Photo By Scott Sturkol | Soldiers in the Regional Training Site-Maintenance’s Construction Equipment Repairer...... read more read more
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Among the thousands of students the Fort McCoy Regional Training Site (RTS)-Maintenance facility trains every year, many are Soldiers training to the 91L military occupational specialty of construction equipment repairer.
By description by the Army at goarmy.com, a construction equipment repairer has a significant role in Army operations.
“As a construction equipment repairer, you'll keep the Army’s engineer equipment safe and operational by repairing and maintaining trucks, bulldozers, power shovels, and other heavy equipment that is needed for construction,” the description states. “You’ll replace and perform tune-ups on brakes, motors, engines, drive pumps, water pumps, transmissions, and high-pressure hydraulic systems.”
At RTS-Maintenance at Fort McCoy, the 91L10 Construction Equipment Repairer Course trains both active- and reserve-component Soldiers into the career field in two phases, said Master Sgt. William Parker, chief instructor for RTS-Maintenance.
The course has two phases of training, Parker said. Phase one of training is 120 hours and consists of 40 hours of shop operations, 40 hours of basic electrical systems training, and 40 hours of hydraulic systems training.
Phase two training is 179 hours and consists of 80 hours of diesel systems training, 40 hours of power train systems training, 40 hours of brake systems training, and 19 hours of preventive maintenance checks and services training.
“This course is of huge importance to putting those trained Soldiers back into the field so they can support their units,” Parker said.
Spc. Evan Olson, a student in the 91L10 Construction Equipment Repairer Course from the 661st Engineer Company of the Illinois National Guard, said he was gaining valuable experience and more from the course.
“The training is really good here,” Olson said March 6. “It’s a really good class, and it’s very hands on, very informative, and a great experience. I’m learning a lot about different construction equipment and engines and hydraulic systems.”
Olson said he appreciates the 91L field because it offers not only the chance to work with large equipment, but also ever-changing technology that drives innovations in making the large equipment better.
“It’s very enjoyable, very rewarding to … work on equipment,” Olson said. “You get to take this knowledge home (from here) and use it in your everyday experiences, too. … And it’s unique because … in this day and age technology and everything is changing all the time. Different pieces of equipment are changing, and newer stuff is coming out all the time. So it’s always fun to see what the industry has to offer.”
And during one part of their training in the course, the students were asked to identify different parts of engines as a team as they worked together. Olson said it has to be that way.
“It’s still a team approach no matter how you look at it,” Olson said.
Sgt. Justin Taylor, also a 91L10 student from the 197th Regional Training Institute of the West Virginia National Guard in Kingwood, said he also learned a lot from training in the course.
“I’m really taking in all the experiences I can,” Taylor said March 6. “And the instructors seem knowledgeable on the pieces of equipment and identifying the features that we’re learning. I’m a technician full time, so there’s actually things that I’ve been doing as a tech that I’ve realized that I’m not following the procedures. It’s actually to the code. So here I’m able to slow down and really understand what I’m working on and understand how it actually operates.”
Taylor also said he’s learned from other students in the course.
“Since day one, we’ve all got together and talked and shared our experiences as to like what we work on, where we come from, and how our units operate,” Taylor said. “So, every day we’re learning something new about each other. But the crazy thing is, is the military builds you up to where you can just go into an environment, not know the person, and you are brothers in about two days.”
Taylor also praised the staff and leadership of Fort McCoy RTS-Maintenance.
“Really great instructors, really great environment,” Taylor said. “Leadership is really great up here. They take care of it. If we have any troubles or anything, they won’t leave us behind. They’ll set us down, and they’ll talk to us about it. They’ll take time out their schedule after class and explain (a subject) to you more if you need it.”
RTS-Maintenance trains thousands of Soldiers every year in the Army’s 91-series MOS and administratively supports the training of Soldiers in the 89B MOS. The unit aligns under the 3rd Brigade (Ordnance), 94th Division of the 80th Training Command, and is centrally located in the cantonment area with an entire complex to hold training.
Fort McCoy’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.”
Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.
The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”
| Date Taken: | 03.13.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 03.13.2024 15:14 |
| Story ID: | 466097 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 642 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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