The High Risk Modular (HRM) tactical vest is an American

ballistic vest A bulletproof vest, also known as a ballistic vest or bullet-resistant vest, is a type of body armor designed to absorb impact and prevent the penetration of firearm projectiles and Fragmentation (weaponry), explosion fragments to the torso. The ...

developed by Point Blank Enterprises and produced between roughly 1984 and 2006. It is constructed from

Kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as ...

and is rated at NIJ Level IIIA. Per its name, the HRM vest was intended to have a

modular design Modular design, or modularity in design, is a design principle that subdivides a system into smaller parts called ''modules'' (such as modular process skids), which can be independently created, modified, replaced, or exchanged with other modules ...

, using

Velcro Velcro IP Holdings LLC, trading as Velcro Companies and commonly referred to as Velcro (pronounced ), is a British privately held company, founded by Swiss electrical engineer George de Mestral in the 1950s. It is the original manufacturer of ho ...

snap fastener A snap fastener, also called snap button, press button, press stud, press fastener, dome fastener, popper, snap and tich (or tich button), is a pair of interlocking discs, made out of a metal or plastic, commonly used in place of traditional butt ...

s, and

zipper A zipper (N. America), zip, zip fastener (UK), formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of textile, fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and oth ...

s to allow pouches for

magazines A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

grenade A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...

s, tactical tools,

radios Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connected to ...

, ballistic plates, and other equipment to be mounted to the vest. This differed from early ballistic vests of the era that often had fixed sewn-in pouches and pockets, if any were included to begin with. The HRM vest was used by various

police tactical unit A police tactical unit (PTU) is a specialized police unit trained and equipped to handle situations that are beyond the capabilities of ordinary law enforcement units because of the level of violence (or risk of violence) involved. The tasks of a ...

s in North America, including the

LAPD Metropolitan Division Metropolitan Division, commonly referred to as Metro Division or just Metro, is an elite division of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). It was formed in 1933 and is organized under the LAPD's Special Operations Group. Metropolitan Divisio ...

SWAT A SWAT (''Special Weapons and Tactics'') team is a generic term for a police tactical unit within the United States, though the term has also been used by other nations. SWAT units are generally trained, equipped, and deployed to res ...

and the

NYPD Emergency Service Unit The Emergency Service Unit (ESU) is part of the Special Operations Bureau of the New York City Police Department and was formed in 1930. The unit provides specialized support and advanced equipment to other NYPD units. Members of ESU are cross ...

among others, as well as supposedly the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

. Its frequent use by police, particularly the LAPD SWAT, led to its prominent appearances in productions such as ''

Speed In kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a non-negative scalar quantity. Intro ...

'' (1994), ''

Heat In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings by such mechanisms as thermal conduction, electromagnetic radiation, and friction, which are microscopic in nature, involving sub-atomic, ato ...

'' (1995), and '' S.W.A.T.'' (2003), solidifying its cultural influence as an archetypal "SWAT vest" even into the present day. Production and issuance of the HRM vest ended in the mid-2000s as newer, improved ballistic vests became available to law enforcement customers and it became increasingly clear that, while acceptable against small-caliber threats common in the 1980s and 1990s, the HRM vest was insufficient against higher-caliber threats such as rifles that were becoming more common into the 21st century. Replicas of the HRM vest remain popular in the civilian market, particularly in

cosplay Cosplay, a blend word of "costume play", is an activity and performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and Fashion accessory, fashion accessories to represent a specific Character (arts), character. Cosplayers often i ...

airsoft Airsoft, also known as survival game () in Japan where it was popular, is a team sport, team-based shooting sport, shooting game in which participants eliminate opposing players out of play by shooting them with airsoft pellets, spherical plast ...

costume design Costume design is the process of selecting or creating clothing for a performers. A costume may be designed from scratch or may be designed by combining existing garments. "Costume" may also refer to the style of dress particular to a nation, a ...

, and police memorabilia collecting. The HRM vest was similar in design and nature to other vests produced in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including models by the Protective Apparel Corporation of America (PACA; a subsidiary of Point Blank) and Second Chance, which also featured similar modular pouch attachment systems.

References

{{Types of armour Plate carriers Citation overkill

See also

References