VIDEO INTRODUCTION
TO HARDWIRE

Real Player Video
(Length: 16 min - Only Works With Real Player)

 

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Awards Funding To Hardwire LLC

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded funding to Hardwire, LLC to explore the application of their proprietary high-tensile steel reinforcement products as an armament for military vehicles. DARPA is the central research and development organization for the Department of Defense (DoD). It manages and directs selected basic and applied research and development projects for DoD, and pursues research and technology where risk and payoff are both very high and where success may provide dramatic advances for traditional military roles and missions.

Based on the steel-belted technology commonly found in tires, Hardwire® has already been successfully implemented as a solution for structures and other infrastructure components seeking blast-resistance and blast-mitigation retrofit. A family of reinforcements made from ultrahigh strength twisted steel wire cords – 11 times stronger than a typical steel plate – Hardwire easily reinforces various materials and provides high strength (up to 8 kips/inch) and high modulus (up to 30-million psi) in a very thin, ductile envelope. The product can be molded into or on virtually any structure or part. Because of the global economies of scale afforded from mass production of steel belted tires, Hardwire is produced at a small fraction of the cost of typical aramid and carbon reinforcements. The innovative system uses high-strength steel wires twisted together to form reinforcing steel cords that are twice as strong as the cables holding up the Golden Gate Bridge.

George C. Tunis, Chairman and CEO of Hardwire LLC, said using Hardwire® as a solution for ballistic armor systems is a natural extension and use of the technology and that it is a great honor to have received this funding from DARPA. "What makes Hardwire such a compelling material is its low cost and immediate availability," said Tunis.

The development of blast-resistant protective panels has created great interest from the U.S. military, government contractors and other interested suppliers. In concert with traditional armor components such as ceramics or other available hardened strike-face materials, Hardwire may provide additional protection for multiple-strike ballistic scenarios. Since Hardwire is essentially moldable steel, the material can be integrated into a wide variety of composite and plastics processes, allowing it to be mass-produced in complex geometries that are common with vehicle or building systems.

"Our testing of the Hardwire material shows real potential for its application as reinforcement for and strengthening of military vehicles, ballistic-proof housing, protected infrastructure and more," said Tunis. "Its (Hardwire) light weight property is advantageous since steel armor can be too heavy for the suspension of military trucks, and suitable composites are often too expensive or not readily available. Because of Hardwire’s open construction, thermoplastic resins can be used to manufacture stronger, tougher and recyclable armor. The thermoplastic systems open the door to high throughput automotive processes that will afford our military new economies of scale and massive capacity, taking advantage of our nation's existing industrial capabilities. Our goal is to work to lower the cost and weight of armor to provide improved protection for our men and women in uniform.”