Inspired by tried-and-true emergency responder protocols, our Co-Founder and CEO Justin Li initially thought to combine first aid science with athletic base layers while on duty as a sworn law enforcement officer in the California desert. Faced with difficult terrain, a formidable adversary, heavy protective gear, and high altitude, Justin was looking to improve his odds in the field. Unwilling to add more weight to his kit, he realized that efficiently offloading heat to stay hydrated was the best way to boost his endurance, strength, focus and recovery. He thought back to a special he saw on National Geographic about a device invented at Stanford University that could beat the performance-enhancing effects of anabolic steroids. It was invented by two biologists and called "The Cooling Glove."

Though extremely powerful, "The Cooling Glove" was bulky, heavy, cumbersome and immobile. Justin wanted the power of "The Cooling Glove" but in a form factor he could take in the field. He saw an opportunity to merge two different schools of thought: take the proven capabilities of the Stanford Cooling Glove and mobilize them for field use using the hypothermia/hyperthermia treatment protocols he learned in training called TCCC (Tactical Combat Casualty Care) while with the San Diego Sheriff's Department.

After the mission, he realized that solving this problem could have implications far beyond just law enforcement. Improving performance through hydration could help any human who sweats—especially athletes seeking a competitive performance advantage, military warfighters and fellow sworn law enforcement officers.

Armed with Otter Pops, a sewing machine he barely knew how to turn on, and his favorite compression shorts, he set out to build the first prototypes. After hacking together some crude samples, Justin then teamed up with former Stanford Baseball player and problem-solving guru J.D. Willcox to form Qore Performance®. Taking a crash course in apparel design and American manufacturing, J.D. and Justin traveled the country to source and build out the TCCC Base Layer Line, culminating in a set of premium next-gen USA-made products that boosts hydration by 40%, giving operators a distinct competitive advantage in the field.

Qore Performance® successfully launched another TCCC innovation--then called then The Hydration Shirt--on Kickstarter in late 2015. During the campaign, an office associated with the US Army called looking for a way to solve the “body armor cooling problem for soldiers” downrange and in CONUS training environments. While TCCC Base Layers are a potent and efficient weapon in helping your body offload heat, there are some situations where operators simply need more power than TCCC Base Layers could provide. The tradeoff had always been weight - nothing on the market was light enough and cost-effective enough to be feasible, and most of the more powerful initiatives involved 'ground-up' approaches, redesigning a soldier's whole kit.

In our work with TCCC Base Layers, we had become experts on absorbing heat. We knew that the single most powerful coolant readily available is water, which operators also happen to *already* be carrying. So we set out to more efficiently repurpose this water, talking to end users, interviewing dozens of veterans from Special Mission Units, SOF, Marines, Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen about their constraints. Operators were constantly telling us the drawbacks of their current canteens and bladders, and their crude (if marginally effective) practice of shoving frozen bottled water in their plate carriers, cargo pockets and every nook and cranny available to stay cool. However, the inefficient placement and the limited mass of each water bottle provided only a fraction of what was possible. Enter ICEPLATE®. We designed ICEPLATE® to minimize weight, maximize duration, and maximize body contact. We put in a drain so operators can finally drink all their water. And we made sure it was thinner and lighter than what they were being issued. As an added bonus, it also provides added protection against impact. Working with the top thermoplastic engineers and designers in the US, IcePlate® went from concept to prototype to reality in only six months' time, and is now deployed across all branches of the US military as well as in the kit of body armor users worldwide.

Just two months after launching ICEPLATE®, we received this LiveChat: 

Justin headed out to Arizona where he met with Kevin Fry and Daniel Trotter at Chick-fil-A Scottsdale 101. Shortly after the meeting began, Kevin and Daniel were outside testing ICEPLATES® live. ICEPLATE® appeared to fit the bill perfectly. It was powerful and long lasting, easily fitting over standard uniforms. Daniel purchased five units to run a pilot and sent Justin to meet with Phil Thomas at his Scottsdale store who also purchased five units to run his own pilot program.

Extremely pleased with the performance of ICEPLATE®, Kevin, Daniel and Phil connected Justin with the Hospitality Team at Chick-fil-A Corporate who asked us to make ICEPLATE® available to all Chick-Fil-A stores. We have recently expanded to work with several other Safety and Device customers, including Dutch Brothers Coffee, Costco, Boeing, Great Hearts Academy, Gopher Resources, Raising Cane's, Valvoline Instant Oil Change, and many more great customers we can't tell you about.

We are proud to work with these great folks, and are inspired by their dedication to hiring, retaining, training and empowering great people who build great teams.

Today
Qore Performance® designs, builds and distributes a family of simple, novel hydration and thermoregulation technologies that increase work capacity and offer a decisive advantage to anyone working in challenging environments by weaponizing temperature to boost performance and survivability.

• Industries: Military/Law Enforcement/First Responders, Occupational Safety/Devices, SPORT (Snow Physical fitness Outdoor Recreation Travel), and Aviation
• Over 4,500,000 hours worked without a single heat incident, preventing hundreds of hospitalizations
• Three Patents issued