Gentex Corporation is a privately held company that focuses on the manufacture of United States and international military, special forces, commercial, law enforcement, emergency medical services and first responder personal protective equipment products,[1] as well as aluminized fabrics, Lifetex fabrics, Clearweld, Filtron, and Precision Polymer Processors.

After the fire, Marcus Frieder, bookkeeper for Klots, suggested building in Carbondale to use the untapped workforce of wives and daughters of local coal miners.

[3][4] By the time Marcus died in 1940 and Leonard assumed the Presidency, the company's ability to weave quality textiles had led to the creation of entirely new and more sophisticated technologies for use in alternative applications.

Following the war, the government approached General Textile Mills to determine the feasibility of using the same composite-structure to manufacture pilot helmets.

Due to the advancements in aircraft technology, improved protective headgear was warranted to replace the cloth or leather options used prior to 1948.

Under the direction of the younger Frieder, the company began addressing the need for low-noise, high clarity communications systems for helmets.

Gentex Visionix, in partnership with Raytheon Technical Services, is under contract to supply the Gentex-developed Scorpion Helmet Mounted Cueing System to the U.S. Air Force.

In 2011, it acquired Ops-Core, creator of the Future Assault Shell Technology helmet, and InterSense, which specialized in helmet-mounted displays.

Additionally, the company is called upon for specialized projects that require customization of personal protective products for NASA programs, such as the early Space Shuttle missions, and commercial projects, such as Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites and SpaceShipOne repeated launch as part of the race for the Ansari X Prize.

The company holds active industry memberships in such organizations the U.S. Navy League; SAFE Association; National Defense Industrial Manufacturers Association; and Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP), which features such distinguished members as Buzz Aldrin, John Glenn and Wally Schirra, and where Gentex presents the annual Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award.