What Armament Research Services does

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a privately held Australian specialist technical intelligence consultancy, registered as Armament Research Services Pty. Ltd. and headquartered in Perth, founded in 2013. ARES provides full-spectrum research and analysis on arms and munitions for government departments, NGOs, think tanks, media organisations, and host-country security services, with the ability to operate in both permissive and non-permissive environments, including conflict and post-conflict zones. Core service lines are Research and Analysis (with in-country Field Research capabilities delivered by 1–3 person teams), Project Support and Technical Review, Training (arms identification, PSSM, counter-proliferation, technical intelligence exploitation), and Special Projects including CBRN/WMD, FIREWATCH, and counter-poaching support. Adjacent offerings include specialised consulting for video game production (audio, motion capture, live-fire reference) and archaeological consulting (UXO/ERW assessments).

ARES monetises through bespoke professional-services engagements initiated via direct contact forms and specialised email addresses, with services scalable per client need; no public pricing or productised SaaS is offered. The company also publishes an extensive open library — 12 Research Reports, 6 Special Reports, Field Guides, Arms & Munitions Briefs, Research Notes, and The Hoplite company blog — and releases proprietary reference artifacts including the ARES Arms & Munitions Classification System (ARCS, v1.3), the ARES Glossary (v1.1), the Crater Analysis Tool, and the FAL Year of Production Estimator. It maintains the confidential CONMAT database and co-operates the Open Source Munitions Portal (OSMP) with Airwars.

ARES operates globally across Australia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas, with a small headcount of 11–50 employees and a sales-led, direct-engagement GTM motion. The firm is founder/operator controlled with no disclosed institutional investors, funding rounds, or parent company affiliations, and positions itself as apolitical and policy-neutral, reserving the right to decline engagements it deems ethically problematic.

Name

Armament Research Services

Legal name

Armament Research Services Pty. Ltd.

Website

https://armamentresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a Perth-based, privately held specialist consultancy providing technical intelligence, field research, and training on arms and munitions to government departments, NGOs, think tanks, media, and security services worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Defence and security intelligence consulting

NAICS

National Security (928110), Security Systems Services (except Locksmiths) (561621)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Engineering Services (8711), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Enterprise Security Strategy & Program Advisory (BPAKADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mine Action & Explosive Ordnance Risk Reduction (EOD/ERW) (BPADAFAH), Instrumentation, Controls & Automation Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAM), Emergency Response & Search-and-Rescue (SAR) (BPAGAAAA)

Keywords

• Arms intelligence consulting
• Munitions technical analysis
• Conflict damage assessment
• Small arms identification
• Counter-proliferation research

Headquarters

HQ city

Australian Capital Territory

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Research and Analysis Services: Professional research and analysis examining arms and munitions related topics, including field research, OSINT collection, and tailored analysis reports. Services can be conducted in-country or offsite.
2. Technical Review Services: Technical review and fact-checking services for publications, ideal for think tanks, NGOs, government departments, and news organisations.
3. Training Services: Comprehensive training on arms and munitions subjects, delivered as professional development or capability development to host-country security services.
4. Project Support Services: Scalable project support from managing technical projects from outset to providing pre-release technical review.
5. Video Game Services: Specialized consulting for video game production including audio recording, video reference, motion capture, and photographic reference materials.
6. Archaeological Consulting: Support to archaeological efforts providing specialist expertise in historical arms and munitions topics, including UXO assessments and risk assessments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a specialist technical intelligence consultancy that delivers research and analysis, field research, technical review, training, and project support on arms and munitions topics for government and non-government clients. Services cover small arms and light weapons identification, conflict damage assessment, counter-proliferation analysis, CBRN/WMD topics, stockpile management, and specialised consulting for video games and archaeological UXO work. The company is supported by proprietary tools and reference systems, including the ARCS classification framework, ARES Glossary, CONMAT database, OSMP, Crater Analysis Tool, FAL Year of Production Estimator, and the FIREWATCH Programme.

Product overview

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a specialist technical intelligence consultancy offering a portfolio of services rather than a unified software product. Core consulting services include Research and Analysis (with Field Research capabilities), Project Support and Technical Review, Training, and Special Projects (CBRN/WMD and FIREWATCH). The company publishes a comprehensive set of research products including the ARES Arms & Munitions Classification System (ARCS), the ARES Glossary, Research Reports (1-12), Special Reports (1-6), Field Guides, Arms & Munitions Briefs, and Research Notes. Additionally, ARES provides specialized consulting services for video games and archaeological projects, and offers tools such as the Crater Analysis Tool and FAL Year of Production Estimator. The company's blog, The Hoplite, disseminates ongoing analysis and updates.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Hoplite: ARES company blog featuring research updates, analysis, and publications on arms and munitions topics.

Products and services

• Research and Analysis Services
• Field Research Services
• Technical Review and Project Support Services
• Training Services
• Video Game Services
• Archaeological Consulting
• Counter-Poaching Services
• Special Projects (CBRN/WMD)
• FIREWATCH Programme

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AirwarscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint project with Airwars on the Open Source Munitions Portal (OSMP), a collaborative database documenting munitions used in conflicts. This partnership combines ARES technical expertise with Airwars' civilian harm documentation capabilities to create a comprehensive open-source munitions tracking resource.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute): Independent research institute on armaments, arms control, and conflict. Comparable in producing arms-related research and analysis for government and multilateral customers, though operating at a larger, academic-leaning scale.
• RAND Corporation: Large US policy research organization producing defense and security analysis for government clients. Comparable in providing research and advisory services on defense topics, though at vastly greater scale and breadth.
• Janes (Jane's Information Group): Long-established open-source defense intelligence provider serving governments and industry with much broader coverage across defense, aerospace, and transport. Comparable as a defense OSINT/analytical services competitor but at far greater scale.
• Royal United Services Institute (RUSI): UK defense and security think tank producing research, publications, and advisory services. Comparable overlap with ARES's policy support and research-reporting work for government and defense stakeholders.
• IISS (International Institute for Strategic Studies): Global think tank publishing strategic analysis including The Military Balance and Armed Conflict Survey. Comparable in serving government and policy customers with defense and conflict intelligence, though at much broader scope.

Emerging players

• Control Risks: Global specialist risk consultancy providing political, security, and integrity risk services to government and corporate clients. Comparable in field-research capability and in serving government security-services customers, though broader in scope.
• Bellingcat: Netherlands-based open-source investigations collective producing conflict and weapons-related research. Comparable in OSINT-driven arms and munitions identification work, particularly through the NATIC/equipment tracking ecosystem.
• Sibylline: Specialist security and intelligence advisory firm providing risk analysis and bespoke intelligence to corporate and government clients. Comparable as a focused intelligence advisory serving government and security-services customers.

Direct peers

• Conflict Armament Research: UK-based field-investigation outfit that documents illicit weapons flows in conflict zones for governments and NGOs. Most directly comparable to ARES in mission, customer base, and field-research methodology.
• Small Arms Survey: Geneva-based research center producing authoritative studies on small arms and light weapons. Closely comparable as a research and publication-driven organization serving the same policy and humanitarian customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Arms_Research
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/armament-research-services
• Facebookfacebook.com/armamentresearchservices

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Armament Research Services