Ceradyne Wins $34 Million US Army Body Armor Contract

Ceradyne has won a $34 million contract to supply 28,000 ceramic body armor plates to the US Army.

The armor is being procured under the Soldier Protection Systems Vital Torso Protection programme for lightweight enhanced small arms protective inserts (ESAPI), the company said in a statement.

ESAPI ceramic armour plates are inserted into the soldier’s outer modular tactical vest to provide torso protection against small arms fire. The plates are designed to reduce the weight soldiers must carry without sacrificing protection levels.

Cheryl Ingstad, business manager, advanced ceramics platform for defense, 3M, said ‘We’ve made it our mission to leverage innovation in advanced materials science to reduce the weight burden carried by soldiers.

This contract modification overs low-rate initial production for the plates. Deliveries are expected to be completed throughout 2016.