Warfighter equipment is always in a constant state of evolution, where the difference between adequate and exceptional can be measured in ounces. For over two decades, Blue Force Gear has not just kept pace with that standard, they have set it. Ever since the early BFG days, making gear as lightweight as possible has always been their design philosophy. BFG is truly meticulous about it; they will go out of their way to design and re-design a product, simply to reduce weight by a few ounces (sometimes even grams).
The question is why? Why is this so important?
The modern warfighter carries a tremendous amount… heavy armored plates, ammo, comms gear, trauma kits, water… and the weight compounds quickly. Every pound added to a Soldier or Marine’s kit is a pound of performance, endurance, and survivability subtracted from the mission. A Pub Med study showed that “each kilogram added to the foot increases energy expenditure 7% to 10%; each kilogram added to the thigh increases energy expenditure 4%.”1
These warriors will often retire after years of service with broken knees, hips, and backs from the effect of that extra weight. Another Pub Med study stated that injuries can span from “musculoskeletal injuries (e.g., joint/ligamentous injuries and stress fractures) to neurological injuries (e.g., paresthesias).”2 Many gear manufacturers noticed this issue, but none made it their mission to reduce weight with the same passion and dedication as Blue Force Gear.
Their design philosophy acknowledges the old military axiom: ounces equal pounds, and pounds equal pain. It sounds simple, but acting on it requires rejecting the assumption that heavier automatically means more durable. BFG proved that wrong. By combining superior materials, precision manufacturing, and relentless user feedback driven design, BFG became known as the industry leader to systematically engineer weight out of every component of a warfighter’s load carriage system. They did this without sacrificing a single standard of strength or durability but rather, increasing performance and making gear last longer.
That obsession produced results no one had ever seen. Now, Blue Force Gear’s product line is the world’s lightest and is trusted by the most elite professionals. A few of their revolutionary technologies include Ten-Speed, a military-grade elastic pouch that offers a truly multi-use carrying capability; Helium Whisper, the lightest and strongest MOLLE pouch attachment system in the world; and MOLLEminus, the ground-breaking concept of removing fabric to create rows of MOLLE (i.e., webless MOLLE).
These innovations are only part of what sets BFG apart as the leaders in the lightweight load carriage pursuit. Reducing weight for the warfighter while also enhancing their effectiveness and survivability is and always has been the goal. Ounces equal pounds, and pounds equal pain.
Stay tuned for next week’s article where we take a deeper look at the Ten-Speed technology.
References:
1Joseph J Knapik, Katy L Reynolds, Everett Harman; 2004 Jan;Soldier load carriage: historical, physiological, biomechanical, and medical aspects; pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14964502
2Robin Orr, Rodney Pope, Thiago Jambo Alves Lopes, Dieter Leyk, Sam Blacker, Beatriz Sanz Bustillo-Aguirre, Joseph J Knapik; April 11, 2021; Soldier Load Carriage, Injuries, Rehabilitation and Physical Conditioning: An International Approach; pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33920426
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