4.5.DETERMINING THE AGE OF A SIGN MA staff should be able to take into account how the appearance of a sign changes with age so that confidence can be maintained in the use of a sign in decision-making processes. This is particularly important due to the extended period of time that MA organisations may be conducting survey and clearance after a conflict has ended. This vital skill will assist in the following ways:
• It will enable an approximate time frame to be established as to when IEDs were being used in the area.
• It will prevent overconfidence in the assumption that a lack of a sign means a lack of threat.
• It will assist in determining the level of confidence in signs.
MA staff should have a good understanding of the assessed IED threat and the climatic conditions that have occurred in the period since the IED contamination was left. These factors determine the ageing process of signs.
The following factors affect how signs will change over time.
4.5.1.HARD SIGNS
Examples of a hard sign would be scoring where tiles have been removed, objects dragged on floors or the burying of IEDs into tarmac / hard-top roads. These are likely to be resilient to ageing.
Image 69. A hard sign in an urban environment
A hard sign can occur regularly in urban environments and will last for long periods of time. This can be especially useful as the use of hand-held detectors in these environments can be problematic, increasing the reliance on visual identification.
IED signs
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