TMI International LLC, Pittsburgh, Pa., has been acquired by River Associates Investments LLC, Chattanooga, Tenn. TMI is a fully-integrated, leading international manufacturer and supplier of innovative products and solutions designed to manage customer environments by improving work safety, cleanliness, comfort, efficiency and energy savings. Its wide range of products includes strip doors, exclusive PVC-based strip [...]

By Sigrid Tornquist Providing bomb blast solutions isn’t only for situations when a bomb is identified and a bomb tech is sent in to disarm it. There are people searching for bombs, engaged in possible shooting/combat while at risk of explosive devices. There are people walking dogs looking for explosives, people in mine fields looking [...]

The Makers Coalition and ATA join forces to train— and place—a skilled workforce. Talk to just about any manufacturer of sewn products and you’ll hear the same thing: finding skilled sewers is one of the most difficult things about running this kind of business. Now, thanks to The Makers Coalition (TMC), Minneapolis, Minn., and its [...]

The U.S. Army tells the textile industry exactly what it wants in the next generation of clothing, gear and structures. By Sigrid Tornquist Fiber reinforced, insect repellent, modular, ergonomic, chemical resistant, paper thin but super tough, omniphobic. These are some of the properties the U.S. Army’s Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC) is [...]

Where does a company turn when it has technology that could solve a problem for the military? How does it go about making the proper contact? Can it find government funding for a project or does it have to find its own financing? Carole Winterhalter, textile technologist for NSRDEC (Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering [...]

Working with the military requires patience, agility and a thorough understanding of government processes—and shifting markets. In July, the Senate appropriations committee passed a 2015 base defense budget of $549.3 billion and another $59.7 billion to fund overseas contingency operation. While the numbers appear staggering, they mark a drop of about $20 billion in each [...]

Manufacturers can produce non-strategic items for the militaries of foreign governments, but just like any other business venture outside the United States, it takes patience and education. “Every country operates differently,” says Ron Houle of DHS Systems LLC, based in Tanner, Ala. “Like our military, they can move very, very slowly at times.” The first [...]

ROI: Supplying fabrics, materials and services to the military. The U.S. Army’s decision to make its latest training uniform with no reflective element punched Oakdale, Minn.-based Safe Reflections Inc. right in the bottom line. Safe Reflections bases 35 percent of its business on military sales, namely reflective products for workout gear, which were on the [...]

One idea, four products One idea, four products Carry-on, airline-approved suitcase, trolley, steerable kick-scooter and skateboard—in one urban mobility package—the “Olaf” assures that you can get around the city and have everything you need along with you. There are two models: the Olaf Urban and Olaf Business. Both are unisex, unisize, can hold up to [...]

Fabric shelter systems protect valuable aircraft, equipment and military personnel in Afghanistan. Durable fabric relocatable military buildings, temporary hangars, aircraft shelters, storage warehouses and sunshades are designed to be rapidly deployed and quickly constructed anywhere in the world. These engineered aluminum-framed structures are robust, reliable and field maintainable. They are designed to support defense requirements [...]