which are US military because that’s a requirement,” Groat explains. The Henderson facility now produces Berry Compliant products meeting federal procurement standards for military contracts.All ballistic inserts are constructed and tested on-site, with the company maintaining its own testing facility for batch testing alongside NIJ certification processes. The transition follows years of planning and investment, but the payoff isn’t just about meeting regulatory requirements. “It allows us to have much more control over our processes as well,” Groat notes. The company has been realizing the full benefits of this domestic manufacturing capability since 2024. THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT BEHIND THE ARMOR For Groat, Safe Life Defense embodies a lifelong pattern of building and creating that traces back to elementary school, when the concept of entrepreneurship existed only as instinct rather than ambition. “I love what I do. It doesn’t feel like a job at all,” he says. When asked about exit strategies or long-term plans, his answer remains consistent: “I just love building and growing things and this is what I love, so I can do this forever.” The path to body armor manufacturing followed an unexpected route. Groat grew up wanting to work in law enforcement, specifically investigations with agencies like the FBI or CIA, and earned a college degree in the field.Throughout his education, he ran his own businesses, a parallel track that eventually overtook his original career plans.“After graduating I was looking to make something or do something new and body armor just kind of came to me,” he recalls.“I think it was a subconscious way of merging everything that I wanted to do and something that I was very interested in if I wasn’t an entrepreneur.” Over the years, the company has donated approximately 400 vests through its Guardian Angel program, with numerous documented cases where the armor saved lives from vehicle strikes, falls, and stabbings. Medical professionals have confirmed in 155 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 13, ISSUE 01 SAFE LIFE DEFENSE
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTI5MjAx