T he market is fast-paced and consistently
changing to meet the demands that modern
threats are posing. New innovations are
constantly being developed to stay ahead of
these threats and therefore keeping up with
these technological advancements can be challenging
but also incredibly rewarding.
The large-scale military campaigns of yesteryear
seem to be a distant memory and today’s warfare is
taking place in small cells, at close quarters with an
emphasis on home defence and counter terrorism and
with an increasing cyber in uence.
The needs of today’s police forces, military and
Special Forces are being met by companies that
want to innovate and push the boundaries of
what is possible in terms of design, technology and
performance.
In a society where we are not sure where the next
threat is coming from, it is vital to be geared up for any
eventuality and scenario.
While researching for this annual Tactical Gear Guide
it was clear that the market is a growing and changing
entity and many di erent products are going out of
fashion and also coming into fashion across the globe.
There seems to be a dramatic growth in less-lethal
products – such as police batons – and one company
we spoke to told us that it is seeing the strongest
growth in impact weapons in its 40 years of selling
tactical products.
Batons and pepper spray, for example, minimise the
risk to civilians, particularly in urban scenarios and are
seen by many police forces as a preferred carry for their
o icers.
It’s not just these de-escalation options that are fast
growing, body cameras are another area that is seeing
huge growth.
CYBER REVOLUTION
The cyber industry, now worth an estimated £3.4bn, is
one of the most rapidly evolving threats facing security
professionals today. The evolution of recent a acks has
led the industry towards a more integrated approach,
combining skills across multiple security avenues. This
type of multi-layered solution seems to be the future of
policing such threats.
Recently the UK Ministry of Defence’s think tank –
the Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre (DCDC)
– outlined the challenges and opportunities of the
current and future operating environment that should
inform and guide the development of the future force.
At an event hosted by Defence and Security
Equipment International (DSEI), Brigadier Darrell
Amison, Head Concepts, described “Complexity,
instability, uncertainty and pervasive information” as
the distinguishing characteristics of both the current
and future operating environment.
Although he speaks about the UK these outlooks are
a ributable to countries and forces across the globe.
The complexity of the current operating
environment has led to a renewed focus on adopting
and integrating the stream of disruptive tech from
the commercial market – tapping into the broad pool
of pioneering skills from the technology sector – and
applying it to meet military requirements.
The rise in Artificial Intelligence (AI) will play an
increasingly important role in deterrence and con ict,
as militaries pursue be er understanding, more timelydecision
making and a higher tempo of execution
through ‘information advantage’.
Despite threats progressing online the demand
for tactical gear has not dipped and the market is still
moving along an upward curve.
A N E W E R A
The word ‘Tactical’ is a vague term that, in essence,
can cover a vast range of products and companies
from across the globe – from police agencies to
military personnel and beyond.