POMPANO BEACH, Fla., Sept. 12, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Point Blank Enterprises, the worldwide leader in the production of soft body armor and related protective solutions, announced today the appointment of Brian Kopan as the Company’s new Senior Vice President of Engineering and Technology, effective immediately.
In this role, Mr. Kopan will oversee all research, development and product design initiatives as Point Blank continues to advance its innovative offerings in personal protection for the Law Enforcement, Corrections, Federal, and Military/Defense markets. He will be responsible for managing all engineering personnel, R&D programs and related organizational strategies for technical and sales.
“Brian’s deep knowledge and expertise will ensure our ballistics and design teams continue to develop leading-edge, competitive products that ultimately enhance the performance, comfort and life-saving capabilities of Point Blank’s soft and hard armor offerings,” stated Daniel Gaston, Chief Executive Officer of Point Blank Enterprise. “Innovation is at the heart of PBE and with Brian’s experience and leadership qualities, we will continue to build on our heritage of delivering the best-in-class solutions and superior technology, which consistently exceed National Institute of Justice (NIJ), military, federal and international standards, and which our clients have come to expect. We congratulate Brian on the appointment and wish him much success in his new role.”
Mr. Kopan brings outstanding leadership credentials to his new position, having served in various management capacities for the last 15 years. He most recently served as Vice President of Engineering and Product Development at PBE, where he has overseen the Design Engineering Team, Product Development Engineering Team and Test Range. In this role, he also managed a $4 million annual Department of Defense (“DoD”) research program portfolio. He joined The Protective Group, now a subsidiary of PBE, in July 2013 as Director of New Program Development and was responsible for managing the R&D department and key DoD contracts. He also led the development and qualification of systems in all areas of armor protection, and oversaw business expansion initiatives and the creation of market strategies.
Prior to joining PBE and The Protective Group, Mr. Kopan served as Director of Research and Development at TenCate Advanced Armor Inc., where he was responsible for all engineering and product development operations for the North and South America markets. He also acquired tremendous experience in his career as a technical lead and armor development and manufacturing engineer at Ceradyne Inc., Trek Bicycle Corporation and Raytheon Company, respectively.
An alumnus of Winona State University in Minnesota, Mr. Kopan holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Composite Materials Engineering and an MBA from California State University, Fullerton in Fullerton, California.
About Point Blank Enterprises, Inc.
Point Blank Enterprises, Inc. (“PBEI”) is a leading provider of high performance protective solutions, including bullet, fragmentation and stab resistant apparel and related accessories. Through its key brands, Point Blank Body Armor, Protective Apparel Corporation of America (PACA), Protective Products and PARACLETE®, the Company ranks as the largest global supplier of ballistic and soft armor systems in the world. The Company’s ballistic solutions have been credited with saving countless lives for the most important customers in the world, including the U.S. Armed Forces, Department of Defense, Federal Government and law enforcement, corrections and security personnel, both domestically and abroad. For more information on our Company, please visit our website at www.pointblankenterprises.com.
