BANGOR, Maine - A Maine company has made it to the second round of competition to develop new shock absorbing materials to save lives.
Alba-Technic is one of five winners out of more than 100 applicants of the Head Health Challenge, a collaboration of the NFL and a number of other entities to try and improve helmet and body shield technology to prevent injury.
"We are in the stage where we're trying to create a solid product that is easy to manufacture and one that is sleek and thin enough that everyone will wear it," says Nathan Hayes, a developer with Alba-Technic.
Hayes says the company, in connection with researchers at the University of Maine, will undergo a year of intensive testing and redesigning of the material in the second phase of the competition.
"So what's happening now is we have to keep sending samples of an improved material every three months," he says.
Part of the challenge, says Hayes, is that the national testing standards for helmet and shock absorbing material are still being created, and that it's up to the researchers to figure out what makes for "better" material.
He says the material could have wide-reaching applications, from sports gear to protective garments for the elderly, to shock absorption in Kevlar vests.
The five remaining companies in the challenge, of which Alba-Technic is one, will compete for a $500,000 cash prize to be awarded next year.
