U.S. Army buys Ultra-Light Camouflage Netting System from Fibrotex USA.

The U.S. Army is about to buy an advanced camouflage defense system able to protect troops, vehicles and various equipment from a variety of threats in multiple combat environments. Three companies bid for the contract, which was ultimately awarded to Fibrotex USA – a leader in camouflage, concealment and deception systems for armed forces.

The U.S. Army selected Fibrotex USA to design an Ultra-Light Camouflage Netting System (ULCANS) to conceal soldiers’ positions, vehicles, tanks, various equipment and aircraft from night vision, thermal imaging, radar, and more by using a camouflage screen to block radars across the electromagnetic spectrum (Picture source: Fibrotex)

The U.S. Army recently selected Fibrotex USA to design an Ultra-Light Camouflage Netting System (ULCANS) to conceal soldiers’ positions, vehicles, tanks, various equipment and aircraft from night vision, thermal imaging, radar, and more by using a camouflage screen to block radars across the electromagnetic spectrum.

The company selected for the $480 million contract will spend the next ten years developing and producing the camouflage netting system for the U.S. armed forces. The netting is available in dark and light shades and can withstand multiple combat conditions. The new "camouflage system will mask soldiers, vehicles and installations from state-of-the-art electro-optical sensors and radars," the company said Nov. 8, 2018, in a press release sent to Business Insider. Soldiers, vehicles, and other relevant systems can just about disappear in snowy, desert, urban, and woodland environments, according to the camouflage-maker. The new program aims to replace outdated camouflage that protects soldiers in the visible spectrum but not against more advanced, high-end sensors. ULCANS "provides more persistent [infrared], thermal & counter-radar performance," Fibrotex explained.

Full-scale production will begin in 2019 at a manufacturing facility in McCreary County, Kentucky. The company also has a contract with the Finnish Army to develop a similar camouflage system, but that contract is set to expire at the end of 2018.

The Mobile Camouflage Solution (MCS) takes concealment to another level, as "the MCS provides concealment while the platform is moving," the company revealed. Business Insider inquired about the secret sauce to blend in moving vehicles with changing scenery, but Fibrotex would only say that their "technology combines special materials, a unique fabric structure and a dedicated manufacturing process."