AN ESTABLISHED COMPETITOR FROM EUROPE IS PRESENTING THE LATEST TREND IN PASSIVE COOLING SYSTEMS FOR SOLDIERS WORKING IN EXTREME CONDITIONS. THE SLOVENIAN COMPANY PREVENT&DELOZA IS DEVELOPING CLOTHING THAT IS CHEAPER THAN ANY EXISTING ACTIVE COOLING SYSTEM AND AT THE SAME TIME MUCH MORE EFFICIENT. PLUS, BY ACTIVATING CLOTHES WITH ONLY WATER, THE PRODUCT'S USE IS COMPLETELY ENVIRONMENT FRIENDLY.

A Global novelty in the field of protective clothing is the brand Fire Cat from Slovenia. It presents a range of protective gear with a passive cooling system, which plays a very important role especially in military work. "The coolest body armour" is composed of the finest materials that provide superior comfort. With automatic thermoregulation, the product offers a relief of the discomfort caused by a heat load, such as sweating, dehydration, heat cramps and reduced concentration.

The products were presented at last year's largest military event, DSEI in London, UK. Prevent&Deloza presented combat shirts, shirts with ballistic protection, ballistic vests, helmet inlays, etc. The company is developing the brand in cooperation with police and army forces in Slovenia.

The idea behind a passive cooling system is reducing deficiencies that occur in active cooling systems. The latter are most commonly used in jackets with an additional "air" layer and operate in such a way that air flows through this layer from the environment. Major disadvantages of such a system are one, that not enough air is supplied to the jacket – that would require more energy, and two, that it is currently impossible to supply air that is actually cold.

The passive systems are thus much more suitable for use in the field. The most common passive systems today function by the use of ice, salt and crystals. Prevent&Deloza takes a step further and uses: water.

The Fire Cat system is composed of knitwear, that efficiently extracts heat and moisture from underneath the ballistic protection. Additional functional material provides the quickest evaporation of excess moisture and ensures an adequate extraction and storage of excessive heat. By adding the evaporative part, the product ensures cooling by an additional 3°C after just 30 minutes of active use. The cooling effect lasts for 12 hours and the product can be reactivated just by soaking it in cold water.

When we get rid of the complicated active cooling system and replace it with only a high-functional fabric, we get a product that is incomparably cheaper than the predecessor. Not to mention that it is much easier to carry and adjustable to several different parts of the body. Suddenly, we are not limited only to a jacket, but we can also think of cooling down other parts of the body – arms, legs, and, most importantly, the head. It does not take more than two minutes to assign the user to the new equipment, because it is extremely easy to use, the company promises. The product does not require any special maintenance protocol. Since Fire Cat products also don't require any energy input, they are much more environmentally friendly. The new technology is definitely a great step forward in relieving the lives of those who hold our security in their hands.