Photo By Sgt. Brandon Hernandez | U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Allen Kemper, ARCENT Innovation and Manufacturing Center (AIM-C)...... read more read more
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CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait – U.S. Army Central opened the new ARCENT Innovation and Manufacturing Center, or AIM-C, on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait 27 September, 2024.
ARCENT hosted visitors from the Kuwait Ministry of Defense, the U.S. Embassy – Kuwait, U.S. Central Command, and U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command for the opening ceremony. Soldiers from Task Force Spartan, 1st Theater Sustainment Command, and ARCENT provided a tour and demonstration for the distinguished visitors after the ceremony’s conclusion.
In 2022, Gen. Erik Kurilla, the CENTCOM commander, envisioned a “culture of innovation” that would expand regional partnerships and increase the operational value of manned systems. The AIM-C is the latest achievement of Task Force 39, ARCENT’s innovation task force. ARCENT established Task Force 39 in November, 2022 with the mission to identify, develop, and resource new ideas and solutions sourced from across the ARCENT formation.
According to Maj. Anton Swanson, the Task Force 39 deputy, the AIM-C provides an integrated approach to developing and testing innovative solutions to real problems faced by service members.
“What makes this center unique is its composition,” said Swanson. “It consists of two facilities with distinct capabilities integrated together to accelerate technological solutions and increase readiness. Additionally, we will be able to work with the other CENTCOM components to assist with their innovative development and readiness.”
U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, or DEVCOM, played a major role in providing this capability. DEVCOM already facilitates several innovation centers across various Army formations, including examples at Fort Liberty, NC, Fort Campbell, KY, and Fort Stewart, GA. DEVCOM calls these facilities Design, Innovation, Research, and Technology laboratories, or “DIRT labs,” with the purpose to turn innovative ideas into practical solutions.
The facility is primarily staffed by service members sourced from existing units in Kuwait with the majority coming from Task Force Spartan and 1st TSC. This not only reduces cost, but also enables direct feedback from service members to the AIM-C. Maj. Gen. Charles Kemper, the Task Force Spartan and 34th Infantry Division commander, believes this facility provides solutions his Soldiers can use.
“I would have been delighted to have one of these amazing pieces of equipment in my Forward Support Company when I was a Battalion Commander,” said Kemper. “We will have dozens of them concentrated in this amazing innovation center.”
One of the premier capabilities the AIM-C provides is rapid additive manufacturing and theater wide sustainment support. According to MAJ Swanson, ARCENT leaders can design, test, and produce a new repair part at Camp Arifjan before sending the design or part to forward units in other countries where it can be rapidly printed and employed. This drastically reduces the time and cost required to move existing repair parts, called “class IX” in the Army, across the theater.
According to Maj. Gen. Eric Shirley, the 1st TSC Commanding General, what makes this lab unique is the ability for personnel at Camp Arifjan to develop new designs and acquire repair parts rapidly.
“The capabilities this lab provides the theater enable our skilled fabricators to make items that would otherwise be difficult to procure in a timely manner through traditional means,” said Shirley. “This demonstrably improves our agility in theater and readiness to support troops at the point of need at the speed of war.”
Additive manufacturing is not the only capability the AIM-C facilitates. According to Swanson, Soldiers in Kuwait are developing many new, innovative concepts to address a wide range of challenges, from technological changes to systems design.
“Regarding the development and testing of new ideas in the innovation lab, we are only limited by our imaginations,” said Swanson. “Soldiers from all types of units can bring their ideas in for testing and development to solve a wide range of problems. We have worked very closely with DEVCOM throughout this process, and they have proven to be a world class teammate.”
ARCENT is the Army Service Component Command for United States Central Command and is responsible to the Secretary of the Army for the support and administration of more than 12,000 Soldiers, including those assigned to joint task forces and embassies, across the 21 countries in the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility.
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| Date Taken: | 09.27.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.17.2024 11:39 |
| Story ID: | 483181 |
| Location: | CAMP ARIFJAN, KW |
| Web Views: | 30 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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