The Army Combat Uniform or ACU is the latest combat uniform (battledress) worn by the United States Army. It uses a new military camouflage pattern called universal camouflage pattern (UCP), commonly called ACUPAT or even ARPAT, which blends green, tan, and gray to work effectively in desert, and urban environments. Similar to the United States Marine Corps MARPAT and Canadian CADPAT camouflage schemes that preceded it, the pattern design is based on research into Dual Texture (Dual-Tex) Camouflage conducted in the 1970s.[1] It also features numerous design improvements based on input from soldiers. The process of replacing the Army's current BDU "woodland" pattern (used since 1981) with the ACU was to begin in April 2005; however, the process began two months earlier through the Rapid Fielding Initiative and is scheduled to be completed by December 2007. Currently, multiple camouflage patterns and caps are in use at Army posts. The ACU and its component materials will be manufactured by the existing industrial infrastructure in the U.S., which produces the current battle dress uniform.