Some U.S. soldiers owe their lives to KEVLAR(R) synthetic fiber vests reinforced with ceramic body armor plates. Saint-Gobain Ceramics recently finalized a multi-million dollar contract to supply 38,000 ceramic plates to a major armor integrator that will use the plates to reinforce its Interceptor vests. The contract is a result of a cooperative effort between Saint-Gobain Ceramics businesses in Worcester, Mass.; Niagara Falls, N.Y.; and Rodental, Germany. Managers at these businesses worked together for several months on a nearly daily basis on issues related to development, technical support, manufacturing, administration, marketing and sales to develop the process and manufacturing capabilities for armor plates at the Worcester and Rodental sites. "Our employees are quite excited about making a product that will undoubtedly save the lives of some U.S. troops," said Dennis Allaire, director of operations for Saint-Gobain High-Performance Refractories.

Saint-Gobain's website is located at http://www.saint-gobain.com .