Our friends at BCB International have been quietly working with scientists from their local university to produce innovative 3D ‘Crinkle’ camouflage, reports Bob Morrison.
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Unveiled to potential international military customers at the IDEX 2023 defence expo in Dubai earlier today, the core product from Cardiff-based BCB is a camouflage poncho made from specialised lightweight material that helps the wearer blend into any environment while at the same time protecting them in not only the visual and infrared but also the thermal spectrums. A bi-product of the research into the revolutionary fabric for this ‘crinkle’ three-dimensional camo poncho, originally requested by specialist snipers and observers, is a slightly heavier weight 3D-effect ‘Rocky’ thermal cover which can be used to quickly create a basic hide or bivvy, on top of which local foliage and detritus can be added for full camouflage, but quickly rolled up and stuffed under the lid of a rucksack when it is time to relocate.
Designed for operations in temperatures from -45°C up to +70°C, the fabric can have different patterns of the user’s choice on each side. As for the crinkle effect, this is created during the final phase of manufacture (we won’t give away any trade secrets here) and it does not appreciably add to the thickness or the weight. We plan to come back to this interesting topic in more detail in the future.
[images © Bob Morrison]
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