The 2008 Explosives World conference and exhibition took place in April at Imperial College in London. This prestigious location was the backdrop to a wide range of papers delivered by speakers from the worldwide EOD community.
Steve Holland of SJH Projects presented a paper on the new NATO document AEP55. This is used to define the procedures to be followed when testing the protection systems of vehicles against the threat of landmines. By controlling many of the variables encountered in setting up such tests, the document will allow the NATO research community to better share results and increase the rate of technological advancement in this area.
Like any plan however, it has not survived first contact with the real world without certain issues coming to light. As well as extolling the virtues and certainly the aims of AEP55, Steve Holland also put across some of his personal opinions on where improvements could be made.