Posts Tagged National Institute of Justice

New Body Armor Classification

From The Firearm Blog:

Most people will care more about 0123.00 as they are shopping for new armor. There are five types of armor rating. HG (for handgun) 1 and 2, and RF (for rifle) 1, 2, and 3. First up we have the handgun levels. The old system was, in order of increasing protection, IIA, II, and IIIA, which makes almost no sense. Moving to only two ratings makes sense because IIA is fairly uncommon these days.

There are only two handgun protection levels under NIJ 0123.00. HG1 handles 9mm and .357 magnum threats. HG2 also covers 9mm and adds .44 magnum. Of note, the test spec for the 9mm load for HG1 is 1,305 feet per second. For HG2 the specified velocity is 1,430 feet per second. That is a sout load with 124-grain 9mm ammo. Both of those loads are running quite a bit faster than the 1,000-1,100 FPS that 124-grain ammo will do from the average handgun, and look more like submachinegun (HG1) and 16″+ PCC (HG2) stats. The magnum revolver loads both clock in at 1,430 feet per second. 

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New Body Armor from Safariland

Press release:

New model from Safariland™ ABA® Xtreme® Series offers competitive performance and price

June 01, 2010
Jadksonville, Florida

Safariland, a BAE Systems line of business, announced today that it has released an additional armor model that satisfies the requirements of the National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ) new Voluntary Body Armor Compliance Testing Program under NIJ Standard-0101.06 (NIJ-06).

The XT01 Type II is part of the ABA®, Xtreme Series of concealable armor. Tested against the 9mm & .357 mag. NIJ-designated rounds, the XT01 Type II is a hybrid armor design that combines the high performance of Honeywell® Gold Shield® ballistic material with Twaron® Microlaminate for enhanced ballistic and chemical resistance. The combination of these materials provides reliable protection against a wide array of threats, while also offering an enhanced degree of flexibility.

“The XT01 gives us a baseline, entry-level offering that adds to our existing family of armor solutions,” says Tim O’Brien, Concealable Armor Product Manager. “The package is competitively priced and offers the performance and comfort that many officers desire.”

The NIJ introduced the Ballistic Resistance of Body Armor NIJ Standard-0101.06 to establish minimum performance requirements and test methods for the ballistic resistance of personal body armor. The standard provides improved performance of body armor so that officers receive adequate protection against those threats likely faced over the next decade. According to the new NIJ-06 standard, body armor must now be able to defend against increased velocities of ammunition calibers to better reflect current street threats and law enforcement duty weapons. These new performance requirements are critical components to improving the life-protecting equipment being used by law enforcement today.

All Safariland concealable armor models are certified using NIJ approved size templates C1 and C5, which offer law enforcement the widest range of production sizes available. In addition to these models, Safariland offers an array of concealable and tactical products, which are available and posted to the NIJ Compliant Products List (CPL) at http://www.justnet.org/Pages/06_CPL.aspx.

Safariland’s body armor models combine the heritage and expertise of American Body Armor, Second Chance®, SAVVY® and PROTECH® Tactical. In doing so, Safariland offers the most comprehensive line of body armor available in the industry. Safariland’s NIJ-06 body armor provides law enforcement officers with enhanced performance, durability, comfort and value, which deliver on the company’s motto: Together, We Save Lives™.

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Body Armor NIJ Standard

Ballistic Resistance of Personal Body Armor National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Standard–0101.04
Supersedes NIJ Standard–0101.03, Ballistic Resistance of Police Body Armor dated April 1987
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FOREWORD
This document, NIJ Standard-0101.04, “Ballistic Resistance of Personal Body Armor,” is an equipment standard developed by the Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES) of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). It is produced as part of the Law Enforcement and Corrections Standards and Testing Program of the National Institute of Justice(NIJ).

This standard is a technical document that specifies the performance requirements that equipment should meet to satisfy the needs of criminal justice agencies for high quality service. While purchasers can use the test methods described in this standard to determine whether a particular piece of equipment meets the essential requirements, users are encouraged to have this testing conducted only in properly accredited laboratories. Procurement officials may also refer to this standard in their purchasing documents and require that equipment offered for purchase
meet its requirements. Compliance with the requirements of this standard may be attested to by an independent laboratory or guaranteed by the vendor.

Because this standard is designed as a procurement aid, it provides precise and detailed test methods. For those who seek general guidance concerning the selection and application of law enforcement and corrections equipment, user guides have also been published. The guides explain in nontechnical language how to select equipment capable of the level of performance required by a purchasing agency.

Full Article (PDF)

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