Under the fully funded base effort, valued at US$ 99,962, the company will deliver ballistic shoot packs constructed from its proprietary Dragon Silk material for performance testing. 

These shoot packs will be tested and evaluated for critical soldier protective applications including ballistic impact. If awarded, the option phase will significantly expand this work with the US Army, the company reports.

Tensile strength and elasticity

“Dragon Silk scores very highly in tensile strength and elasticity, which makes it one of the toughest fibres known to man and the ideal material for many applications,” stated Jon Rice, COO. 

“Providing material for this ballistic shoot pack initiative is an important next step for Kraig and spider silk. This contract reinforces the many significant potential applications for recombinant spider silk. Today is a great day for spider silk.”

Spider silk for military applications

“We’re proud to be working with the Department of Defense to assess the exciting potential of spider silk for military applications,” stated Kim K Thompson, CEO and founder of Kraig Biocraft Laboratories.

“We are honoured that the US Army has selected us for this programme. This effort will provide Kraig Labs with the opportunity to validate our longstanding belief that spider silk technology has had an incredible potential for protective and lifesaving materials and expand our ability to design and engineer innovative materials solutions.”

The base effort on this contract is scheduled to last ten months and is the company’s first US Department of Defense award.

Kraig Biocraft Laboratories

Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, a fully reporting biotechnology company is a leading developer of genetically engineered spider silk based fibre technologies.

The company says its genetic engineering research has succeeded in developing a practical and cost-effective technology for producing recombinant spider silk based fibres on an industrial scale. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories is moving rapidly to commercialize its spider silk technology, which it believes will have a significant impact on the global textiles industry.

At the same time, the company are continuing to work in cooperation with leading laboratories to create new stronger and more flexible spider silk based fibres with potentially broad applications for consumers and industry in the multi-billion dollar marketplace for textiles and performance polymers.

www.kraiglabs.com