How to Build a Unit-Level EOD Electronics Training Program

You sent your techs to a week-long IED electronics course. They came back sharp — tracing circuits, identifying components, talking confidently about Ohm’s Law and transistor biasing. Six months later, most of that capability has eroded. The multimeters are collecting dust. Nobody remembers how to calculate an RC time constant. The collapsing circuit trainer hasn’t come out of the Pelican case since the course ended.

This is the reality for most bomb squads and EOD teams. Formal courses deliver concentrated, high-quality instruction — but they happen once or twice a year at best. Electronics skills are perishable. Without regular practice, diagnostic capability degrades fast. The solution isn’t more vendor courses. It’s building an organic, unit-level training program that keeps your technicians sharp between formal instruction.

Here’s how to do it.

Why Unit-Level Training Is the Gap That Matters

A formal MTT or schoolhouse course builds the foundation. It introduces the theory, teaches the diagnostic methodology, and gives technicians their first hands-on reps with functional circuits. That’s essential — but it’s the starting point, not the finish line.

The real skill development happens in the weeks and months after, when technicians apply what they learned repeatedly until it becomes instinctive. A tech who has diagnosed a collapsing circuit once during a course will hesitate in the field. A tech who has diagnosed fifty collapsing circuits — with different component values, different configurations, under time pressure — will work through it methodically and confidently.

Unit-level training provides those reps. It turns one-time knowledge into durable proficiency.

Structure the Curriculum: Fundamentals First, Then Build

An effective program follows a progressive structure. Technicians move through three phases, each building on the last. Resist the temptation to jump straight to complex circuits — the fundamentals are what make advanced diagnostics possible.

Phase 1: DC Theory and Component Identification

Before anyone can diagnose an IED circuit, they need to understand what they’re looking at. This phase covers the building blocks:

Voltage, current, and resistance — not as abstract theory, but as practical measurements your techs will take on every device. Voltage is the pressure that forces electrons to move. Current is the flow. Resistance is the opposition to that flow. These three values, related by Ohm’s Law (V = I × R), are the diagnostic language of every IED circuit.
Component identification — resistors (reading color codes and measuring actual values), capacitors (understanding charge/discharge behavior and how they store energy), diodes (why they act as check valves for current), transistors (NPN, PNP, Darlington pairs, MOSFETs — and how each behaves as an electronic switch), relays (electromagnetic switching), and ICs (555 timers, comparators, logic gates).
Multimeter proficiency — voltage measurements, resistance and continuity checks, diode check mode. Your techs should be able to pick up a DMM and confidently take readings on any component. This is the single most important tool skill in IED diagnostics.
Series and parallel circuits — how component configuration affects voltage drops and current paths. Understanding Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law and Current Law isn’t academic — it’s how you predict what a circuit will do before you touch it.

The Ultimate EOD Electronics Reference Guide is purpose-built for this phase. It covers all fundamental concepts in the context of IED electronics — not generic electrical engineering, but the specific theory bomb technicians need, with practical examples and real component values throughout. One copy per technician is ideal; at minimum, one per team.

For hands-on fundamentals work, the Make and Learn kits provide guided circuit-building exercises that teach component function through practical application. Technicians solder real components onto real PCBs and see the theory come alive.

Phase 2: IED Circuit Diagnostics

With the fundamentals established, technicians progress to analyzing actual IED circuit configurations. This is where the EOD Maker circuit board library becomes the backbone of your program. Each board is a functional IED trainer circuit that behaves electronically like the real thing — LEDs replace detonators, but the circuits are identical.

The circuit types your program should cover, in roughly this order of complexity:

Collapsing circuits — a relay-based circuit that fires when the coil control battery is removed. Two separate circuits (coil control and firing) connected through the relay. Technicians learn to identify the normally closed switch behavior and understand why removing power causes firing rather than preventing it. The capacitor collapsing variant replaces the second battery with a diode and capacitor, making it harder to identify — a critical diagnostic challenge.
Radio-controlled circuits — the TIP122 Radio Squelch board teaches how a modified FRS radio output triggers a Darlington pair to fire. Technicians learn half-wave rectification with a signal diode and why the Darlington’s high gain allows small audio signals to control larger firing circuits. The RFT-2 adds a Quad NOR gate IC for RC timer arming before the CWC7 radio module activates — a multi-stage device that demands systematic analysis.
Victim-operated circuits — light sensors (NPN and PNP configurations), dark sensors, pressure plates, and adjustable LDR-based triggers using voltage dividers with variable resistors. Technicians learn that the same components — an LDR and a MOSFET — can be configured as either a light sensor or a dark sensor depending on placement in the voltage divider.
Timer circuits — from simple RC timers (a resistor and capacitor charging to a MOSFET gate threshold) through 555 timer IC configurations to PIC microcontroller-based devices. Each step up in complexity demands more diagnostic skill. The RC timer teaches the time constant equation (τ = C × R). The 555 timer introduces IC pin analysis. The PIC12NCNO introduces firmware-controlled behavior where the microcontroller reads an input state and fires on change detection.
Multi-function devices — circuits that combine triggering methods. The RC Timer Armed Touch Release uses two MOSFETs — one for the timer-based arming circuit, one for the touch-release firing circuit. The RC Timer & LDR Armed Pressure Plate uses a Quad AND gate IC requiring three simultaneous conditions (timer expired, pressure plate closed, daylight on LDR) to fire. The Dual SCR board combines a kitchen timer arming circuit with a normally open switch firing circuit through two SCRs.
Anti-handling and alarm circuits — the One Zone Alarm uses a Quad Comparator Op Amp as a window comparator, monitoring an end-of-line resistor’s voltage against two reference thresholds. When the zone voltage moves outside the window, a P-Channel MOSFET fires. This teaches technicians about window comparators and why certain circuits fire when a monitored value changes in either direction.

The IED Circuit Boards and IED Circuit Board Kits provide all of these circuit types as functional trainers. Each board comes with a schematic, bill of materials, and functional description — your instructors have everything they need to teach the circuit and your technicians have the documentation to study independently.

Phase 3: Advanced Analysis and Emerging Threats

The final phase addresses complex and evolving threats:

Microcontroller-based IED analysis — PIC and Arduino platforms running firmware that controls arming delays, input monitoring, and firing logic. The Arduino Light Meter circuit, for example, uses an analog input to read an LDR, maps the light intensity to one of seven levels displayed via LEDs, and fires through a Darlington pair when the selected threshold is reached. Understanding how code controls hardware behavior is increasingly critical.
RF analysis and frequency identification — working with the Radio Modules and RF Control components to understand command-and-control links in RCIEDs and weaponized drones.
Drone-borne IED electronics — flight controllers, COTS receivers, servo-based payload release mechanisms. The UAS Threat Kit provides a dedicated training platform for this emerging threat.
Forensic electronics exploitation — component-level analysis of recovered devices to extract intelligence value.

Get the Right Equipment on the Shelf

A unit-level program requires both training aids and tools. Here’s a practical starter list:

Training Aids

IED Circuit Board Kits — the core of your program. Functional circuits covering collapsing, radio-controlled, victim-operated, timer, and multi-function IED types. Modular and reconfigurable for different training scenarios.
Ultimate EOD Electronics Reference Guide — the technical reference that supports every phase of the curriculum. Covers DC theory, component identification, schematic reading, and diagnostic procedures.
Make and Learn Kits — structured builds for fundamentals training. Technicians solder actual components and build working circuits, reinforcing theory through hands-on application.
Components inventory — resistors, capacitors, diodes, transistors, relays, LEDs, ICs, and microcontrollers. Keep a stock of common values so technicians can build practice circuits and replace worn components on trainers.
UAS Threat Kit — for Phase 3 counter-drone IED training.

Diagnostic Tools

Digital multimeters — at least one per two-person team. Your techs will use these more than any other tool.
Soldering stations and supplies — temperature-controlled irons, solder, flux, desoldering braid. Soldering is a skill that’s easy to learn but difficult to master — regular practice matters.
Wire strippers, crimpers, and basic hand tools
Breadboards — for prototype circuit analysis and experimentation
Oscilloscope — for advanced-level training, particularly with timer circuits and RF analysis

Build a Sustainable Training Schedule

Consistency beats intensity. A sustainable program looks like this:

Weekly (1-2 hours): Hands-on circuit work during regular training time. This can be as simple as a component identification drill, a multimeter exercise, or building a circuit from the Make and Learn series. The key is regularity — technicians should be handling components and taking measurements every week.
Monthly (half-day): A focused diagnostic training session with a specific objective. Example: “Diagnose and defeat a capacitor collapsing circuit” or “Identify the triggering mechanism and arming sequence on an RFT-2 board.” Use the EOD Maker circuit boards and give technicians the schematic only after they’ve attempted their own analysis.
Quarterly: Integration of electronics skills into full IED lane training exercises. Build scenarios where technicians encounter multiple circuit types in sequence under time pressure and operational conditions.
Annually: Formal course attendance — either an IED electronics class at your location or technician attendance at a scheduled course. This refreshes the foundation, introduces new threat electronics, and validates your unit-level program.

Use Online Training to Fill the Gaps

Between in-person sessions, online training provides supplemental instruction that technicians can complete on their own schedule. This is particularly valuable for:

New technicians who need to build fundamentals before joining unit-level hands-on training
Refresher training between formal courses — reviewing DC theory, component theory, or specific circuit types
Units with geographically dispersed personnel who can’t always train together
Pre-course preparation so technicians arrive at formal instruction with a baseline of knowledge

Justify the Budget

Building a training program requires investment. Here’s how to make the case to leadership.

Cost per training hour: A set of IED Circuit Board Kits is a one-time purchase that supports hundreds of training hours over multiple years. Each board is reusable — reset the circuit and run it again. Compare that cost-per-rep against sending a technician to a week-long residential course, and the unit-level equipment pays for itself within the first year.

Measurable readiness: Document diagnostic proficiency before and after implementing the program. Track the number of circuit types your team can confidently identify, diagnose, and defeat. Track time-to-diagnosis. Quantifiable improvement is the strongest budget justification.

Risk reduction: Misidentifying a circuit type or making a diagnostic error during a render-safe operation has catastrophic consequences. Remember: proximity negates skill. The better your technicians understand the electronics from a safe diagnostic distance, the less time they spend in the danger zone. Training investment is risk mitigation — frame it that way.

FEMA Grant Funding for Bomb Squads

For law enforcement bomb squads, FEMA’s Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) — including the State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) and Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) — can fund IED electronics training equipment and courses:

IED training aids and functional electronics trainers are eligible under the equipment category
Training courses (including MTTs) are eligible under the training category
Reference the Authorized Equipment List (AEL) in your application and align purchases with your jurisdiction’s Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA)
Coordinate with your State Administrative Agency (SAA) for grant cycle timing and application requirements
Document how the equipment supports National Priority areas — specifically, countering IEDs and enhancing bomb squad readiness

Bring in Expert Instruction to Launch the Program

The fastest way to stand up a unit-level program is to start with a formal course that establishes the curriculum framework and trains your designated unit instructors. Our IED electronics classes via Mobile Training Team (MTT) come to your location and deliver structured instruction tailored to your unit’s current proficiency level. An MTT visit can:

Assess your team’s current electronics capability and identify gaps
Deliver focused instruction across all three curriculum phases
Train your designated instructors to sustain the program after the MTT departs
Help you configure your training equipment inventory for maximum value
Introduce the latest threat electronics and diagnostic techniques

After the MTT, your unit has the knowledge, equipment, and curriculum structure to maintain and build capability independently — with annual MTT refreshers to keep the program current.

Ready to build your unit’s electronics training program? Start with our IED electronics classes for formal instruction, equip your training room with IED Circuit Board Kits and Make and Learn kits, give every technician a copy of the Ultimate EOD Electronics Reference Guide, and stock your parts inventory to keep training between courses.