| Zero Tolerance Knives | |
| Location: | Tualatin, Oregon |
| Key People: | Jack Igarashi, Chief of North American Operations |
| Industry: | Manufacturing |
| Products: | Knives |
| Homepage: | https://zt.kaiusaltd.com/ |
Zero Tolerance Knives (ZT Knives) is a knife brand of Kai USA, headquartered in Tualatin, Oregon, United States.[1] Both Zero Tolerance and Kai USA are members of the Kai Group, a global cutlery company.
The first ZT knives were produced in 2006 alongside Kai USA's longstanding, Kershaw Knives brand.[2] The original line of ZT knives included collaborations between custom knifemaker Ken Onion and Strider Knives.[3] [4] Early products were combat knives, but Zero Tolerance later expanded its market to include more general use knives.[5] Currently, all ZT products are manufactured in Kai USA's Tualatin, Oregon facility.
Over the course of the brand's history, eight individual Zero Tolerance knives have won awards at the annual Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia. The following models have received recognition:
| Year | Model | Designer | Award | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Model 0500 | Grant and Gavin Hawk | Most Innovative American Design of the Year Award[6] | |
| 2011 | Model 0777 | Kai Original Design | Overall Knife of the Year Award[7] | |
| 2011 | Model 0560/0561 | Rick Hinderer | Collaboration of the Year Award | |
| 2012 | Model 0888 | Kai Original Design | Overall Knife of the Year Award[8] | |
| 2012 | Model 0600 | R.J. Martin | Collaboration of the Year Award | |
| 2013 | Model 0454 | Dmitry Sinkevich | Overall Knife of the Year Award[9] | |
| 2014 | Model 0562CF | Rick Hinderer | American Made Knife of the Year Award[10] | |
| 2015 | Model 0999 | Kai Original Design | American Made Knife of the Year Award [11] |
Zero Tolerance Knives manufactures USA-made folding knives and fixed blades. The brand has worked with custom knife makers such as Les George, Jens Anso, Dmitry Sinkevich, Todd Rexford, Rick Hinderer, R.J. Martin, Tim Galyean, Grant and Gavin Hawk, Ken Onion, and Gus T. Cecchini.[12] ZT Knives has also collaborated with Emerson Knives.