What You Need to Know About Body Armour

You can only perform to the best of your ability with preparation and awareness. Prioritising preparation is the only way to ensure that you can deal with difficult situations accordingly.

This preparation can extend to a great many areas, and understanding personal defence, security, and first aid are just a few topics that Security Operatives (SOs) have to familiarise themselves with. You will already know just how important body armour is for Security work, yet many do not completely understand the different options available.

Body armour covers a wide range of protective options, from helmets to Tactical Armour, but all of them can be categorised as protective clothing. Bullet proof vests are of course the staple protective option, but even these items have a number of different levels and styles to consider. For SOs in particular it is important to choose the right vest, particularly when working in the UK where firearms are not the most pressing threat facing the Security Operative.

Soft Armour

Bullet proof vests are available at different levels depending on the protection they can offer. This ballistic protection is regulated by the US National Institute of Justice, or NIJ, which then ascribes levels to vests. This means that any man or woman can see at a glance what their vest can protect them against.

‘Soft Armour’ simply refers to the materials used in body armour, namely soft fabrics like Kevlar. ‘Hard armour’ will also use these soft fabrics, but with overlays of rigid materials like Ceramics or Polyethylene. Manufacturers of body armour are increasingly using ultra-lightweight materials to ensure comfortable fits in their vests, particularly in women’s sizes. Providing vests designed for female body shapes has been an important area of development, and solves the deplorable situation of having women wearing vests that do not fit properly, leaving them unprotected. Soft armour is available up to and including NIJ Level IIIa, providing protection against high velocity 9mm full metal jacketed round nose bullets, as well as .44 Magnum jacketed hollow points, in addition to all the ammunition provided by lower levels.

Each level of protection can stop the ammunition listed at lower levels. Level IIa armour is considered the minimum recommend protection for all armour, and is capable of protecting against 9mm full metal jacketed round nose and .40 S&W full metal jacketed ammunition, which are commonly found in most handguns. Even this ‘basic level’ is capable of protecting against a wide variety of rounds, with 10mm Auto, .357 SIG, and even .45 ACP rounds all covered by this level of protection. The Level II armour, conversely, can protect against all this as .357 Magnum jacketed soft points and the 9mm Parabellum fired at higher speeds. As mentioned above, however, the 9mm fired from a semi-automatic will require Level IIIa armour.

However, bulletproof vests cannot protect against edged and spiked weapons. SOs will often be working around large crowds or in close quarters, and even in countries where firearms are readily available, weapons like knives and needles are still far more accessible. These weapons can be just as deadly, and you will need a stab or spike proof vest to protect against them properly.

Stab and spike proof vests will still use soft fabrics like Kevlar, as this allows the vest to absorb the impact of an attack. However, they will also require hard materials like chainmail and/or plastic laminate to protect the fibres underneath from being cut or bypassed by a weapon like a knife or needle. Stab and spike proof vests therefore often come with ballistic protection, and these multi-threat vests remain lightweight and discreet, making them perfect for Security work.

Hard Armour

Hard Armour, as mentioned above, will still use soft fabrics like Kevlar. However, in order to provide protection against more powerful weaponry, the vest will use rigid plates of ceramics or polyethylene. This provides far stronger protection than simple Kevlar, at the cost of weight and flexibility. Of course, developments in material technologies mean even hard armour can be worn underneath clothing in a discreet fashion.

Hard Armour is available at NIJ Level III and IV, which is the highest available level of ballistic protection. Level III hard armour protects against 7.62mmx51mm NATO full metal jacketed rifle rounds, as well as the 5.56x45mm NATO round. Most rifle and automatic rounds are covered by the Level III, including such staples as the .30-06 and the .308 Winchester. However, the highest level of protection, the Level IV, offers protection against all these bullets, as well as armour-piercing variants.

There are number of protective options available to the Security Operative, including helmets and Tactical Armour. These options are there to reflect the various situations that an individual may find her or himself in, and allow anybody to be protected. Bullet, stab, or spike proof vests are accessible and relatively inexpensive protective options that should be invested in by anyone keen on preparing for the future and safeguarding their wellbeing.

What You Need to Know About Body Armour
By: SafeGuard Armour

Web: www.safeguardarmour.co.uk

The Conscientious Bodyguard

Given the nature of close protection and the conditions under which operators are expected to perform, it is imperative for those providing protective services to be highly developed, multi-disciplined individuals. However, beyond the obvious technical skills reqauired to execute well-drilled procedures, modern operators are expected to display more nuanced skills such as emotional intelligence, candour, judgement and resourcefulness to list but a few. So, how can understanding our personality type help us become better in our roles as close protection operatives? To answer this, we need to have a basic understanding of the factors influencing the various personality traits.

Stress and Self Care

Research by the American Psychological Association indicates that as many as 75-80 percent of Americans self-report their stress to be at moderate to high levels. Stress can come in many forms, and sometimes we may not even notice or seem bothered by it. So what constitutes stress? The normal daily routine of work or home responsibilities can cause stress, as can experiencing a sudden major life-altering event, such as losing a job, dealing with sudden loss, or a prolonged illness.

Church Security the New Frontier Part 3

I have many happy memories as a child going to church regularly being with my friends and family. One day however sticks out in my mind above all others. On this day, a man keeled over in the pew in front of me and the havoc that ensued is still clear in my memory… Emergency.

Since there are no guarantees that you will never be involved in an emergency, this article will help you to understand some of the things necessary to properly handle, or ideally help prevent, a crisis situation in a house of worship.

Countering Snipers Part 2

The first step in countering snipers is for everyone to be aware of the threat. This is where a threat assessment needs to be compiled and the realist threats need to be identified, if potential snipers are a threat then procedures need to be put in place.

In general, operational planning for a sniper threat should always be considered to some extent. Not only should counter sniper procedures be planned for but they need to be practiced, your people need to be trained at least in the basic reactions to fire and the use of cover, preferably before they are exposed to the sniper threat.

Insider Threat

The insider threat of crime to organisations is always present and can manifest itself in many ways. This has become more apparent because of the recent social-economic climate change within the UK.

Protecting Politicians

As recently as January of this year a man was jailed for a string of threating abuses against Mark Prisk, the MP for Hertford and Stortford. Perhaps the most worrying aspect of the story around this attack is that Prisk was so fearful that he failed to attending a hustings. He is not the only MP who has had to change his course of action due to threats. In February last year Diane Abbott, who was suffering cyber-attacks claimed she was fearful of walking the streets of her own constituency.

What You Need to Know About Body Armour

Soft Armour

Hard Armour

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