P2i and Global Armour Announce Revolutionary New High Performance Life Protection Garments
(Nanowerk News) A revolutionary new generation of high-performance body armour, launched today, is lighter, more comfortable and more protective than any previous design, thanks to P2i’s liquid-repellent nano-coating technology.
The new G Tech Vest is a joint development between two world-class UK companies with very strong credentials for the life protection market: P2i, whose technology was originally developed to make soldiers' protective clothing more effective against chemical attack; and Global Armour, which has been at the leading edge of product innovation in the armour industry for over 30 years.
The G Tech Vest employs brand-new lightweight materials, both in the physical armour itself (a closely-guarded trade secret) and the fabric that forms the armour into a garment. P2i’s technology reduces weight by avoiding the need for bulky durable water repellents and increases comfort by preserving the natural airflow and drape of the garment material.
Dr Terry McCartney OBE, Chairman of Global Armour Ltd, comments: “Police, security and especially military forces around the world are expressing a keen interest in our newly developed lightweight high-performance life protection equipment. P2i’s technology will now feature in all our future contract tenders as an exclusive and highly valuable benefit.”
Dr Stephen Coulson, CTO of P2i Ltd, comments: “P2i stands for perform, protect and improve, and this latest development plays to all three of our strengths. Our liquid-repellent nano-coating technology delivers a step-change in comfort and performance, yielding a new generation of light and comfortable garments that will ease the burden on professionals required to wear life-protection equipment.”
Protect and improve
While life protection equipment protects wearers from munitions and bladed weapons, garments themselves require protection against chemical substances used offensively, as well as other water and oil based contaminants such as rain, dirt and perspiration.
Durable Water Repellents have traditionally been used to proof life protection textiles against liquids. However, they deposit a thick and inflexible layer of chemicals which adds significantly to garment weight, bulk and heat retention.
By contrast, P2i’s technology creates a nanoscopic protective polymer layer, one thousand times thinner than a human hair, over the whole garment, including seams and stitching. When oil or water encounters this, it forms beads and simply rolls off instead of being absorbed. This prevents the ingress of external contaminants and encourages evaporated perspiration to flow out, helping wearers to feel more comfortable in the most challenging performance conditions.
While P2i’s liquid-repellent nano-coating is imperceptible to wearers, it lasts as long as the garment material itself due to direct molecular bonding with the textile surface.
Minimizing weight, maximizing comfort
By making life protection equipment more effective but also lighter and more comfortable to wear, P2i and Global Armour are anticipating keen interest and swift adoption of the G Tech Vest by Police, Military and Corporate clients throughout the world.
About P2i
P2i is a world leader in liquid repellent nano-coating technology. We make good products great by applying innovative science. Our revolutionary technology enables our customers to improve the performance of their products and protect them from the effects of water and all other liquids. This builds value by commanding premium prices and/or reducing costs.
P2i Ltd was established in 2004 to commercialise liquid-repellent treatments developed by the UK’s Ministry of Defence. Now on a commercial scale, P2i’s patented process has been successfully applied to a wide range of products in a wide range of markets including performance textiles, electronic devices, filtration media and bio-consumables.
In consumer sectors, the presence of P2i’s technology is indicated either by ion-mask™, its brand for footwear, outdoor clothing and accessories, or Aridion™, its brand for electronics.
How the P2i technology works
P2i’s technology works by applying a nanometre-thin polymer layer over the entire surface of a product. Using an ionised gas (plasma) this layer is molecularly bound to the surface and will not leach away. The process confers superior oil and water repellency by reducing the surface energy to ultra-low levels – down to one third that of PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene). In footwear and textile applications, P2i’s technology also minimises liquid absorption from outside elements and evaporated perspiration.
Tests show that P2i's patented nano-coating technology can deliver performance benefits for a wide range of materials, including polymers, metals, fabrics, leather, ceramics, glass and paper. Even complex, 3D objects incorporating several different materials can be treated successfully with the P2i process: from footwear to hearing aids, bioconsumables to filtration.
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