Dyneema®: A proven solution to the shifting needs of the personal protection industry

A LinkedIn article previously published by Dirk Louwers, Global Marketing Manager

It’s too early to tell what the end results of the war in Ukraine will be. What we do know is that there is a devastating human toll, and the conflict has sent shockwaves across the world.

People are fleeing their country and finding shelter elsewhere. From wheat prices and food shortages to the fuel crisis and rising inflation, its effects are being felt far and wide.

For the personal protection industry, the war is having a very different type of consequence. Over the past few months, we’ve seen sharp increases in defense spending by many NATO member states – driving demand for ballistic materials and personal protection equipment. Finland and Sweden are even planning to become NATO members. And, with nationalistic sentiment and defense budgets running high around the world, the personal protection industry is expecting both a prolonged increase in end-user demand and even a greater emphasis on proven materials to manufacture quality equipment.

At the same time, like many other industries, personal protection is still experiencing significant supply chain disruptions and raw material shortages. With Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions still in place in some parts of the world, many manufacturers are being forced to localize production to keep pace with customer demand, while still looking to deliver the same performance standards. As such, relying on quality products of a nearby supplier, that manufactures their own key raw material, such as fiber, has never been more important.

At Avient Protective Materials, we are working hard to help our customers in the personal protection industry navigate the unprecedented circumstances we are living through. Thanks to our efforts over the past years – specifically, our capacity expansions and supply chain de-risking – we are confident that we can offer many of our key high-performance products without disruption.

Our Dyneema® unidirectional (UD) material, for example, is manufactured at two sites in North America and Europe, with independent supply chains and large capacities. This dual manufacturing setup allows us to stay close to our customers and end consumers, without the need for long and complex supply chains. In addition, we are also pleased to have one of our global Tech Centers in Europe, which will be available to support customers as NATO steps up funding to provide further defense for the region.

On top of this, we are also excited to have developed new products that offer the end user ever-superior performance across soft and hard armor applications – providing unmatched levels of ballistic stopping power to protect those who protect us.

By working closely with our customers, we’ve recently introduced Dyneema® SB125. Made in Europe for light weight, comfortable protective vests, this flexible, soft ballistic grade offers a comprehensive range of critical features, including long-term stability and high performance at low weight. It’s been proven that a large-size vest package weighing less than 1.5 kg can stop a 7.62x25 Lead Core Tokarev round – while still meeting the market’s demand for fragmentation, and 9mm handgun protection.

And that’s not all. With our Dyneema® HB30 solution, we are enabling advancements in hard armor applications. This affordable product has a high stiffness, and is well suited for helmets, and hard-pressed panels.  

A new product form factor developed by Avient Protective Material is additionally allowing manufacturers to deliver increased performance in hard ballistic helmet applications; and is produced on a new asset that is dedicated to this technology, located at our U.S. manufacturing facility in Greenville, NC.

Are you interested in learning more about how Dyneema® is continuing to help our armor manufacturing partners navigate the changing demands of the personal protection industry? If so, please contact me directly or visit us in Paris at Eurosatory, between June 13 and 17, in Hall 5B, Booth B42.

Dirk Louwers
Dirk.Louwers@dsm.com
Global Marketing Manager