Gardaí issue €50m tender for 15,000 sets of body armour

The gear must meet all their requirements to integrate with the existing garda uniform and equipment, such as bodycams, tetra radios, tasers and 'any future requirements the organisation may have'. File picture: Maxwells,

An Garda Síochána is set to spend up to €50m on a new contract for body armour for garda members to give them “suitable protection against knife and ballistic threats potentially associated with public policing”.

In a request for tender, it said it would place an initial order for 15,000 vests of various sizes, along with a further 350 sets including soft and hard armour plates and another 350 “ballistic covert body armour”.

In future, it may extend the contract to include up to 40,000 vests be provided to garda members.

“The equipment will ensure that garda members can safely and effectively carry out their duties and have the appropriate means to effectively deal with people who or incidents which pose a threat to the public, garda members or themselves and ensure that the risks to garda members associated with dealing with and/or arresting violent and otherwise non-compliant subjects are minimised,” it said in tender documents published Monday.

In the documents, it said gardaí are embarking on a 10-year programme to provide garda members with personal protective equipment which includes ballistic and knife protection for their operational duties.

It said its “threat analysis” had specified a list of calibres that formed the basis of the level of protection it is seeking, similar to standards in the UK.

The gear must meet all their requirements to integrate with the existing garda uniform and equipment, such as bodycams, tetra radios, tasers and “any future requirements the organisation may have”.

“An Garda Síochána reserves the right to procure new models of equipment, both complete suits and individual parts, to meet new threats, make use of new ballistic and fabric advances to ensure that all future product orders are current and suitable for its operational environment over the life of the contract or any extension thereto,” it said.

Before progressing to a full contract, it will trial out the gear of potential contractors and invite three shortlisted ones to submit a tender before deciding the successful bidder.

Earlier this year, An Garda Síochána announced that new and upgraded public order body armour was rolled out nationwide to frontline members of the Garda National Public Order Unit.

This involved an initial investment of over €3.6m, with this new contract set to see new body armour rolled out a wider basis across An Garda Síochána.

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“This body armour is the latest advancement in enhancing the protection and capabilities of our Public Order members,” gardaí said at the time.

“Recently, An Garda Síochána procured two water cannon for use in significant public disorder incidents, round shields for mobility in specific public order scenarios and modernised specialist public order transport vehicles.” 

In the aftermath of the Dublin riots in late 2023, spending on public order equipment by gardaí surged.

The Irish Examiner reported in January that An Garda Síochána spent over €6.3m on equipment in 2024, compared to €2.3m on the same kinds of equipment the year before.

The spend was driven largely by a €2.7m outlay on new body armour and €2m on vehicles, including €1m on two water cannons.