If the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) determines that a model meets the requirements of the standard and the NIJ Compliance Testing Program (CTP), NIJ will include the armor on the NIJ Compliant Products List (CPL). The armor will be shown in a table as illustrated below. Scroll down to learn more about each term.
| Threat Level | Model Designation | Gender | Opening | Accessory | Size Range (Highlighted Boxes) |
Warranty | Model Status | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Listed Company
The Listed Company name that appears above the table is what you will also see on the label of the ballistic panels. The Listed Company is not necessarily the manufacturer of the vest.
Contact Information
The information shown here below the Listed Company name is provided by the company. It generally refers to the headquarters or sales office. The address is not necessarily the location of manufacture of the vest.
Threat Level
Manufacturers specify prior to testing the threat level for which the vest is designed. All models listed on the CPL are tested to one or more of the five defined threat types. The types are defined in Chapter 2 of the standard, and are listed here again:
- IIA: Compliance at Type IIA requires that new and unworn armor samples protect against 9 mm Full Metal Jacketed Round Nose (FMJ RN) bullets with a specified mass of 8.0 g (124 gr) and a velocity of 373 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1225 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .40 S& W Full Metal Jacketed (FMJ) bullets with a specified mass of 11.7 g (180 gr) and a velocity of 352 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1155 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- Compliance at Type IIA also requires that conditioned armor samples protect against 9 mm FMJ RN bullets with a specified mass of 8.0 g (124 gr) and a velocity of 355 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1165 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .40 S& W FMJ bullets with a specified mass of 11.7 g (180 gr) and a velocity of 325 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1065 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- II: Compliance at Type II requires that new and unworn armor samples protect against 9 mm FMJ RN bullets with a specified mass of 8.0 g (124 gr) and a velocity of 398 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1305 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .357 Magnum Jacketed Soft Point (JSP) bullets with a specified mass of 10.2 g (158 gr) and a velocity of 436 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1430 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- Compliance at Type II also requires that conditioned armor samples protect against 9 mm FMJ RN bullets with a specified mass of 8.0 g (124 gr) and a velocity of 379 m/s ±9.1 m/s (1245 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .357 Magnum JSP bullets with a specified mass of 10.2 g (158 gr) and a velocity of 408 m/s ±9.1 m/s (1340 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- IIIA: Compliance at Type IIIA requires that new and unworn armor samples protect against .357 SIG FMJ Flat Nose (FN) bullets with a specified mass of 8.1 g (125 gr) and a velocity of 448 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1470 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .44 Magnum Semi Jacketed Hollow Point (SJHP) bullets with a specified mass of 15.6 g (240 gr) and a velocity of 436 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1430 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- Compliance at Type IIIA also requires that conditioned armor samples protect against .357 SIG FMJ FN bullets with a specified mass of 8.1 g (125 gr) and a velocity of 430 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1410 ft/s ± 30 ft/s) and with .44 Magnum SJHP bullets with a specified mass of 15.6 g (240 gr) and a velocity of 408 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (1340 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- III: Compliance at Type III for hard armor or plate inserts requires that samples be tested in a conditioned state with 7.62 mm FMJ, steel jacketed bullets (U.S. Military designation M80) with a specified mass of 9.6 g (147 gr) and a velocity of 847 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (2780 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- Compliance at Type III for flexible armor requires that samples be tested in both the “as new” state and the conditioned state with 7.62 mm FMJ, steel jacketed bullets (U.S. Military designation M80) with a specified mass of 9.6 g (147 gr) and a velocity of 847 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (2780 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- IV: Compliance at Type IV for hard armor or plate inserts requires that samples be tested in a conditioned state with .30 caliber armor piercing (AP) bullets (U.S. Military designation M2 AP) with a specified mass of 10.8 g (166 gr) and a velocity of 878 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (2880 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
- Compliance at Type IV for flexible armor requires that samples be tested in both the “as new” state and the conditioned state with .30 caliber AP bullets (U.S. Military designation M2 AP) with a specified mass of 10.8 g (166 gr) and a velocity of 878 m/s ± 9.1 m/s (2880 ft/s ± 30 ft/s).
Model Designation
The Model Designation is the name or alphanumeric code that an Applicant uses to uniquely identify a particular model. An Applicant may sometimes also use more recognizable product or marketing names to sell the vest after testing. The label should also state the NIJ Model Designation so that a user can reference back to the CPL.
Gender
The standard does not specifically address male, female or gender-neutral armor. Instead, the standard addresses planar vs. nonplanar panels. Male armor panels are typically considered to be planar and female armors are typically considered to be nonplanar due to shaping to conform to the female physique. Gender-neutral armor panels are typically tested as planar armor. All hard armor plates are typically considered to be gender neutral. It is recommended that female officers be fitted for soft body armor specifically designed for females due to the need for the vest to match the physical profile of the wearer.
Opening
Armors that are designed to be front-opening versus armors that are designed to be attached at the sides must be tested separately. This box will identify how the armor was tested and designed to be worn.
Accessory
Currently all models listed on the CPL are body armor intended to be worn on the front and back torso. In the future, if the CTP allows testing of accessory panels (e.g., groin, shoulder, cocyx), we will identify those pieces with an 'X' in this box on the CPL.
Size Range
Two sizes are required in the compliance test group for IIA, II and IIIA models: larger sized and smaller sized. The sizes of the armor samples will depend on the range of the sizes over which the armor model will be produced. Sizes are determined by the total surface area of the panel. After testing, the minimum and maximum allowable sizes that can be produced are defined in NIJ STD-0101.06, Appendix C, Tables 13 and 14 (shown below). For example, a model that is tested through the CTP using C-2 as the smaller template size and C-4 must not produce a vest below 152 sq in (Table 13) or greater than 381 sq in (Table 14). Likewise, a vest tested as C-1 and C-5 is not bounded on either end by a production size limit.
Warranty
Warranty is a period of time the CTP requires a manufacturer to self declare and place on the armor label. There are no tests in NIJ Standard-0101.06 that are used to determine warranty period. As a minimum, the CTP requires the warranty period stated on the label to represent the length of manufacturer’s warranty period for ballistic performance of the model with the originally declared threat level.
Model Status
This column indicates the current status of the model
- Active – the model is currently produced and is in compliance with the applicable surveillance program (Follow-up Inspection and Testing, FIT).
- Suspended – this model’s compliance status has been temporarily suspended (typically in conjunction with a NIJ Advisory Notice).
- Inactive – the manufacturer is no longer actively producing this model. Existing models in service are considered to be in compliance with the applicable standard, but the model is not participating in Follow-up Inspection and Testing (FIT).