Specialty Fabrics Review January 2022 - 40

The supply chain got
pretty darn weak, but
we had planned ahead
to a certain extent and
actually had inventory
on hand when the
pandemic hit.
Mark Riffle
Camel Expeditionary
get ready for the rough patch,' " he
says. " But the pandemic actually had
the opposite impact; we got very busy
providing for social distancing, such as
outdoor seating, tables and chairs. "
Celina, too, has seen that business
environment result in less attention
to innovation.
" In the last year, it hasn't been about
technology or new features as much
as it has been just about availability, "
says Grieshop. " With demand high
and supply low, there hasn't been a real
push from the end user for technology.
At the same time, we're still trying to
raise the bar internally, developing lots
of different shelters for the military
space, making them more energy
efficient, lightweight and durable.
" An interesting journey "
Although it wasn't easy, the past
year was a good one as well for
Outdoor Venture Corp. (OVC),
which manufactures soft and hard
wall shelter systems, including mil spec
and other tent-related floors, liners,
and base camp solutions in Stearns,
Ky. " It was an interesting journey,
but we were able to keep a good part
of our forward momentum, as our
products were in need by the military
and first responders, " says OVC chief
executive officer J.C. Egnew, who will
celebrate 50 years with the company
next September. " Still, gearing up for
additional business has become a lot
more difficult. "
OVC has presided over some
advances in the tent cover components
it makes, such as air supported
structures that have been revised
and improved to be more customerfriendly
as a result of experiences
in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars,
according to Egnew.
" What's new is a lot of demand for
Tent Extendable Modular Personnel
[TEMPER] tents, which have several
different types of modules that are used
for building and first aid and hospital
units, " says Egnew. " Also, the army's
lowest-cost billeting shelter, about 10
years old, has been in high demand. "
In terms of fabric, there's no real
changes in the basic mil spec fabric as
OVC sees it in normal tents, according
to Egnew, but he says the company
is working with an Israeli partner
on multi-spectral camouflage fabric
" whose product is the new generation
of Ultra Lightweight Camouflage
Net System [ULCANS] for signature
management. It's a very strong business
for us right now. "
Military personnel are trained on erecting products from Camel Expeditionary.
According to the company, tents that can go up and down quickly are in great
demand. Photo: Camel Expeditionary.
40 SPECIALTY FABRICS REVIEW / January 2022
Spreading wings
When Mark Riffle bought Camel
Expeditionary in 2014, the Pioneer,
Tenn., the company was primarily a
mil performance tent manufacturer.
Riffle, who serves as president and
Specialty Fabrics Review January 2022

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