KNOW THE TERRAIN

Previous ERDC research on how to destroy bridges is used as the basis for research on how to protect bridges and other structures (ERDC photo)

To successfully plan and conduct operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, our military needed to know as much about the terrain as possible. New terrain products and technologies were instrumental in successful operations. ERDC supplied critical terrain products and services, including Urban Tactical Planners that individually portrayed all major and strategic Iraqi cities: drainage studies (important aspects of route reconnaissance) for seven tactical routes to Baghdad; terrain analysis support for over 600 weapons of mass destruction and sensitive sites; engineering route studies for various Middle East countries, providing graphics that portray major surface transportation systems, terrain and climatic conditions; the Water Resource Data Base and detailed hydrologic information for mission planning and water supply requirements; imagery derived products that depict change detection over selected cities; and quick responses to the numerous daily requests for information on topics ranging from drop zones, to water resources, to soldier bed-down locations.

To enhance such operations in the future, on Jan. 30, ERDC and the commanding general of the Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM), signed a Memorandum of Understanding to continue joint support of Army operations in the Global War on Terrorism and to develop an Information Dominance Center in the Washington, D.C., vicinity. ERDC and INSCOM have cooperated for the past year to fuse geospatial information and all-source intelligence to support the Army’s Global War on Terrorism requirements. ERDC is also creating a Joint Terrain and Weather Effects Intelligence Center that will provide integrated geospatial and weather data and operate as an around-the-clock support center.

To address current life-and-death concerns in Iraq, ERDC recently field-tested a system to locate IEDs, the Improvised Explosive Devices being used to attack our troops. The system used commercial-off-the-shelf hardware coupled with ERDC-developed analysis tools to collect and analyze data along a simulated convoy route. The system successfully identified simulated IEDs. ERDC is also examining innovative sensor packages to detect placement of IEDs and advanced lightweight materials that could be placed around IEDs.

“MR. FORCE PROTECTION”

Dr. Reed Mosher

His official job titles include technical director for Survivability and Protective Structures, head of the ERDC task force for Homeland Security, and lead technical director for military engineering. In simple terms, Dr. Reed Mosher is “the man” in ERDC for much of the research being used by our troops in the field and by Homeland Security organizations here at home.

Mosher shrugs off the titles. “Force protection is no one person’s responsibility; it’s a team effort. There is no one single force protection ‘Bubba’ in the Army. We (ERDC) want to be part of the solution, and we’ve gotten nothing but great responses on our research products.

“Our ERDC research for homeland security is largely based on work we did for military projects, such as weapons effects and military installations. We are piggybacking existing capabilities and expertise. We don’t have to reinvent or retrain people; we just redirect them.

“One area, vulnerability research on civil works infrastructure for Corps dams, locks and other structures, is building directly on military research. While these are special structures, our knowledge base started us way out ahead in these areas.

“Bridge vulnerability is another one. We can do this because of our research background in military weapons and how to destroy bridges and other structures. We have experts who tell us how to attack a bridge. Now we are working on how to protect U.S. bridges. I don’t know any other place that could do this,” Mosher said.

Other ERDC technologies, developed and honed for use with military or civilian projects, have linked applications in Homeland Security issues.

“We have water modeling expertise, such as the Chesapeake Bay high performance computing model. If terrorists put toxic chemicals in a river, we can use these models to predict the impact, alert people, and do a time line for contamination and concentration.

Previous ERDC research on how to destroy bridges is used as the basis for research on how to protect bridges and other structures (ERDC photo)

“What if terrorists created a chemical spill on land? We have developed cleanup and modeling technologies for use on military installations. We just move it on out to civilian areas. Our work on HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems for military installations is helping us with modeling capabilities for chemical, biological or radiological attacks. How does it enter a building? How does it flow? How do sensors detect it? And what systems are needed to clean up? A lot of existing ERDC technologies have application in Homeland Security,” Mosher said.

Mosher believes ERDC will be working hand-in-hand with Homeland Security in the future. “I see us providing more support to the Department of Homeland Security, maybe through component organizations like the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard. ERDC is also influencing the national plan for research and development for critical infrastructure protection. We are working with Homeland Security to develop this plan.”

ERDC has long been a research leader in weapons effects, protective structures, and survivability. Over the years, this research led to protective building designs, retrofits to improve protection in existing buildings, and tools to help do vulnerability assessments. These protective technologies have been used in many government buildings in the last several years and continue to be used today.

These protective designs and structural components went through a variety of explosives tests and computer modeling over the years, but the biggest test occurred on Sep. 11, 2001. When the hijacked plane crashed into the Pentagon, it obliterated the first and second floors. But the plane impacted the first wedge of the Pentagon that had just been renovated using a variety of ERDC-developed protective technologies on the walls and windows. Unprotected offices 90 meters from impact were wrecked, while renovated Pentagon offices only 17 meters from the plane’s impact were relatively intact. These protective technologies were credited with saving numerous lives at the Pentagon.

Although severely burned in the attack, civilian security manager John Yates offered the following during a television news show on the Pentagon, “It’s a testament to the work the people in the renovation did and to the engineers. If it hadn’t been done, if there had been no structural hardening, I can’t imagine what the death and destruction would be. It would have been more catastrophic than what it is, 10 times, a 100 times worse...I don’t ask why any more, I just say thank you.”

New ERDC protective technologies are being installed in the continuing Pentagon renovation. They are also being used in numerous other military and government buildings. But ERDC research in the last year or so has been moving in another direction.

“Since 9-11, our research funding has fallen off in building studies,” Mosher said. “The emphasis today is on the warfighter. Funding for building studies is being diluted to address other things, like the chemical/biological threat. Chem/bio scares people, and there really is a void there. Where we are in building protection is way ahead of chem/bio.

“We needed to focus on warfighter support. Army Transformation started this move, and current military operations have reinforced the need for this research,” Mosher said.

The Base Camp Protection and Survivability Program is an example of this type of fast track, important research. Base camps usually involve lightweight structures (tents, shipping containers, trailers, etc.) in hostile territory – in this case Iraq and Afghanistan.

“We have people this weekend working at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk (La.) to provide overhead cover protection for trailers that are being widely used in Iraq to house our soldiers,” Mosher said.

Results from live-fire tests of mortar rounds on Friday at Fort Polk are in Iraq on Monday via TeleEngineering. Not only do the tests improve design concepts, they also provide real demonstrations and aid in training for the warfighters at Fort Polk who will soon rotate into Iraq.

“TeleEngineering is a major piece in getting ERDC technology to the warfighter,” Mosher said. “A lot of the things we do would not get to the warfighter if not for TeleEngineering.”

Tele-Engineering kits in the field help our soldiers get quick answers to field problems... like what loads can a repaired bridge safely handle (U.S. Army photo)

TeleEngineering uses small, suitcase-size deployable kits that include all the equipment needed for secure two-way video and voice communication between ERDC and soldiers in the field. If our troops run into engineering problems, they can use TeleEngineering to access experts in the United States for quick answers. Approximately 100 kits are deployed now, and ERDC has received almost 2,500 requests for assistance from soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“No one else but ERDC could provide the technology transfer to the user - the warfighter - in such a short time,” Mosher said.

Another major ERDC resource for military planners is the Joint Antiterrorism Planning Guide (JAT Guide). The Web portal-enabled JAT Guide provides the requirements, processes, tools, and templates to produce a comprehensive and effective antiterrorism plan for an entire military installation of any size. The system also has potential for use by cities, states, and other government agencies. It has been field tested at Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force installations.

The JAT Guide contains invaluable planning tools that allow planners to evaluate terrorist threat scenarios, tactics, weapons systems, security upgrades, building retrofits, explosive standoff distances, and potential bomb damage, and even possible threats for incoming or departing aircraft. It is one of the many ERDC tools developed for the military that should also see widespread use in future Homeland Security applications.

To maximize the use of these rapidly developing critical protective and antiterrorism technologies, ERDC personnel take every available opportunity to brief senior Department of Defense military officers and civilians. They also provide training on current ERDC protective designs to warfighters and Corps employees deploying overseas. Interest in this research is very high, and feedback has been extremely positive. Military officers returning from Iraq have confirmed that ERDC protective positions are being used by our troops and that the positions have saved lives.

Mosher credits the ERDC staff for their capabilities and diligent work. “We have very good folks marketing, doing the work, and getting our products out there. Our people are stepping up, doing the job, taking responsibility, and having fun. And they are bringing the new people along, too.”

ERDC’S REAL “FIELD TESTER”

Col. Eddie Chesnut

Col. Eddie Chesnut, director of ERDC’s Joint Antiterrorism Program, is a reserve officer on active duty in Iraq with the 420th Engineer Brigade. As the deputy brigade commander, he handles the command’s day-to-day operations and works closely with the Corps’ new Gulf Region Division. Chesnut agreed that if ERDC provided technology, he would get it in the hands of soldiers to see if it worked. Following are his quotes on ERDC support.

“Everyone is excited and eager to use and validate ERDC technologies in the field. So far, the results have been taken very seriously and are going to be a great help in making decisions based on scientific data rather than emotional responses. This is a great place to do technology transfer, and we are moving out as fast as possible to put the right tools in soldier’s hands to enhance their ability to support the mission.

“We placed an Automated Route Reconnaissance Kit from ERDC’s TeleEngineering Operations Center on one of the 555 Topo Company’s vehicles and are planning to initiate deliberate route reconnaissance this week.

“We just got back from the Baghdad Correctional Confinement Facility, where we have been working with ERDC and the Corps’ Protective Design Center (in the Omaha District) to develop overhead cover solutions to mitigate the effects of mortars that have been killing soldiers there. We have briefed the Combined Joint Task Force-7 engineer on overhead cover solutions for theater standards for our containerized living areas. The brigade’s 21T survey team soldiers and the 21B planning staff are running AT Planner (an Antiterrorism Planning tool developed at ERDC) to validate design against known IEDs and mortar threats prior to our commitment to construct.

Typical third floor view of Pentagon without retrofit, 90 m north of impact site (DoD photo)	Typical third floor view of Pentagon office with retrofit, 17 m north of impact site

“We used TCMS 2.0 (Theater Construction Management System) software to do take-offs on a large group of planned facilities and validated planning options for over $100 million worth of potential construction.

“I plan to recommend a couple of ERDC’s survivability shelters for fuel trucks and overhead protection from mortars at Baghdad Correctional Confinement Facility. They are attempting to try some other designs there, and it appears that ERDC’s design is just what they need.

“Finally, we greatly increase our effectiveness through the use of the TeleEngineering Tool Kit to coordinate engineer efforts on everything from maintenance coordination and updates to construction planning and operational updates. We are scattered out in an area about half the size of California, but we use TeleEngineering to coordinate face-to-face three days a week to work issues and plan events.

“I hope this gives you an idea of what we are doing here with the assistance of the great tools and people from ERDC.”

“Over There”

ERDC personnel have always been some of the first Corps personnel to go to the field for emergency operations – hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, even terrorist bombing attacks on buildings. But this one is a little different; this one is a little dangerous.

Currently, eight ERDC team members have deployed and returned home safely (including ERDC Commander Col. James Rowan – see related story in this issue). Seventeen are currently deployed, including an ERDC laboratory director working for the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, Paul Bremer. Other ERDC personnel have volunteered for deployment and are standing by.

Michael Bishop, ERDC, discusses work with an Iraqi worker at an oil facility in Southern Iraq

Some are on the ground providing specialized engineering expertise, such as updating maps for military operations. Others are helping rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan infrastructure – schools, roads, airfields, and fuel distribution systems. ERDC personnel are also handling administrative and logistical duties to ensure our deployed soldiers and civilians have the equipment and necessary tools to do their jobs.

Other ERDC team members were activated by various Army reserve units and went overseas to a variety of locations for multiple duties supporting our military forces buildup and ultimate operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. A great linking publication is the ERDC “Heroes” bulletin that was published in December 2003. You can access it by going to www.erdc.usace.army.mil, going to the news release link, and clicking on “ERDC Special Heroes Bulletin” under the “People in the News” section.