EDA-supported Active Protection Costume EOD project co-funded by EU Structural Funds.

Co-funding worth some 5 million euros from the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) has been allocated to a European Defence Agency-supported research project aimed at developing protective clothing for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). Proposed by the Romanian Ministry of Defence, the ‘Active Protection Costume EOD’ project benefited from EDA’s dedicated expertise in its successful ESIF application.

German deminer in EOD suite (Picture source: Bundeswehr/Wikimedia)

Front-line EOD operators face severe risks when identifying, disabling or dismantling explosive devices, be it in military operations or in a civilian context (terrorism, unexploded ammunition in former conflict zones, etc). To provide them with the best possible protection, the ‘Active Protection Costume EOD’ project is developing a special protective suit based on innovative materials and numerical simulations for structures.

The consortium in charge of the development encompasses STIMPEX S.A., a Romanian SME, the Romanian Scientific Research Center for CBRN Defense and Ecology as well as the National Institute for Research and Development for Non-Ferrous and Rare Metals.

The successful ESIF application of this project is testimony to EDA’s important role in helping defence project access EU funding opportunities. After a number of successful pilot cases, the Agency now actively facilitates access for all defence-related stakeholders (MoDs, industry, R&T organisations, academies, labs, etc.) to available funding at European level, with the help of its online "IdentiFunding" tool: a user-friendly and customised software application which allows interested parties to search for eligible EU funding for their specific defence projects and activities.