Federal Laboratories (often FedLabs or Federal Labs) was a company that manufactured

tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ad ...

and less-lethal

riot gun In current usage, a riot gun or less-lethal launcher is a type of firearm used to fire "non-lethal" or "less-lethal" ammunition for the purpose of suppressing riots or apprehending suspects with minimal harm or risk. Less-lethal launchers may ...

s, including the popular

Federal Riot Gun The Federal Riot Gun (FRG) is a firearm made by Federal Laboratories Inc., designed to fire non-lethal munitions. Its ammunition includes 37 and 38mm baton and tear gas rounds. The baton rounds were cylindrical, rubber projectiles. The most po ...

, based in New Jersey and established in the early part of the 20th century.

History of use

Civil order in the United States

In the 1930s, custom gas guns by FedLabs were adopted by the New York Prison department, following a sales pitch made before the APA by the president of FedLabs in Baltimore in 1931. Also in the 1930s, Federal Laboratories actively worked to sell gas guns for the purpose of

strikebreaking A strikebreaker (sometimes called a scab, blackleg, or knobstick) is a person who works despite a strike. Strikebreakers are usually individuals who were not employed by the company before the trade union dispute but hired after or during the st ...

, with one FedLabs representative firing a tear gas grenade during the

1934 West Coast waterfront strike The 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike (also known as the 1934 West Coast Longshoremen's Strike, as well as a number of variations on these names) lasted 83 days, and began on May 9, 1934 when longshoremen in every US West Coast port walked out ...

, resulting in the death of a striker due to skull fracture. Auerbach notes, however, that despite FedLabs stated opposition to "communist" strikers, the firm continued to sell tear gas to the Soviet Union even during 1933.

World War II

During World War II, the company's factory near Saltsburg, PA along Tunnelton Road employed women to replace drafted male workers. There the women produced "incendiary magnesium powder bombs, grenades and other munitions", including FedLabs tear gas grenades.

Northern Ireland

The single shot FRG became the standard

used extensively by the British Army throughout The Troubles in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

Israel

FedLabs gas guns, and CS and CN grenades, were imported by Israel for use in the

Palestinian Territories The Palestinian territories are the two regions of the former British Mandate for Palestine that have been militarily occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967, namely: the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip. The ...

; in 1988 FedLabs discontinued sales of CS and CN to Israel following multiple reports of abusive use of the products.

Sale and fate

In March 1994, TransTechnology sold FedLabs to

Mace Security International Mace Security International, Inc. () is an American manufacturer of personal safety and security products such as the widely recognized Mace pepper spray as well as stun guns, personal alarms, and products for the law enforcement and private s ...

, which subsequently sold the company in 1998 to

Armor Holdings Armor Holdings, Inc. was an American manufacturer of military, law enforcement, and personnel safety equipment. It was acquired by BAE Systems on July 31, 2007 and renamed BAE Systems Mobility & Protection Systems. The divisions have been reorgani ...

. Armor holdings was in turn acquired by

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues ...

in 2007.

References

{{reflist Firearm manufacturers of the United States Non-lethal weapons