Page 98 - SyI Quarterly - Q3 and Q4 Edition 2023

Chartered Security Professionals

Optimise Performance and Output of EOD Assets

Michael Brown CSyP

Image 15. Courtesy of OPTIMA Group, land to be Image 16. Ground sign that Searchers are
Searched prior to release in West Mosul - 2018 expected to interpret (Source: Google)

Training

Outside of the Mine Action community , there are limited opportunities to deliver and develop civil
6
Search training. This must change and is something I intend to try to develop. Search is a diverse,
fascinating, and challenging subject but has been all but ignored by many EOD operators and Bomb
techs outside of the UK and some elements of the Mine Action community thus far. I would like to
expand on the ‘Why’ it has been ignored. In simple terms, I believe that the Law Enforcement
arena has never needed a defined Search capability, as the threat was historically simple and relatively
modest. But the dramatic increase in international terrorist organisations and their use of complex
IEDs dramatically changed this position. The Law Enforcement world is a huge beast and change can
be slow. In Military organisations a large number did not focus on ‘Search’ as a capability but rather
focused on the ‘detect’ component because they were driven to simply open a route or area to allow
the original mission to continue. The UK has been fighting internal security terrorists or conducting
policing with a CT mindset since WW2 and has learnt some very brutal lessons over time, not just in
the tactics and techniques of defeating IEDs but also in the law courts with how evidence is gathered,
recorded, managed, and presented. The UK Law Enforcement community understands that the
information gathered and recorded correctly yesterday, when fused with the information and evidence
gathered today, will become the planning intelligence for tomorrow.

Summary

Hopefully I have demonstrated that we no longer need to rely solely on employing Military personnel
to deliver this capability and especially in the Law Enforcement community you can start to grow your
own. In parallel to both strategies and methodologies, Search training will dramatically increase the
percentage chance of success on complex serious crime, Counter Terrorist (CT), and Mine Action
operations. REQUIRO is the motto of the Search community and means “To seek, to hunt for.” I believe
that Search as an activity has much to offer the EOD and Bomb Tech community (including Law
Enforcement), whilst they seek and hunt for EO, evidence, and intelligence.

The aim of this article was to highlight how Search is currently adding significant value to those who
choose to invest in it. I remain utterly convinced and have hopefully demonstrated that Search
strategies and methodologies can and will Optimise Performance and Output of EOD Assets.

6. IMAS 09.13 First Edition (February 2019) Building Clearance, governs the HD community very well (with the help of ex UK Military Search personnel)
98