Each year, experts from armasuisse Science and Technology (S+T) present their activities and projects from the respective research programs. Last year’s reporting event was dedicated to the research programme «Impact, Protection and Safety». Around 60 interested guests from the DDPS were present and used this opportunity to learn about the latest findings from the research programmes and to promote the exchange of knowledge as well as the network.

Focus on the environment

The research programme manager Dr. Ronny Lorenzo, armasuisse S+T, held the opening speech and welcomed the guests. He gave those present an overview of the «Impact, Protection and Safety» research programme and outlined its fields of activity and competences in more detail. Defence-relevant ammunition and protective agents for the Swiss Armed Forces are mainly examined in this research programme. Key areas in this research programme are the protection and safety of mobile objects and infrastructure, as well as computational models and simulations.

The first specialist presentation was held by Dr. Nicola Venturi and Patricia Walder, armasuisse S+T. They demonstrated which role impact analysis plays at armasuisse S+T and how this influences the research activities.

Dr. Anne-Laure Gasser, armasuisse S+T, then held a presentation on the impact of ammunition on the environment. A short journey was taken through time and the environmental influences were put into the context of the past and the present. It was demonstrated how the situation had changed over the years and the challenges that this entails.

Steel: a versatile medium

Dr. Lea Siegenthaler and Dr. André Koch, armasuisse S+T, presented the protection qualities of high-strength steel plates with mounted loads. Here, they showed the impacts of various tests and blasting trials. Steel is a versatile material suitable for protecting objects. However, it also presents certain challenges which need to be overcome.

Dr. Ronny Lorenzo held the closing speech of the annual reporting event. He summed up the event, gave an initial preview of the upcoming activities and thanked all the presenters as well as the guests for their attention and their commitment.

For those present, these annual face-to-face meetings are of great importance – they promote mutual exchange, enable insights into the state of research and contribute to mutual understanding as well as to better cooperation.