In 2022, baton company Bonowi acquired Hart Armour, a company specialising in body armor and mystic inserts. Since the acquisition, Bonowi Hart Armour has grown exponentially, now specialising in ballistic armor and batons, as well as tire deflation products for police. The company has also recently created cuffing belts for prisoners, adding security to their list of priorities as they continue to grow.
Bonowi Hart Armour uses high-hardness alloy in their ballistic steel protection gear, a more cost-effective solution with a high multi-hit capability.
“You can almost shoot with any caliber on the same spot and still stop the bullet”
With ceramics or plastics like polyethylene, the trauma effect based on distance to the shot and advantage of deformation is much lower, but these materials are higher in weight, making them more cumbersome in combat. “If you want to use it in certain amounts of time and with the right carriers or in the right ways, then you have a good wearing comfort anyway,” says CEO and founder of Hart Armour, Onno ‘t Hart. These multi-capable high hardness steel alloys have been used before, especially in the United States, but are less common in Europe, leading Bonowi Hart to specialize in this field. “We do ceramics because of the weight, or we do polyethylene plates because of the weight.”
These plates are not meant for everyday use, due to their heavier weight, but they are the most protective ones offered by the company, says ‘t Hart. Plates with a heavier weight are less susceptible to bullets passing through, which is better for the user, but more hefty in use. Focusing on safeguarding those who protect civilians, their plates are used with a wide range of officers, including law enforcement and military personnel.
Bonowi Hart has also worked hard on their Safe4Life FlexShields which are foldable, inflatable, and protective. “You inflate it with a CO3 cartridge so it stays stiff,” says ‘t Hart, “but you can also fold it so you can use it in the car. So you have a soft ballistic level V-Pem 4, and hard ballistic plates, level V-Pem 6.” They have also innovated a longer, taller version, using technology from tents that helps stiffen the shield. Although this bigger shield is constructed with two plates overlapping, they have created it so there is no gap in between the plates, creating a higher level of protection for police and others.
A lot of states in the United States have begun using Bonowi Hart’s protective shields, as well as in Germany; “it’s all over, there’s no specific area or anything.”
Bonowi Hart has also created a baton with a friction lock, something not usually seen. Usually, batons have an auto lock, but the friction lock is cheaper to create and sell, with no need for buttons or fancy maneuvers to close the baton. For police equipped with pepper spray, tasers and batons, this is an easy way to move from the handgun to fist to baton.
The batons are long living, with a life up to 10 years, and Bonowi Hart also recycles their shields to create the most sustainable products they can. They have also created a stopstick, which is their main product, bringing 20% growth to the company. The stop stick is used by police and is thrown out onto the road to stop and deflate car tires in a chase.
From stop sticks to batons to body armor, Bonowi Hart has grown into a leading company in body armor and protective materials. Their innovation has led to being able to help on rescue operations for children on the front lines of Ukraine, and their advancements and collaborations and protective technology show that they are at the top of the industry.
