British company develops protective clothing made from wool to be worn by British SAS soldiers on the frontline.

Wool, with its respective array of properties, has been extensively utilized across many centuries for various purposes. Ancient Greek, Saxon and Roman civilizations all used wool to make the first, most primitive clothing thousands of years ago.

Nowadays, clothing has entered an era of technological advancement. ‘Wearable tech’ and modern fibres are being touted as the future of the clothing industry. However, despite modern advancements – natural fibres such as wool are still being abundantly manufactured for a variety of different purposes.

One recent example comes from Derbyshire based company Armadillo Merino. The company have recently developed wool-based protective clothing that has been bought by the Ministry of Defence to be worn by SAS soldiers on the frontline – as well as by NASA astronauts, and firefighters.

The founder of Armadillo Merino – Andy Caughey – came up with the idea after learning about how synthetic clothing currently worn by soldiers combusts when exposed to bullet fire, causing severe burning as the material drips onto skin.

Caughey told the MailOnline that ‘I just thought, this is not right. We should be helping these people who are sacrificing their lives for us on the front line.’

Properties

The natural flame resistance of wool makes it ideal for people in situations where they are at risk of burns. Mr Caughey also informed the MailOnline that ‘while synthetic materials melt at 160C, our merino wool is flame resistant up to 600C’.

Moreover, wool is naturally elastic, flexible and breathable. These properties make it ideal for soldiers and firefighters, who require agility in their profession.

Furthermore, wool does not hold odours, meaning soldiers in unhygienic conditions can wear the material for longer without it smelling foul.

After NASA purchased the product in 2014, Mr Caughey told the Times on Monday that ‘they said “we have spent all this time and money testing new materials and wool has been there all along.”’

By almost literally wrapping our soldiers in wool, Armadillo Merino wool will no doubt save the lives of many.

Standard Wool are a global group of companies, which provide their diverse portfolio of clients with a range of wools for a variety of uses. Standard Wool supports Andy Caughey and all other inventive businessmen who use the qualities of wool to make the world a better place.

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