Weapons & Ammunition

Weapons and Ammunition Stockpile Management

An accumulation of conventional ammunition presents inherent hazards to local communities in the form of a risk of explosive events in the ammunition storage areas. Ammunition storage area explosions are widespread and increasingly common; more than 623 incidents were recorded in at least 106 countries and territories between 1979 and December 2019.

The term stockpile management refers to those procedures and activities regarding the safe and secure accounting, storage, transportation, handling, and disposal of conventional ammunition.

The objectives of conventional ammunition stockpile management are:

• To reduce and mitigate the risk to personnel and communities from unplanned explosive events;

• To reduce and mitigate the risk of the diversion of weapons to illicit markets;

• To ensure optimum usage of scarce resources.

SafeLane improves the safety, security, and efficiency and efficacy in conventional ammunition stockpile management by providing guidance, by establishing principles and, in some cases, by referring to international ammunition technical guidelines (IATG).

a.     Ammunition storage.

The overriding principle of safe ammunition storage is that explosives are stored safely and securely in a licensed building. 

SafeLane can design and implement an explosive storage control regime in an operational environment that uses UN SaferGuard and IATG principles.  This will ensure the requirements for the routine control of activities within ammunition and explosive areas and facilities during the storage, handling, processing and internal transportation of ammunition and explosives are met.

b.     Ammunition accounting. 

SafeLane can design and implement effective ammunition inventory management to ensure that only ammunition that is serviceable and safe to use is issued to security agencies for both training and operational use.

SafeLane understands the duty of care to protect the civilian population in the local areas around explosive storage areas with appropriate quantity distances based on accurate net explosives weight of stocks.

c.      Ammunition demilitarization/ destruction.

Demilitarization is an increasingly important aspect of munitions management. With a drive for higher performance and greater safety, new munitions and fillings render old munitions obsolete and munitions stockpiles cost money both to establish and maintain, so surplus munitions are an unwelcome expense and potentially a risk.

SafeLane employs several techniques available for demilitarization, ranging from the relatively simple open burning (OB) and open detonation (OD) destruction techniques to highly sophisticated industrial (demilitarization) processes.

d.     Security of ammunition stockpiles.  

SafeLane ensures the effective and efficient security of conventional ammunition stockpiles are a mandatory component of a management programme, as it reduces and/or mitigates the risks of sabotage, loss, theft, leakage, and proliferation.

SafeLane’s systematic control of ammunition stockpiles is in keeping with a philosophy of ‘due care’ and therefore SafeLane takes a proactive, rather than reactive stance in ensuring that ammunition is accounted for and secured to the highest standards.

e.     Transport of ammunition.

SafeLane ensures the safe transport of ammunition on operations by applying UN Model Regulations to provide the basic framework for the safe transport of explosives by road.  In addition, SafeLane applies the European Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR)9 developed by the UNECE, which is specifically designed to cover the transport of dangerous goods (including ammunition and explosives) by road.

f.      Risk Management. 

A critical element of conventional ammunition stockpile management planning and operations is the implementation of a robust, effective, and integrated risk management system.  

SafeLane can provide and implement a risk management system in accordance with the ISO guidance that examines organisational, management, administrative and operational processes and procedures.