EVOLUTION BECOMES REVOLUTION
In a perfect world body armor stops every bullet and weighs nothing. In the real world body armor is heavy, bulky, hot and uncomfortable for the officer who needs to wear it every day.
In 2016, Hardwire® introduced revolutionary soft body armor. Using proprietary manufacturing technology, Hardwire set a new standard for shock dissipation in ballistic panels that resulted in unprecedented stopping power, combined with the most lightweight and low-profile armor on the market. With the 2021 release of the new soft body armor package, Hardwire launches the lightest, thinnest, and coolest body armor package available to the law enforcement community.
SHOCK DISSIPATION
Impact energy is spread laterally across the panel, improving ballistic protection and reducing trauma.
lightweight
Ballistic panels are up to 30% lighter than any soft armor on the market with an area density starting at 0.51 lbs/ft2.
positive buyancy
With a density that is lower than water, Hardwire ballistic panels are buoyant enough to float.
TRUSTED BY THE BEST
The Hardwire® body armor package was originally developed for use by the elite U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and United States Marine Corps (USMC). Driven by military requirements, the armor has the ability to stop bomb and grenade fragments in addition to bullets. This military-grade system and its derivatives are the trusted protective solutions used in the field by both military services today. Leveraging its high-volume manufacturing capabilities and military pedigree, Hardwire now offers the soft body armor package to meet the needs of law enforcement and security professionals.
THE HARDWIRE ADVANTAGE
shock dissipation physics
The Hardwire® manufacturing process and topological ordering of the materials causes bullets to be flattened on the surface of the panel. How does this work? When a round—rotating at 50,000 rpm—contacts the armor, it is arrested in the first ¼ turn, resulting in massive torsional stress on the bullet jacket. The stress waves are also transferred to the armor and along the fibers. Traveling at hypersonic speeds, the stress waves spread load and then are reflected back at the projectile itself. This reflected shock wave is transferred into the bullet resulting in stress—that combined with the torsional loads from arrested rotation—opens the jacket and flattens the projectile.
In other manufacturers’ body armor, the product has a tendency to bunch up, as the armor fibers are twisted by a bullet’s rotational force. Hardwire ballistic panels prevent this distortion by utilizing a leather-like construction. Should another round hit your armor, the plate is ready to protect you, as if you had just put it on. No other soft body armor on the market has this critical attribute.
THE HARDWIRE ADVANTAGE
Innovative MANUFACTURING PROCESS
While other manufacturers take individual layers of material and sew or place them together, Hardwire uses extremely high pressure to build a micro mechanical structure within the armor. Individual layers of Dyneema® fibers, under 25 million pounds of pressure, are turned from multiple layers of material into a single system. This innovative and proprietary manufacturing process is the key to the armor’s ability to stop and flatten bullets and shrapnel, as the fibers are stronger when they all act as one instead of independently.
THE HARDWIRE ADVANTAGE
UNPRECEDENTED STOPPING POWER
At Hardwire®, every shot matters. In testing we measure the back face deformation of every shot on every armor panel, and this next generation armor has the lowest back face signature of any ballistic panel package. Unlike other soft armor packages, projectiles are stopped in the first ply. This means that the bullet’s energy and the shock wave spreads out laterally across the maximum amount of material before reaching the body. Bullets are caught and flattened. Why is this important? This minimizes injury and preserves your ability to stay in the fight.
THE HARDWIRE ADVANTAGE
RIGOROUSLY TESTED
We like to call the Hardwire® body armor system the “Honey Badger” package, after the animal famous for its thick skin and ferocious defensive abilities. Hardwire body armor is tested rigorously and frequently. The product undergoes lot acceptance tests (LAT) weekly by independent labs as required by the U.S. Special Forces and the USMC, far exceeding annual testing required by NIJ law enforcement standards. The armor has been through multiple military first article tests (FATs), the full Level IIIA NIJ 0101.06 certification test, and has recently been chosen by the U.S. Army for downselect in the Modular Scalable Vest (MSV) program. The Gen 4 body armor is the most tested armor package available to the law enforcement community.
THE HARDWIRE ADVANTAGE
LIGHTEST WEIGHT BODY ARMOR ON THE MARKET
After the rigid body armor plate has been created, it undergoes a softening process, similar to leather when a hide is dried. Once the armor goes through the softening process, it stays soft. By applying the most advanced techniques of making military-grade hard armor to manufacturing soft armor, Hardwire® has manufactured the thinnest, lightest, coolest and most comfortable Level IIIA body armor on the market. The Hardwire Level IIIA and Hardwire Level II weigh in at .68 lbs/ft2 and .51 lbs/ft2 respectively. These systems remain the lightest on the market and are up to 30% lighter than legacy systems.
AVAILABLE NOW
Hardwire® ballistic panels are available in two models: Level IIIA and Level II, NIJ certified, and compatible with all Safariland carriers.
