Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) expert Colin King, a former British Army engineer and bomb disposal trainer, will discuss how he manages the many varied risks associated with going about his daily business.

Colin confesses that he is far from an expert in risk management. However, with more than thirty years in EOD and with all major appendages still attached, he can at least claim some practical experience. His background, coupled with a relatively recent introduction to a formalised approach, offers a slightly unusual perspective on the nature of risk.

Colin has become increasingly aware that risk, and its treatment, are remarkably similar across many industries, and many Hazardex attendees will identify parallels with their worlds. Well-established principles, such as the link between risk and opportunity, and the fact that the treatment of one risk often gives rise to another, are equally valid. 

The gap between the perception of risk and the reality is probably wider in EOD than in comparable sectors, resulting in intense scrutiny on the rare-but-sensational at the expense of the likely-but-dull. Because of this, intuitive decisions are often flawed, hence the need for evidence to support key decisions. In the world of EOD, where that evidence is not readily available, Colin and his team have to be prepared to go looking for it.

Colin King

Colin King served as a bomb disposal officer in the British Army, with operational tours including the Falklands, Gulf, Bosnia and Kosovo. He instructed at the British EOD School and spent many years in military intelligence, also leading the first British team to train Afghan deminers before his final tour with the Gurkhas. He is now the technical director of Fenix Insight Ltd, with tasks including the disassembly and analysis of live munitions in conflict zones throughout the world. Colin also writes the leading technical reference work on EOD for Jane’s Information Group.

For more information, visit: https://fenix-insight.com/