About Us
The Design
We have always thought synthetic webbing was stronger, more moisture resistant, and durable than leather or other alternatives for secure strapping material. We expected to see them one day soon become predominant in apparel belt use. Just like synthetic textile apparel has taken over from cotton in competitive athletic applications.
Upon further research, we realized a big hurdle was the awkward and cumbersome adjustment process webbing buckles required for operation, (i.e, adjustment requires re-lacing webbing thru eyelets, slides or loops, and sometimes having to detach buckle, etc.). We figured if there was a way to configure a side release buckle that would insert and adjust into a synthetic webbing as easy as a cable tie, yet release instantaneously it would be a big hit.
Our buckle designer had an even better twist: by reversing the latch orientation, if more pull out force gets applied, the levers would pinch inward thereby creating added resistance, giving this new buckle design superior retention.
The Designer
Joe Ortega, the designer of the Velocity-lok™ Buckle, is a professional Mechanical Engineer. Graduate of Brooklyn Tech HS, and Cornell’s College of Engineering. Joe has over 40+ US patents, mostly in the field of electronic connectors, cables and contact systems using intricate polymer housings and specialized metal contacts. Some original designs have been in production for 25+ years. Joe recently helped developed mechanical configuration for the USB3 “super speed” Type A connector interface (backwards compatible with USB2) that we all use every day!
The Origins
During the design and refinement of Velocity-lok™ CAD concepts, Joe realized he needed to learn high end CNC milling operations to allow the creation of functional polymer material molded prototypes. Joe then joined the Dallas Makerspace to use their HAAS VF-2 CNC industrial milling station. As it turned out the actual Dallas Makerspace CNC instructor was a grumpy curmudgeon and was unable to make time for Joe’s training certification; However, James Staud, who had been CNC certified and a regular Makerspace member, was gracious enough to step in and volunteer time (for free) to supervise and help Joe get necessary CNC training & certification (gcode, etc.)
“Through his kindness, a continuing friendship was henceforth established and we naturally exchanged technical know how from engineer to engineer. Given James enthusiast’s knowledge of military gear and its many forms and applications, plus his knowledge of manufacturing and entrepreneurial business experience, establishing a partnership for producing Velocity-lok™ heavy duty load bearing belts became a “no brainer” as a natural progression. James and his team now has lead responsibility for producing and directing the evolution of Velocity-lok™ fastening sytems into multiple custom duty belt applications and beyond.”
- Joe Ortega