No such thing as an average day in the Military

As the men and women of the military will tell you, the daily demands of military service are as diverse as the environments in which these members of the armed forces serve.

"There is really no such thing as an average day in the military", says Matt Fisher, a former member of the Canadian Forces and US military. "Military personnel by nature of their job can find themselves working in a range of environments from urban terrain made up of shattered and broken buildings and streets, to the high arctic where mother nature can be the biggest threat to your survival, to insect and disease ridden jungles that are so dark at night that not even the most advanced night vision equipment allows large scale operations to be conducted."

Fisher, who is responsible for military product development for CPGear and CPGear.com, says these unique demands on military personnel make having the proper gear essential.

"Depending on the environment, proper gear can make the difference between life and death," he says. "For example,  when operating in arctic or mountain conditions, being improperly dressed and equipped can lead to exposure injuries such as hypothermia which leads to death if not addressed.  For the most part, having effective equipment is a tremendous confidence builder for the troops using it.  Fighting the enemy is difficult enough, so any distraction related to ill-fitting or non-functioning equipment is the last thing a Soldier needs to face in combat conditions."

For Fisher, the rapidly changing theatres in which military forces operate also requires gear that can respond to the job at hand be available quickly and help a soldier when in the field.

"One of the biggest things we've noticed is that with the speed at which the operating environment changes, the troops want the gear they use to be well suited for that environment, now not tomorrow," he says.  "A load bearing vest that was designed for peacekeeping operations 15 years ago may not meet the requirements of a soldier on a combat patrol, or a backpack that was designed to primarily be hung on the exterior of an armoured personnel carrier tearing across West Germany may not interface with a body armour vest that was developed as a result of recent combat operations.  Today's Canadian Forces are relatively well paid compared to their predecessors, and as such have come to expect a better quality of life in term of the type of housing they live in, vehicles they personally purchase, etc.  As such, if they find that what they're issued through the regular military supply system is outdated, or doesn't quite meet their requirements, they often look to the commercial sector to fill those gaps."

Through its concern for the customer, its unique operations environment and one-of-a-kind website called www.cpgear.com, CPGear is always responding to the frequently changing needs of military members. CPGear has been doing this since company founder Mark Wheeler, a former Canadian Forces member, started the company 25 years ago after finding ways to help his fellow soldiers improve the gear they had in the field.

"As one of those companies that soldiers look to fill the gaps, it is extremely important for us to be responsive to what the soldier wants," Fisher says.  "We always welcome our customers to contact us with ideas and suggestions for new products, or improvements to our existing ones.  These guys are the end-users and as such, they, better than anybody else, can give you the most valuable feedback about how the gear we make works or doesn't work for them.  By keeping flexibility and the ability to respond to change as among the key tenets of the operation of this company, we're able to keep innovating and refining products to suit the needs of our clients."

CPGear also looks forward to serving the needs of customers who are not in the military.

"In addition to military customers, we do have a significant number of folks who buy our gear because they're recreational shooters who compete in Service Rifle type competitions, or are hunters, or are civilian Search & Rescue volunteers," says Fisher.  "In addition to these guys, we also have a lot of paintball and airsoft/milsim enthusiasts who appreciate that we offer genuine CADPAT equipment.  Whilst the majority of our R&D efforts are directed towards our military specific products, we aren't afraid to shy away from custom projects, or if we have someone approach us with a good idea that has a large scale application within their area of interest such as a new type of paintball gear pouch, we're more than happy to listen."

Visit CPGear at www.cpgear.com or by dropping into our factory outlet on 1971 Lincoln Road located between Fredericton and CFB Gagetown.  You can also contact CPGear by calling 1-800-561-3040 (1-506-444-8959 for international clients) or by emailing info@cpgear.com

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