Photo By Capt. Maren Scheie | Lt. Col. Todd Starin, 420th Engineer Brigade Deputy Commander, places the 420th...... read more read more
Construction projects on the air base include renovating a storage building to use as office space and remodeling a warehouse to open a troop medical clinic.
Vertical engineers began the TMC construction project by building stud-frame walls inside the warehouse. This newly segmented space will allow the medical staff to treat patients in examination rooms, stow medical equipment in designated storage areas, manage patients waiting to be seen in a waiting area, and have office space for administrative duties.
“We had a solid RIP (relief in place) with 1156th En. Co. which enabled the project leads time to get their feet wet while having their counterpart here on ground to assist,” said Capt. Amanda Thornton, 2120th En. Co. company commander. “Once the 2120th En.Co. was in the right seat, it seemed like a smooth and seamless transition. If we did not have such a good RIP we would not have been able to assume responsibility for over six projects and multiple work orders with almost no lag in production time.”
Another 2120th team is working to renovate a building which had previously been used for storage. They tore out old electrical conduit which did not meet code and are in the process of installing new wiring. The building will be used as office space once complete.
Lt. Col. Todd Starin, 420th Theater Engineer Brigade deputy commander, and his team recently visited to assess the needs of the company to ensure they had everything required for continued mission success.
While at Al Asad, Starin and his team were treated to a base tour and visits to various job sites. At each stop, Capt. Thornton spent time networking with the adjacent units.
“We network to identify capabilities of our partners to our left and right while emphasizing the capabilities of engineers to support other units,” said Thornton. “Networking and relationships are important. However, that is not what determines our projects.”
Ultimately, what does determine the projects is a construction directive from the 153rd Engineer Battalion, their higher command, and coordination with the liaison officer from Task Force Essayons, the primary base planning unit.
Starin said that the capabilities of the units on ground are fully able to accommodate the needs of the growing base and that fully employing Soldiers and giving them time on task is why they are here.
“We have the capacity, why contract out?” said Starin.
What is unique about the situation in Al Asad is the units have assumption of multiple engineering facets under one tasking authority at the company level. The projects and duties of the 649th Engineer Company (Horizontal) and the 258th Engineering Detachment (Utilities Detachment) are rolled up under the 2120th En. Co. realm of responsibility, as well as their own Vertical Construction tasks.
| Date Taken: | 08.26.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 10.13.2017 03:44 |
| Story ID: | 251198 |
| Location: | IQ |
| Web Views: | 926 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 2120th Engineer Company prepares Al Asad Air Base for the future, by CPT Maren Scheie, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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