Section A
PRESENTATION AND JUSTIFICATION OF THE PROBLEM
I.1 Problem Statement
Officers and soldiers who use current body armors often do so with great risk to their long term and short term personal health. The weight of current body armors also deters soldiers from wearing it because the body armor is uncomfortable to wear. For police and soldiers, this weight and bulkiness does more harm than good because speed and maneuverability are essential to completing a mission. Since officers and troops may not want to wear their body armor because it is uncomfortable, they are put at a greater risk of dying from gunshot wounds. For law enforcement and military, the weight of the body armor can increase the risk of suffering from long term health issues such as bone spurs, arthritis, joint stress, and stress fractures. To address these issues, the team plans to design a vest that is lighter, reduces stress on the body of its wearer, and is more flexible and maneuverable while remaining comparable in terms of safety and protection from ballistic threats.
I.2 General Need for Product
For many people who are thrust into dangerous combat situations, ballistic armor is a core piece of their arsenal. According to a national survey conducted in 2012, 98.1% of the police officers that responded to the survey stated that they wear body armor (Grant et al., 42). One of the main reasons for the near universal implementation of body armor for officers within police departments is because of the unpredictable circumstances that may occur daily in their jobs. 87.1% of officers follow ballistic armor policy all of the time and 11.4% of them follow ballistic armor policy only most of the time (Grant et al., 42). The explanations from officers that did not always follow ballistic armor policy ranged from training exemptions, high temperatures, and working at a desk (Grant et al., 42). Also, ninety percent of officers viewed body armor as “critical for [their] safety” (Grant et al., 43). For military personnel, body armor is even more essential than it is for police officers. Although not every single one of the 1.3 million active members of the U.S. military are required to wear a ballistic vest, hundreds of thousands of members wear or will wear ballistic armor at some point during their service (Department of Defense). Ballistic armor is especially important for infantry in hostile countries. The armor itself is also heavier and bulkier versus its police counterparts, as it is generally thicker and also comes with the addition of ceramic side plates. For example, the addition of ceramic plates adds 10 pounds of weight to the 16 pound Interceptor Protector Vest (strategypage). This means that the the total protective equipment weighs around 26 pounds. Some ballistic vests weigh even more than that, however. A loaded Improved Outer Tactical Vest (IOTV) weighs between 30 and 35 pounds (Dunnigan).
The “development of lightweight armor that can protect against handgun assaults, while still being comfortable enough (in terms of weight, flexibility, and temperature) to be worn by the average officer conducting his or her daily details on the street.” Simply, a police officer will most likely not be shot at with an assault rifle on the street, while this is actually possible for infantry and other units in hostile areas.The weight of body armor adds a significant burden to troops; the Modular Tactical Vest plus the ceramic plates account for almost a third of the total weight allocated by a Marine Rifleman (NRAC, 47). The weight of ballistic armor is significant for all members of marine squads; 30.45 pounds out of 117 for automatic riflemen, 30.45 pounds out of 132 for fire team leaders, and 30.45 pounds out of 135 for squad leaders are examples of the huge amount of weight that soldiers have to carry (NRAC, Appendix E). Without a doubt, that is a massive amount of weight a soldier has to carry. The amount of weight that soldiers carry is actually far above what is even recommend from several studies conducted. The recommended objective weight load for a rifleman is that it should not exceed 50 pounds (NRAC, 3). Even for Marine riflemen, who have to carry the least in total, they carry almost twice the recommended amount of weight. Squad leaders carry 2.7 times the recommended amount of weight.
Officers and soldiers who use current body armors often do so with great risk to their long term and short term personal health. The weight of current body armors also deters soldiers from wearing it because the body armor is uncomfortable to wear. For police and soldiers, this weight and bulkiness does more harm than good because speed and maneuverability are essential to completing a mission. Since officers and troops may not want to wear their body armor because it is uncomfortable, they are put at a greater risk of dying from gunshot wounds. For law enforcement and military, the weight of the body armor can increase the risk of suffering from long term health issues such as bone spurs, arthritis, joint stress, and stress fractures. To address these issues, the team plans to design a vest that is lighter, reduces stress on the body of its wearer, and is more flexible and maneuverable while remaining comparable in terms of safety and protection from ballistic threats.
I.2 General Need for Product
For many people who are thrust into dangerous combat situations, ballistic armor is a core piece of their arsenal. According to a national survey conducted in 2012, 98.1% of the police officers that responded to the survey stated that they wear body armor (Grant et al., 42). One of the main reasons for the near universal implementation of body armor for officers within police departments is because of the unpredictable circumstances that may occur daily in their jobs. 87.1% of officers follow ballistic armor policy all of the time and 11.4% of them follow ballistic armor policy only most of the time (Grant et al., 42). The explanations from officers that did not always follow ballistic armor policy ranged from training exemptions, high temperatures, and working at a desk (Grant et al., 42). Also, ninety percent of officers viewed body armor as “critical for [their] safety” (Grant et al., 43). For military personnel, body armor is even more essential than it is for police officers. Although not every single one of the 1.3 million active members of the U.S. military are required to wear a ballistic vest, hundreds of thousands of members wear or will wear ballistic armor at some point during their service (Department of Defense). Ballistic armor is especially important for infantry in hostile countries. The armor itself is also heavier and bulkier versus its police counterparts, as it is generally thicker and also comes with the addition of ceramic side plates. For example, the addition of ceramic plates adds 10 pounds of weight to the 16 pound Interceptor Protector Vest (strategypage). This means that the the total protective equipment weighs around 26 pounds. Some ballistic vests weigh even more than that, however. A loaded Improved Outer Tactical Vest (IOTV) weighs between 30 and 35 pounds (Dunnigan).
The “development of lightweight armor that can protect against handgun assaults, while still being comfortable enough (in terms of weight, flexibility, and temperature) to be worn by the average officer conducting his or her daily details on the street.” Simply, a police officer will most likely not be shot at with an assault rifle on the street, while this is actually possible for infantry and other units in hostile areas.The weight of body armor adds a significant burden to troops; the Modular Tactical Vest plus the ceramic plates account for almost a third of the total weight allocated by a Marine Rifleman (NRAC, 47). The weight of ballistic armor is significant for all members of marine squads; 30.45 pounds out of 117 for automatic riflemen, 30.45 pounds out of 132 for fire team leaders, and 30.45 pounds out of 135 for squad leaders are examples of the huge amount of weight that soldiers have to carry (NRAC, Appendix E). Without a doubt, that is a massive amount of weight a soldier has to carry. The amount of weight that soldiers carry is actually far above what is even recommend from several studies conducted. The recommended objective weight load for a rifleman is that it should not exceed 50 pounds (NRAC, 3). Even for Marine riflemen, who have to carry the least in total, they carry almost twice the recommended amount of weight. Squad leaders carry 2.7 times the recommended amount of weight.
It is clear that weight needs to be reduced as much as possible to get the average load weight down to recommended levels. Body armor is a major contributor to the overburdening of troops, and since body armor can not be removed entirely without compromising safety, it is necessary to reduce the weight as much as possible.
I.3 Estimation and Description of Market Size
With the increase in global terrorism and the need to protect soldiers and officers, the body armor industry has become enormous. The U.S. military is the largest in the world, and soldiers serving on tours of duty need protection from enemy fire and shrapnel. Police officers serving domestically also face many dangers that require body armor. Because body armor is so vital to such important professions, the market is enormous.
The U.S. military is one of the major contributors to the body armor industry in America. In 2016 there are over 1.3 million active duty members 475,000 of which are serving in the army alone (Department of Defense). This vast number of soldiers, especially soldiers in the army serving on tours of duty, need body armor to protect from enemy fire and shrapnel. But U.S. soldiers aren’t the only people in need of protection in combat; soldiers from every country need body armor to protect them during battles. Each country spends massive amounts of money on the body armor industry in order to protect their soldiers, contributing to the global body armor industry’s extensive size.
For officers serving domestically, there are many threats too. Many officers in countries across the globe are dealing with a spike in terrorist and anti-nationalist acts, which “have led to the incessant adoption of body armor for defense and law enforcement protection applications.” (grandreviewresearch). Safety of officers is a priority for police departments, so the adoption of armor to protect officers from harm is a very reasonable response to an increase in domestic violence. In many jurisdictions, departments even “require officers to wear body armor at all times”(Grant et al., 42). This change in regulation positively affects the growth of the industry as many more officers now wear vests. As the frequency of terrorist and anti-nationalist acts grows, so too will the number of police needed to combat these acts increase along with the number of vests needed to protect the officers.
The market for body armor is vast, as the global industry provides protection for soldiers and police officers around the world. Contributions from private companies and militaries has developed an industry that was “valued at USD 3,939.7 million in 2015.” (grandviewresearch).The industry remains strong because of the high demand for protection for soldiers and officers. Militaries wanting more advanced methods to protect their soldiers contribute the most to the industry. In the U.S. alone, the body armor industry receives about 488 million dollars in funding annually from the U.S. military (ibisworld). Not all statistics are good for the industry; in the U.S. the domestic body armor industry is shrinking slowly, by about 10 percent annually due to the withdrawal of troops from the Middle East and budget cuts on military spending. However the domestic industry is still sizable and the global market is expected to increase substantially over the next 8 years due to the global increase of terrorist threats and anti-nationalist acts.
I.3 Estimation and Description of Market Size
With the increase in global terrorism and the need to protect soldiers and officers, the body armor industry has become enormous. The U.S. military is the largest in the world, and soldiers serving on tours of duty need protection from enemy fire and shrapnel. Police officers serving domestically also face many dangers that require body armor. Because body armor is so vital to such important professions, the market is enormous.
The U.S. military is one of the major contributors to the body armor industry in America. In 2016 there are over 1.3 million active duty members 475,000 of which are serving in the army alone (Department of Defense). This vast number of soldiers, especially soldiers in the army serving on tours of duty, need body armor to protect from enemy fire and shrapnel. But U.S. soldiers aren’t the only people in need of protection in combat; soldiers from every country need body armor to protect them during battles. Each country spends massive amounts of money on the body armor industry in order to protect their soldiers, contributing to the global body armor industry’s extensive size.
For officers serving domestically, there are many threats too. Many officers in countries across the globe are dealing with a spike in terrorist and anti-nationalist acts, which “have led to the incessant adoption of body armor for defense and law enforcement protection applications.” (grandreviewresearch). Safety of officers is a priority for police departments, so the adoption of armor to protect officers from harm is a very reasonable response to an increase in domestic violence. In many jurisdictions, departments even “require officers to wear body armor at all times”(Grant et al., 42). This change in regulation positively affects the growth of the industry as many more officers now wear vests. As the frequency of terrorist and anti-nationalist acts grows, so too will the number of police needed to combat these acts increase along with the number of vests needed to protect the officers.
The market for body armor is vast, as the global industry provides protection for soldiers and police officers around the world. Contributions from private companies and militaries has developed an industry that was “valued at USD 3,939.7 million in 2015.” (grandviewresearch).The industry remains strong because of the high demand for protection for soldiers and officers. Militaries wanting more advanced methods to protect their soldiers contribute the most to the industry. In the U.S. alone, the body armor industry receives about 488 million dollars in funding annually from the U.S. military (ibisworld). Not all statistics are good for the industry; in the U.S. the domestic body armor industry is shrinking slowly, by about 10 percent annually due to the withdrawal of troops from the Middle East and budget cuts on military spending. However the domestic industry is still sizable and the global market is expected to increase substantially over the next 8 years due to the global increase of terrorist threats and anti-nationalist acts.