Eduard Drach, Technical Director of UDS: "We plan to completely clear 3000 hectares of land per year from EO"

From 1999 to 2003, Eduard Drach studied at the Military Engineering Institute in Kamianets-Podilskyi, has a specialized education as a sapper. This institute, by the way, had one of the best training grounds, where there were all the samples and prototypes of ammunition that were known at that time. After graduating from the military institute, he served near Melitopol. The first explosion of an ammunition depot took place there, in the village of Novobohdanivka, Zaporizhzhia region. A thousand tons of ammunition scattered within a radius of more than 20 km, and it was the unit where Eduard served that began demining work. For about six months, the group cleared this land of various types of explosives. As a result of this painstaking work, I received a certificate of "Participant in hostilities". There he also gained practical experience in the collection and, in the future, disposal of explosives.

After that, he worked for more than 20 years in the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. He was engaged in operational work, namely extinguishing fires, eliminating the consequences of emergencies and situations (accidents, accidents, landslides, emergencies on the water). He served in the Zaporozhye region, in the Crimea, Dnipropetrovsk region and in Kyiv in various positions. He finished his service in the State Emergency Service of Ukraine as the head of the emergency rescue squad of special purpose in Kyiv. He received the highest award in the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the badge "Badge of Honor" and the rank of colonel.

In 2023, he completed additional courses to obtain the qualification of "sapper" at the Interregional Center for Humanitarian Demining and Rapid Response of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region.

How many humanitarian demining processes does UDS have? Tell us more about them.

To date, Ukrainian demining services have a full cycle of clearance of territories and are certified for 7 types of humanitarian demining: non-technical inspection, technical inspection, manual demining, demining using machines and mechanisms, clearing the area of hostilities, informing the population about the risks associated with mines and explosives, and neutralizing (destroying) explosives. We received these certificates gradually.

And I can say with confidence that today we are producing the largest progress of the territories among all mine action operators, both Ukrainian and international. And not the least role in these successes is played by team coordination and, of course, the Bozena 4+ and Bozena 5+ robotic demining vehicles purchased by us.

By the way, in the foreseeable future, we plan to launch another process of humanitarian demining – diving demining.

UDS has everything to fully clean up the land – both people and their education, search and protection tools, all equipment and machines.

How many hectares per year can the company demine?

We set ourselves the following task: with a staff of 100 sappers with 7 Bozena demining vehicles, we want to reach a complete clearance of up to 3000 hectares per year.

What technologies and tools does UDS use in demining?

In mechanized demining, UDS uses five Bozena 5+ and two Bozena 4+ vehicles. In addition, our humanitarian demining teams use about 58 Trembita metal detectors and about 10 Valon metal detectors, which are capable of detecting various types of mines, metal objects, and conductive materials in difficult conditions. Also, non-technical survey teams are equipped with five DJI Mavic drones.

To date, we are faced with such tasks that primary healthcare operators have not faced before. This is an experience that neither Ukraine nor other countries have had before. Especially when we are faced with demining areas that are "littered" with explosive objects after hostilities. For example, in the village of Kiselivka, as a result of the Russians blowing up a warehouse, a large amount of scrap metal and reinforced concrete structures scattered to a radius of more than 500 meters across the fields, and it is difficult to clean up and collect all scrap metal, including more than a hundred different types of ammunition. It is preliminarily estimated that, conditionally, "it is necessary to clear 20 hectares", we determine the cutting of passages by machines, clearing the entire territory after them, and when we encounter directly in the field, many nuances appear, which today we are improving. We are currently working out the method and coordinating with the Mine Action Center the

technical survey and removal of territories through the passages of auxiliary, main and starting vehicles Bozena 5+ and Bozena 4+.

And what is the difference between Bozena 5+ and Bozena 4+ remote demining machines?

In short, the Bozena 5+ is more powerful and has a larger aisle width than the Bozena 4+. If we talk about the Bozena 4+, then unlike the Bozena 5+, it is lighter and more maneuverable. The maneuverability of this machine is a very important characteristic in demining forests and bushes. Currently, in addition to Bozena 5+ in Makariv, our mechanized demining teams use Bozena 4+, just where the area is overgrown with large bushes.

Bozena 5+ has proven itself well in open fields where there are no trees. In agricultural fields, UDS is able to demine up to 2 hectares per day with one machine. If we did not have such machines, imagine how much this time would increase, because one sapper is able to manually demine only 10-30 square meters per day.

What difficulties do primary healthcare operators face in their work? How can this be resolved/settled?

We face a lot of bureaucracy, especially in terms of obtaining certification of processes to carry out work. The second is the lack of a mechanism for compensating losses and remuneration for mine action operators. In order to create a group of 5-6 people, several million hryvnias are needed, and hundreds of millions of hryvnias are needed to create a team of 100 sappers and all certified types of primary health care work. This is a very large investment that the state should provide. There should be state programs to compensate operators, as well as a clear definition of "who should pay for it?".

What technologies are lacking in the mine action market to improve the work of operators and speed up the demining process?

The most practical and effective method is the mechanized demining method carried out by UDS. Other methods that are hypothetical today, but it can also be demining with the help of drones or a thermal, ferromagnetic method. In theory, they work well, but in the fields we tested them and none of these methods gave the desired result. If the Bozena machine can demine up to

99% of available explosives at a depth of up to 30 cm, then everything else is still in theory.

Who works at UDS?

There are almost 100 sappers in our group, and most of them are sappers who have not only learned this area, but have already worked in various law enforcement agencies, worked on the battlefield, in the Armed Forces, there are people who have lost limbs. We have people who already have practical experience from several months to several years.

UDS in Kyselivka carry out mechanized demining with Bozena machines

Can a person with no experience in demining become a sapper?

Course. We hire people without experience at UDS, because we teach everything from scratch, send them to study in special centers where future sappers study and pass exams. Currently, there are people who have learned from scratch and are already working successfully in the fields.

What results can UDS share?

The result of the successful work of the primary health care operator is a certificate of demining of the territory. UDS began surveying the territories in January 2024, switched to mechanized demining in the spring of 2024, and to date, we have already transferred thousands of hectares of land cleared of explosives to the state. We are also talking about the transfer of more than 20 hectares of land cleared of explosives in the Mykolaiv region to the State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine". In August, as we complete demining in Makariv, Snihurivka and Kyselivka, we expect new results.

Can you break the stereotype that sapper is a male profession?

UDS supports gender policy. We have equal rights and responsibilities for both men and women. Moreover, almost 30% of our sappers are women. Some of them have even built careers and become team leaders and do their jobs successfully.

What qualities should a sapper have?

First of all, a person must understand the risks of this profession and know the material base perfectly. A sapper must be quick-witted, easily understand his behavior in the field in accordance with our SOPs, physically and spiritually developed.

What is your rule of life?

In all situations, to stay and have such an honorary title is a human being. Man is God's creation that sustains moral values on Earth, if he completely tramples on them, then he becomes an animal.