On 15 April the European Defence Agency organised a workshop on test and evaluation (T&E) standards for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defence (CBRN) detection under the auspices of the Irish Presidency.
Participants from national ministries of defence, industry and research organisations/universities attended the event which focused on T&E equipment standards for biological threat detection as dealt with in the EDA project T&E BIODIM.
Conclusions of the workshop are:
- The need for standards / harmonisation and common agreed protocols/standards for Test and Evaluation of (B) detection equipment was confirmed;
- The EDA project T&E BIODIM will form the backbone for further developments in this area;
- Civ-Mil synergies are recognised and will be elaborated between the Agency and the European Commission under the European Framework Cooperation;
- Recent EC workshop on Standards Mandate in JRC ISPRA confirmed high priority for test and evaluation/detection standards;
- Common agreed EU protocols/ standards will create a win-win situation for end-users and industry:
- For end-users in terms of interoperability (mil-mil, civ-civ and civ-mil) and sensor network capabilities;
- For industry in terms of cost reduction and level playing field and clarity on parameters they are tested against.
- “Live (= real)” agent testing for identification equipment/ procedures is needed.
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