort builds on the company’s high speed, customer driven business model.

Prior to her work with FirstSpear, Paterson spent 20 years at Arc’teryx working in a range of capacities, resulting in a core expertise in researching, developing, consumerizing and improving highly technical apparel.

“I am looking forward to working with an independent, research and development focused company that prioritizes the individual needs of the customer,” said Kate Paterson. “I really enjoy helping people do their jobs better. FirstSpear’s focus on the unique mission needs of the individual user is in complete alignment with my goals of developing and fielding the very best products for our first responders and professional users.”

Paterson joins FirstSpear’s head of Research and Development Jon Laplume, who will be leading the technical material development process and interfacing with end user groups to generate the final product.

“Our continued expansion in the technical apparel field is the next logical step in the evolution of FirstSpear,” said FirstSpear CEO Scott Carver. “We have worked for the past two years to deliver user-driven load carriage systems that enable our customers to meet and surpass their mission needs. Kate brings to our team indepth knowledge of how to assess, accommodate and address the changing needs of our country’s professional user groups. Her skillset will help us even further support our customer’s changing demands by offering them new apparel options that integrate seamlessly with their gear to deliver maximum capability.”

Good luck to you guys. I can’t wait to see what you come up with.

www.first-spear.com

Tags: FirstSpear, Kate Patterson
Posted in Clothing, Industry | 8 Comments »

Wilcox Industries Launches New Website

Sunday, January 6th, 2013

It’s been up for a little while, but it’s still worth checking out if you haven’t seen the new Wilcox Industries website. Even though it’s an all new site, at first glance, you say, “Wilcox.” The look is iconic for them. See what I mean?

In addition to increased information on their full line of commercially available products as well as links to dealers, there are also new videos which showcase the various families of products.

www.wilcoxind.com

Tags: Wilcox Industries
Posted in Industry | Comments Off on Wilcox Industries Launches New Website

John Noveske Passed Away Last Night in Car Accident

Saturday, January 5th, 2013

The firearms industry lost a friend and pioneer last night when John Noveske perished in a single car accident near his home in Oregon. John was the founder of Noveske Rifleworks which is well known for innovation.

Noveske Rifleworks issued this statement :

Noveske Rifleworks would ask you to remember the passing of our founder, John Noveske, who died Friday, January 4th 2013 in an automobile accident.

John planned for all eventualities, and wanted to ensure any changes would be as seamless as possible for our customers, dealers, suppliers, employees and friends. While this will be a trying time, we do not expect a change in the day to day operations of Noveske Rifleworks. We would like to thank you for your support as we deal with our loss, and would ask that instead of flowers, you consider a donation to a cause we will announce at later date.

John was more than just the founder of Noveske Rifleworks, he was a loving husband and father, and caring friend.

Although I had only spoken to him once, he was a very pleasant and friendly man, well respected by peers and competitors alike. We offer our condolences to his family as they mourn his passing.

Rest in Peace.

Tags: Noveske
Posted in Industry | 37 Comments »

RMJ Tactical Launches New Website

Friday, January 4th, 2013

There’s an interesting story behind RMJ Tactical’s new website and it reflects how that company is run. They are people oriented and it shows when you meet them. Now, they’ve shown me a bit more of that in the development of tis website.

Alan Campbell is building the website for them. Apparently, he started working on it a little over a year ago, but before he was halfway complete, he was diagnosed with a tough strain of cancer. I’m happy to report that after months of radiation and chemotherapy he’s back at it and getting better every day. Although, he says its going to take him a little while longer to get the site exactly the way they want it. The point is, RMJ stuck by Alan in this. They could have gone a different direction and no one would have batted an eye, but they worked with the man to see it through.

The new site does the RMJ Tactical line of full tang tomahawks justice. It looks better, is easy to navigate, and gives you some cool insight into the brand. Check it out.

www.rmjtactical.com

Tags: RMJ Tactical
Posted in Breaching, Industry, Knives | 1 Comment »

Serbu Firearms’ Plans For Dealing With Pending “Assault Weapon” Ban Bill

Thursday, January 3rd, 2013

I’ve had occasion to use a Serbu BFG-50 .50 bolt gun for testing in my previous life developing and testing vehicle armor. They are great folks, provide great tech support and build a great gun. Full of greatness all around. They posted these words on their Facebook wall and I’d say that most companies in the firearms and accessory business echo their sentiment. Remember, whatever has the serial number is the gun. In most cases (AR-style guns) this is a lower receiver, but not always. If you don’t already have one of the dreaded “assault weapons” and can’t afford a full gun, but want one, try to get a mil-spec lower. That’s the gun as far as the law is concerned.

Tampa, FL—January 3, 2013: Folks, it’s tragic that a bunch of very young children were murdered by a deranged maniac with a gun. It’s worse that instead of truly addressing a problem that has nothing to do with “assault weapons”, the proposed fix from Congress is a ban on “assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines. Please note that the killer’s AR-15 rifle, which was one of the three firearms used to kill the children and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary school, wasn’t even considered an assault weapon under CT state law. Regardless, with the typical “never let a tragedy to go waste” mentality, Senator Diane Feinstein is set to introduce her flagship “assault weapon” ban legislation today. We’ve read the proposed features of this bill, and it’s a dream for gun-grabbers, a nightmare for anyone else. Adding what could amount to tens of millions of new firearms to the National Firearms Act registry (which was started in 1934) would be a virtually impossible task for the BATFE. They currently have around 170,000 machine guns to track in that registry, and as anyone who has been in this business for any length of time can tell you, it’s a far from perfect database. Add to that massive non-compliance, oh, and the fact that no criminals would ever turn in the “tools of their trade” and you have a recipe for a giant snafu that will accomplish nothing. Well, except that it already has accomplished something and that’s to generate huge, record sales for anyone producing anything that’s destined to be banned. While we have yet to see if we’re “lucky” enough to have a gun which has actually made the list, we know that our BFG-50A will be banned because of features. And our AR-15 receivers, which we just started producing barely a month ago, are, of course, to be banned.

The bottom line is that just like the situation in 2003 where we were facing a ban on the .50 BMG rifle in California, we’re working our butts off to produce as many BFG-50A rifles as we can. And just like then, we will be producing LOTS of bare receivers, as well. The price of a bare BFG-50A receiver is $1250 retail. Should this ban become law this is the cheapest and quickest way to be in legal possession of a BFG-50A before it takes effect. The receiver can be sent back to us for completion in the future. I personally think the bill is far too far-reaching and will never pass as written. But I think the gun-grabbers will get something passed, so we’re playing it safe just in case. Please call your congressmen and senators and tell them to vote against this mess!! Thanks to my current customers for keeping me at a job I love for the past 16 years and to my future customers for keeping it going!

Mark Serbu – Livin’ the dream! 😉
www.serbu.com

Tags: Serbu Firearms
Posted in 2A, Industry | 12 Comments »

TEA Headsets Announces Distribution Agreement with Peltor

Thursday, January 3rd, 2013

Some pretty cool news from TEA Headsets. With this new distribution agreement with Peltor, TEA now offers one of the most popular communications headsets on the market; the ComTac series.

TEA Headsets is expanding their product line to now include Peltor ComTac Series Headsets.

The addition of Peltor will help strengthen TEA’s product line up and also add value to their existing customer base for their tactical comm product needs. Recently TEA launched new versions of their Tactical U94 Push-to-Talk Switches that compliments Peltor ComTac Headsets.

The ComTac III ACH headset is the third generation of ComTac Tactical Communication Headsets designed to meet the mission needs of today’s warfighter. ComTac now offers gel ear cushions for improved comfort, choice of boom mic location for both left and right shooters, increased RF immunity for high EMI environments, salt-water resistance and Rx/Tx fail-safe. Its ear cup profile has been improved, providing better fit and improved comfort for a variety of tactical helmets used by military and law enforcement professionals, including the Advanced Combat Helmet (ACH) or MICH Helmet. The tactical headset features external microphones for “talk-thru” capability so today’s warfighter can maintain situational awareness while wearing reliable hearing protection.

The new ComTac III ARC configuration is for use with the Ops-Core FAST Helmet. The integrated solution addresses the challenges associated with donning and doffing of the helmet, eliminates “hot spots” and reduces the need to modify the internal padding of the helmet for proper fitting. The system utilizes 3M’s mounting mechanism, which connects the headset to the helmet Accessory Rail Connector.

For more information go to www.TEAheadsets.com or contact a TEA representative. Like them on Facebook, and be sure to check out all of TEA’s new products at SHOT Show in Booth #7008.

Tags: Peltor, TEA Headsets
Posted in Comms, Industry | 1 Comment »

Joining Of Forces: Invictus Alliance Group, LLC and Northern Red Inc

Tuesday, January 1st, 2013

Invictus Alliance Group, LLC and Northern Red Inc have announced a “Joining of Forces” but have not disclosed what this actually means. My take is that there is no formal business arrangement such as a joint venture or merger, but rather that the two companies tend to complement one another so they will share clients based on the task at hand. Both are great companies and I’d say, based on the current environment, they’d be in a better position working together, rather than competing.

Raleigh, NC – January 1, 2013 – The elite combat-proven training, high-risk security and intelligence capabilities of two leading companies have been brought together to deliver critical services to the private and government industries.

Invictus Alliance Group Founders and former 1st SFOD-D (Delta Force) members Tom and Scot Spooner started the company in 2010 and have since successfully delivered tactical training and experiential leadership courses to elite organizations making Invictus a sought-after brand and delivery partner.

“Our integrity as a company is our most valuable asset, it’s something we are unwilling to throw away for short-term monetary gains. We are only interested in attracting the right members to our team and in turn, attracting the right kind of customers for our services. We’re not a transactional service provider, we’re focused on the mutual benefit of long-term relationships with our customers. We are their trusted advisors,” said Scot Spooner.

In early 2012 Invictus Alliance Group began a collaborative relationship with Northern Red Inc., a specialized training and high-risk security company based in Philadelphia, PA, co-founded by former Special Forces Green Beret J.D. Potynsky, CEO, and business consultant, Heath Durrans.

The two companies soon realized their shared vision, values and incessant strive for quality that has resulted in this formal “joining of forces” that will increase delivery capability and subject matter expertise in the following areas:

– Government Support Services
– Special Operations Training
– Crisis Management
– High-Risk Security
– Intelligence Operations

Tom Spooner observed, “The industry is full of very talented one-man shows who are all making a good living and providing a great product, but no single person posses the influential power to affect the necessary change and training standardization in the industry. However, by integrating Northern Red’s Special Operations experience together with Invictus’s, I strongly believe we have the ability to make significant positive change in the way Military and Law Enforcement units and private clients perform their training.”

J.D.. Potynsky points out, “Invictus is in the business of challenging the training status quo, asking the hard questions, doing what they say can’t be done, and establishing updated and relevant standards in every aspect of the industries we operate in. I’m excited to be part of this success story and to take on the responsibility to drive the strategic vision of making Invictus a world-class training services leader and innovator.”

Invictus Alliance Group, LLC is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business based in Raleigh, NC, and provides Special Operations Training and Critical Infrastructure Consulting Services to private and government sector clients.

Northern Red Inc., is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business based in Philadelphia, PA, and provides tactical training, high-risk security and intelligence operations to private and government sector clients.

Tags: Invictus Alliance Group, LLC, Northern Red Inc
Posted in Industry, Training | 3 Comments »