For those who’ve been through army in the last couple of years, I’m sure we can agree on one thing:

The green, combat uniform we wear sucks big time.

(Editor’s note: My dear young fellow soldier, you’ve yet to wear the even older ones that take ten years to dry)

Pixelated camouflage patterns? Well guess what; with it wearing us down like a sack of 10 KG dumbbells it really doesn’t matter whether we’re out of sight or not, because by the time we’re done perspiring we can’t even move.

So true. Sobs.

But it seems that with SAF’s all-new uniform design, all those worries can soon be put to rest.

Sounds too good to be true? Well…

Guess we just gotta check it out.

1. Design

No, you’re not seeing wrong. SAF’s new uniform design is that of a hybrid, in which the uniform essentially consists of two parts:

• A green T-shirt-like fabric that combines flame-resistant synthetic material and aramid
• Long sleeves that utilise the same pixelated fabric used in the standard No. 4 uniform

It’s also designed to be worn with an integrated load-bearing vest (iLBV).

Senior Lieutenant-Colonel Yee Kok Meng, head of the Centre of Excellence for Soldier Performance, had this to say about it: “When soldiers wear the integrated load-bearing vests (on top of the hybrid uniform), they would feel more comfortable and endure longer in a combat environment.”

Wait a minute, does that mean longer training periods too?

2. Function

Said to be 40 per cent more permeable, as well as the ability to dry 60 per cent quicker than the routine No. 4 uniform, the new concept supplies better air circulation and heat dissipation. In doing so, the risk of heat injuries has also been largely reduced.

So yes folks, you can finally say goodbye to those wet uniforms that stick so uncomfortably to your skin during training sessions, and wave hello to that new, cooler and faster-drying uniform you’ve always needed.

Or is it? Read on to find out.

3. Occasion

Unveiled to the media on Tuesday (19 June), the uniform was introduced in January for soldiers in army combat units. These uniforms will replace the standard ones for routines such as outfield exercises and combat physical training.

However, other activities, such as parades, will still require the standard No. 4 (of course lah, it’ll be weird AF to be wearing this hybrid uniform for a parade!).

However, do note that it’s not for all vocations.

At present time, all soldiers in the 3rd and 6th Battalions of the Singapore Infantry Regiment (3SIR and 6SIR) have been offered two sets of the new uniform. Other combat units are also expected to be fully equipped come end of the year.

4. Not planned for ORD personnel

Remember what I said at the start, about all those pixelated worries being put to rest?

Well apparently… it’s not the case. Or at least for the lao jiao (ORD personnel).

According to Straits Times, there are no plans for operationally-ready national servicemen (NSmen) to don the hybrid uniform.

Although we like to hope that there’s a yet at the end of that sentence.

But still, according to an old NSmen who experienced the change of uniform, he has this to say: “Don’t change lah, the process is messy AF. I still have my old uniform inside my fieldpack.”

That one, i.e. to say, he really powder.

5. Formulated in 2011

The whole concept was actually started in 2011, and has undergone detailed trials over the following years. The Defence Science and Technology Agency an ST Logistics were the ones involved in the crafting process, with technical specifications and quality checks amongst the procedures they took charge of.

6. Reviews

According to Private Kugan Senivasan, 18, a trooper in 4SIR, the new hybrid uniform’s a definite plus for training sessions. Kugan had first tried on the uniform while performing exercises with his field pack, such as lunges and lifts.

“The (long-sleeved) No. 4 uniform drags on your body a lot,” he said. “But the hybrid is rather smooth and comfortable. So the fact that we get to use this for our training is very beneficial.”

Well I guess that’s like a 4/5 rating? Hmm, not bad. Not bad at all.

Any takers?

7. Other SAF initiatives

It seems that the hybrid uniform’s not the only concept to have been implemented, as elsewhere, a variety of programmes have been set in place.

For starters, a programme, that permits soldiers to do supervised recovery exercises at their own units instead of being referred to a specialist, has been introduced in no less than seven units, including 4 Battalions in the Singapore Infantry Regiment as well as 1st Guards.

This intiative, that helps cut down waiting time to get a specialist appointment, has already seen results, with soldiers now experiencing around 30 per cent fewer musculoskeletal injuries.

Secondly, a wearable technology prototype will be tested out by 150 cadets from the Officer Cadet School, over a period of six months. Supposedly, the sensor can retrieve info such as pulse rate, skin temperature and sleep activity.

Pretty neat if you ask me.

As such, the data gathered could help develop a training app for soldiers to monitor their own progress, and a real-time monitoring session to help commanders detect whether their soldiers are in distress of any sorts.

Which I’m pretty sure will happen, and it’s not just tekan sessions.

Last but not least, a four-week Vocation Fitness Training (VFT) programme has also been instilled in all army combat units. VFT is a customised programme that’s split into three main types: combat, combat support and combat service support units.

And it seems that combat support units, like engineers and artillery units, haven’t been spared the rod either: they will join the system by end 2018.

Apparently, the training will adapt to fit what soldiers do out in the field. To exemplify, exercises will look to strengthen the lower body and improve endurance for lugging heavy loads for long distances.

8. Hybrid uniform

Let’s admit it; the new hybrid uniform isn’t exactly going to win a prize at the annual Aesthetic Uniform Ceremony.

But from what we’ve derived so far, it does seem to function and operate better than the standard No. 4, and that’s really what you want when you’re out in the field with the sun being a real chee ko pek. Right, guys?

So guys and girls, start looking at partners the way you look at hybrid uniforms.

They aren’t the best-looking, but if they can do a hell lot of good stuff for you, you might want to consider picking them instead of say, pixelated shit that get you down.

But still, they really look like they’re designed by Daryl Aiden Yow with Photoshop #burn

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