idea of the sunset is to give U.S. manufacturers time to come up with a comparable product . At stake : a defense contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars . American competitors have submitted alternatives , but after independent testing at North Carolina State University College of Textiles , the Defense Department concluded that TenCate 's Defender M -- with its foreign-made fibers -- is the most flame-resistant . Dr. Roger Barker , who specializes in clothing flammability at the College of Textiles , conducted a demonstration for CNN . Based on his testing , the Army says Defender M resists fire the longest of other fabrics . `` What the new heat-resistant materials are able to do is add seconds of protection , so that seconds of protection can be the difference between a severe burn or a survival burn , '' Barker said . `` Life and death , '' echoes Sen. Johnny Isakson , R-Georgia , regarding those extra seconds of fire protection . He asked the Senate to extend the waiver . `` So long as it 's the best available in the world to protect our soldiers , we absolutely ought to maximize the
WASHINGTON -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- U.S. troops routinely face the threat of roadside bombs while fighting insurgencies in Afghanistan . They need the most protective clothing the market can bear , and they 're getting it -- for now . North Carolina State University College of Textiles tests the flammability of different materials at this facility . Back home , a battle is brewing in Congress over the next lucrative contract for military uniforms . The issue boils down to the raw fiber used in their construction . Current uniforms are made in the United States , in Georgia , using a fabric called Defender M made by the TenCate company . It is favored by the military for its fire-resistant and breathable properties . But the fabric is made with a type of rayon imported from Austria , which normally would violate the military 's buy-American requirement . This specific rayon can not be produced in the United States for environmental reasons , so Congress passed an amendment allowing it to be temporarily imported . The extension expires , or `` sunsets , '' in 2013 , but that year 's defense budget is being determined now . The