South Saint Paul, MN – November 19, 2007 – Ballistic Recovery Systems, Inc. (BRSI or BRSI.OB), a manufacturer of whole-airplane emergency parachute systems, announced today the formation of a new joint venture with another Michigan company, Head Lites Corporation. The new collaboration will be called Advanced Tactical Fabrication (ATF) with its headquarters in South St. Paul and production facilities in Pinebluff, NC and Mexico.
ATF will concentrate on the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) industry utilizing the former Head Lites’™ brand high visibility components and trims, Vis-Mat™ brand high visibility vest apparel, headwear and accessories, Vis-Tac™ brand load-bearing tactical vest platforms and attachables, plus ELMO™ brand emergency lighting systems. ATF will also develop custom personal safety products, along with full-package supply chain management for US or OUS-sourced cut-and-sew fabrication.
“The combination of ATF’s high-quality processes and multiple location fabrication facilities will allow us to offer the customer faster response times, lower cost, and more flexibility than could be done by each of our firms separately,” says BRS CEO and President, Larry Williams. “This joint venture is one more step in the strategic plan to further diversify Ballistic Recovery System’s and at the same time remain focused on safety-related products and applications. You will see some exciting new products as well as new markets opening up to our combined organization in the near future.”
About Ballistic Recovery Systems
Based in South Saint Paul, Minnesota, BRS designs, manufactures, and distributes whole-airplane emergency parachute systems for general aviation and recreational aircraft. Since 1981, BRS has delivered more than 27,000 parachute systems to aircraft owners worldwide, including over 3,500 systems on FAA-certificated aircraft such as the Cirrus Design aircraft manufactured in Duluth, Minnesota. To date, BRS parachute recovery systems have been credited with saving the lives of 206 pilots and passengers.
