GERMAN CERTIFIED BALLISTIC HELMET, INSERT AND VEST MADE WITH DYNEEMA®

URMOND (NL), 4 May 2010 - DSM Dyneema, inventor and manufacturer of Dyneema®, the world’s strongest fiber™, will mark its debut at GPEC 2010 with the introduction of new innovations in personal protection, developed by established suppliers to the German law enforcement market and certified to strict German requirements. The new concepts for vests, helmets and inserts are all based on Dyneema® SB (Soft Ballistic) and HB (Hard Ballistic) systems and provide greater protection to German law enforcement officers when it matters. DSM Dyneema can be found at GPEC (General Police Equipment Exhibition and Conference), Leipzig, Germany, 4-6 May 2010, at stand B80.

A new concept in high-comfort, protective covert vests made with Dyneema® SB will be introduced at GPEC 2010, offering improved ballistic properties that meet the German SK 1 standard at a weight below 5,00 kg/m2. Beyond the presentation of concepts, vests currently used by German custom officers and Dutch military police will also be on display, the latter providing high protection against combined threats such as bullets and knives.

Dyneema® HB products, made of high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) used in law enforcement and military inserts and shields, are being introduced to the German market at the conference. Laboratory-certified up to German SK 4 standard, inserts based on Dyneema® HB80 are able to maintain the highest levels of protection at a weight reduction of 20 percent versus current conventional market solutions.

Thirdly, helmets made with Dyneema® HB and tested according to German military standards (BWB), as well as ballistic mandible guards, will also be on display at the DSM Dyneema stand. The lightweight mandible guard combines excellent fragment performance with high rigidity to protect against blunt force impacts. “The helmets are already very successful products amongst law enforcement authorities around the world,” comments Dirk Louwers, Marketing Manager Life Protection, DSM Dyneema. “We are excited by the prospects for Dyneema® in helmets, vests and inserts in German law enforcement applications, and we are proud to that at this exhibition established customers present new concepts”.

Law enforcement solutions made with Dyneema®

Personal protection products made with Dyneema® have been developed to deliver excellent stopping power against specific threats and to provide the highest level of protection at the lowest possible weight. Two systems are currently provided: Dyneema® Soft Ballistic (SB) systems, which have been developed for use in vests and provide protection against handgun ammunition, fragments and knives, and Dyneema® Hard Ballistic (HB) systems, which have been specifically developed for use in anti-ballistic inserts, shields and helmets to provide protection against heavier and more penetrating threats and high-caliber rifle threats. For law enforcement vehicles, Dyneema® Hard Ballistic (HB) solutions enable the lightest possible armor available today for protection against handgun and high caliber rifle threats without compromising the vehicles speed and agility through weight. Innovation at DSM Dyneema, achieved in close cooperation with its customers and end-users, continues to focus on countering new threats as they occur as part of its commitment to help protect men and women in law enforcement when it matters.

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