Ceradyne was founded in 1967 and in late 2004, the company added new product lines by acquiring ESK Ceramics of
Kempten, Germany. In addition to producing ceramic components for industrial processes such as
silicon foundries and ceramic fuel pellets for nuclear reactors, Ceradyne researched and produced varieties of
ballistic armour for both personnel and vehicles. The ceramic armor was lighter than regular
steel plate armor facilitating greater mobility. On September 16, 2007, the company was selling 25,000 sets of armor a month to
the Pentagon. In December 2007, Ceradyne's lightweight armor was approved by the Army for use on military vehicles.
Oshkosh Truck produced the first of these armored vehicles using the armor on HEMETT crew cabs. Ceradyne was also the producer of ceramic Enhanced Small Arms Protective Inserts (
E-SAPI) for the
US Army's
Interceptor body armor, and the blast-proof components of the
Ceradyne BULL MRAP/MMPV vehicle project. In January 2008, the company also received an order for $9.6 million worth of body armor from
UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries Inc.), which provided jobs and job training to inmates in US federal prisons. On January 2, 2020, Ceradyne, Inc.'s advanced ballistic protection business and the Ceradyne brand were acquired by
Avon Rubber. == Product recall ==