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manufactured by Triumvirate Enterprises. Based in Indiana, Triumvirate Enterprises is a veteran owned company and the current president of the company is a 28+ year veteran of the military and law enforcement. The companies slogan of The Pillar of Principle should give you an idea of how they perceive themselves and their mission.
Now, let's get into these uniforms and how they did in my wear testing.
As I mentioned, they are essentially navy blue battle dress uniforms or "BDUs". They have all the typical pockets you'd expect as such, but Triumvirate has gone another step and incorporated some of the best features available in contemporary BDU/ACU and commercial clothing designs today. Take a look at the photo above right as I go through some of these features and a few they don't mention in their promotional material but that are valuable none-the-less.
While I'm used to BDUs that button on - both down the shirt front and in the crotch - the Protocol uniform shirt has a zipper on both which I find to be a lot quicker and more convenient. However, on the shirt you don't want the overlap flapping so Triumvirate put three velcro points down the front length. Once zipped you just press down the length and they stick. The shirt can be worn tucked in or untucked and look respectable, but here's a wear hint: if you're going to tuck the shirt in (if you're male) don't stick the last velcro point. That ends up right centered on your crotch and makes going to the bathroom more challenging (it doesn't want to open to allow things through). Leave that bottom one NOT velcroed if you're going to tuck in the shirt (just my advice).
One either side of your chest is the usual breast pocket but behind the main pocket is a hidden pocket that accessses from a velcro shut opening that's vertical on either side of the shirt front zipper. It's not a huge pocket - it's the same size as the breast pocket, so it's sufficient for small notepads, a cell phone, business cards and such.
The sleeves have reinforced elbows with pockets inside to hold neoprene pads. My test uniforms were supplied with the pads and I removed them prior to washing and reinserted them prior to the training evolutions. I didn't find the padding to be restrictive and (as you'll see below) my knees certainly appreciated the cushion a couple times. The same would hold true for elbows but I didn't have the need to get down in a low crawl or prone position to test out the elbow padding. Two additional features about the shirts that I liked are:
- The shoulder extensions provided. Having them gives you more room to reach and turn and makes the shirt feel less restrictive.
- The pen pocket sewn into the end of the left sleeve. Since about 92% of the population is right handed this only makes sense and is convenient.
