The Abu Dhabi Proof House is participating in the International Defense Conference (IDEX 2021), to showcase its services and advanced capabilities in testing the quality and safety of firearms, ammunition and defense and military equipment. Proof House is the center for testing firearms and ammunition, created as part of a collaboration between the Abu Dhabi Police and Tawazun Economic Council (Tawazun).
The House, the first of its kind in the African and Asian regions, provides a wide range of services, using cutting-edge technologies, to test and certify different types of firearms, as well as heavy equipment, a competitive advantage that puts it among the world’s top test centers, mainly concentrated in Europe.
Ali Al Ka’abi, Director the Abu Dhabi Proof House, said the center recently expanded its evaluation and testing facilities to Level IV ballistic tests, to include bulletproof body armors and armored vehicles. The move, he continued, comes as part of the centers’ plans to meet the growing demand from the armed forces and other law enforcement and security organizations.
“The Abu Dhabi Proof House boasts unique capabilities to test bulletproof body armors that can resist ammunition up to 14.5mm caliber. This is a very advanced level and one of the highest at similar test facilities around the world,” he added.
Al Ka’abi underlined the importance of the Abu Dhabi Proof House’s debut participation in the International IDEX 2021 as part of Tawazun’s Pavilion, saying it reflects the facility’s growing role within the integrated firearms and ammunition ecosystem in the UAE. He revealed plans to expand the Abu Dhabi Proof House’s operations across the UAE and the region.
In 2012, the Abu Dhabi Proof House became internationally accredited by means of the UAE joining the Brussels-based Comission Internationale Permanente Pour l`Epreuve des Armes à Feu portatives (CIP).
The Proof House is a CIP accredited center to test and certify all UAE made weapons and ammunition to ensure that all specifications for international markets are met.
According to Al Ka’abi, the center also performs inspections and tests to repaired firearms at its state-of-the art laboratory in Abu Dhabi and helps in investigations of accidents caused by firearms malfunction, whilst providing technical consultations and training on the use and safety of firearms and ammunition.
“There is an ongoing collaboration with the international government authorities. We exchange information on unlicensed firearms or illegal weapon trade and we also perform calibration of weapons and ammunition used by law enforcement agencies to ensure that they are safe and free of any manufacturing defects.” he said.
Founded in 1914, the CIP, or the Permanent International Commission for the Proof of Small Arms, sets standards for safety testing of firearms. Its members are the national governments of 14 countries including the UAE, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Chile, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Russia, Slovakia, Spain and the United Kingdom.