Regardless of their intended purpose, military knives have always been used more as tools for the work required in the field and in everyday service than as weapons. In the history of regularly issued service knives, tenders or contract awards specifically designed for this purpose are rare, but were occasionally carried out by clever procurement organisations. Examples include the M1880 Hunting and M1890 Intrenching Knife of the US Army, the little-known and rare Wehrmacht 45 combat and utility knife and the British Army MOD Knife , which is still in service. The HK MP7 Personal Duty Knife (PDK for short) follows in this tradition and is uncompromisingly designed for versatility for all tactical and practical tasks of the army and authorities. It fulfils all the requirements of a tactical knife as well as a modern outdoor, bushcraft and hunting knife. As it is a soldier's personal piece of equipment, it was named the MP7 Personal Duty Knife (PDW) in reference to the HK MP7 submachine gun, which follows the Personal Defence Weapon (PDW) concept. It adopts strong functional characteristics of the eponymous firearm such as ergonomics and grip texture, manoeuvrability, high-quality workmanship and reliability. Swedish 14C28N steel was chosen for the centrepiece, the universal black-coated spearpoint blade. The addition of manganese and nitrogen (manganese increases the solubility of nitrogen in the matrix) gives this steel high hardness, edge retention and corrosion resistance with a fine microstructure. This increases shock and break resilience as well as re-sharpen ability. The tang extends completely through the handle, as can be seen in the lanyard hole. However, it is not exposed at the end so that pressure or a light blow with the heel of the hand can be applied to this area. The all-in-one piece moulded handle is made of indestructible fibreglass-reinforced nylon (FRN). A modular carrying system based on a Kydex sheath was developed for the HK MP7 PDK to cater for all application situations. The knife sits deeply and securely in the precisely moulded fit, so that an additional fastener was not required. Either a sturdy nylon belt loop or a molle-compatible steel clip can be attached.