Taylor announces CBRN suits contract

LONDON, Feb. 1 (UPI) -- The British minister for defense equipment and support announced a contract with Remploy for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear suits.

Minister for Defense Equipment and Support Baroness Ann Taylor announced the $13.1 million deal for Britain-based Remploy to supply 44,000 CBRN suits to the British armed forces, the British Ministry of Defense reported.

"Individual protection is of the highest priority and these suits will allow our troops to maintain the tempo of operations should there be a chemical, nuclear or biological incident," Taylor said in a statement. "This order with Remploy will build on improvements we have already made to the protection of our forces against nuclear, biological and chemical threats."

Officials say the Remploy CBRN suits are designed to "seal around the CBRN service respirator and fit over combat clothing to give extra protection to troops," the release said.

The announced CBRN purchase is part of an effort by the Ministry of Defense to better protect troops against nuclear, biological and chemical threats. Other recent acquisitions include a truck-mounted integrated biological detection system, portable chemical agent detectors and tactical radiation monitoring equipment.