US Army Corps Europe District in...

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E ngineeringin Europe

Vol. 4 No. 2 Summer 2002U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Europe District

US Army Corpsof Engineers®Europe District

InsideInside

Ankara Project Office Booms

Contract Floodgates Open

Page 6

$50-Million AFRC Resort

Under Way in Germany

Page 8

Israel - Bases for Peace,

Basis for Progress

2

Engineering in Europe is an unofficial publication of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Europe District, authorized under theprovisions of AR360-1. The editorial views and opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers orthe Department of the Army. Engineering in Europe is a command information publication of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, EuropeDistrict. Circulation is 650. Articles, photographs, and other contributions are welcome and encouraged. The editor reserves the rightto make editorial changes to all material submitted for publication. Letters to the editor are also encouraged. The deadline for submissionsis the 1st of the month preceding publication. Send submissions to: Editor, Engineering in Europe, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,Europe District, CMR 410, Box 1, APO AE 09096. Details may be obtained from the PAO at (011) 49-611-816-2720 or DSN 336-2720. Written material may be electronically sent to the following e-mail address: [email protected]. An electronic versionof Engineering in Europe may be viewed on the Europe District Internet homepage at: http://www.nau.usace.army.mil

Engineering in Europe

2Engineering in Europe

Commander: Col. Michael R. PelkeyDeputy Commander: Lt. Col. Stephen TennantDeputy District Engineer: Lloyd CaldwellPublic Affairs Chief: Grant SattlerEditor/Layout: Brian H. TempleIntern: Byron S. Kimbrough

Summer 2002

EB-E Summary Earns Top Design AwardBy Brian H. Temple

On the Cover ...Tim Anderson (left), construction representative for EuropeDistrict, talks to Heinrich Wild, Staatsbauamt Fulda, aboutan inspection of this $2.75 million hangar in Hanau,Germany. See story on Page 3.

The planning process was lengthy, tedious, andoriginally conducted behind closed doors but iteventually crystallized into a 28-page executive summarythat earned a first-place award by theAmerican Planning Association. Judges from the association,and the University of Chicago,scrutinized the collection ofdrawings, photos and artists’renderings of Grafenwöhr’s billion-dollar Efficient Basing-East project in April. Thebooklet, titled “Executive Summary, Efficient BasingEast, East Camp Grafenwöhr, Germany” took tophonors in this year’s Federal Planning Division AreaDevelopment Plan category. “Overall the faculty was impressed with the highquality of most submittals. The scores were high andcompetition keen,” said Charles Hoch, director, UrbanPlanning and Policy Program, College of Urban Planningand Public Affairs, University of Illinois at Chicago. Europe District employees joined Marc Shereck, anurban designer with Nakata Planning Group, as well asother team members, and produced the executivesummary. The product was intended to bring the projectto life for Congress and Army leadership, said DanLeFevre, project manager with the Corps. In its original stages the proposal was a monstrousbook, but had to be eventually whittled down tosomething reasonable he said. “It was a big, giant stationing plan, four inches thickthat detailed nine options of where units would go,” hesaid. “We tackled three options at a time. ‘Well, wedon’t like these two, can we expand on this one, and

then finally – boom, boom, boom – we got the finaloption.’” That “final option” went through a design process

and ended up being the award-winning product. According to LeFevre,Shereck completed the executivesummary in about three months.Shereck and his team came toGrafenwöhr, scoped out the site,designed first-rate graphics, andsubmitted the preliminary booklet

at the conclusion of the three-week data collectionperiod LeFevre said. This is United States Army Europe’s (USAREUR)single largest project topping off at just over one billiondollars, LeFevre said. He takes pride in the magnitudeof the project and the executive summary representingit. “It all started with one of these $200,000 stationingplans,” LeFevre said. “It was exciting to see our mostimportant projects matched with one of their mosttalented guys. Marc has something special and had away of making it all come together.” LeFevre said Shereck’s talents were key in thisprocess, and he would enjoy working with him again. Shereck said he is honored by the recognition, andthat he has enjoyed his work with Corps team. “It is recognition from my peers … for work I havea great deal of passion for. I’ve been lucky in thatmost of my associations with the Corps of Engineershave been working partnerships on interesting projectsthat have established planning precedent,” Sherecksaid.

3Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002

Photo by Brian H. Temple

Khalil Karimi, WiesbadenProject Officer (left), receivesa commander’s coin fromLt. Gen. Robert Flowers,Commanding General ofUSACE (right) while Al Hasty,Project Office Engineer withthe Wiesbaden Project Officelooks on. Karimi showedFlowers the ongoing bathroomand laundry renovationstaking place in Wiesbaden’sCrestview Village duringFlower’s visit to EuropeDistrict in April.

For A JobWell Done

Blackhawks to Move Into New HangarBy Brian H. Temple

Just the diagram of the steel-beamed structure is impressiveenough to make a kid with an

“During a site visit theparticipants heard loud popping andcracking coming from the 60 plus-year-old wood structure every time

“What could have easily

been a disastrous

situation … has turned

out to be an exemplary

facility that will be usable

for the next 60 plus

years.” Michael HenryProject Engineer

Erector Set ™ jealous. Addnew electrical systems, anoverhead hoist, and a firesuppression system to top itoff, and you’ll haveFliegerhorst Kaserne’s mostmodern addition – the newhome for the 1st InfantryDivision’s, D. Company,2-501st Aviation Battalion’sBlackhawk helicopters. The U.S. Army Corps ofEngineers Europe District isscheduled to slide open thedoors to the $2.75 millionhangar project in Hanau,Germany in July. The former hangar, a World-War-II-era structure, was originallygoing to undergo renovations, butone site visit in May of 2000encouraged decision makers tochoose a completely new structure.

In a joint venture, theStaatsbauamt Fulda and ArgeUlrich-Elo Fertigbau (J.V.), Fulda,began to build the steel-trussed

the wind blew,” said MichaelHenry, a Project Engineer in theHanau Resident Office. Priorities drastically changedHenry said, and plans for a newhangar went into production.

frame in August of 2000.Switching from a minorrenovation to a completerebuild, however, requiredplanners make significantchanges, obtain additionalfunding and add one morecontractor. H. Kammerdienerof Gersfeld paired up withStaatsbauamt Fulda to tacklethe interior work, whichincluded new electrical andheater systems, redoing floors,painting walls, replacing tiles,etc.

See “Hangar” on Page 4

“With an aged facility such asthis, with so many users since thelate 1930’s, it was difficult to becertain what kind of work was donewhen, and why,” Henry said.

4 Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002

The building concealed many renovationchallenges, Henry said, and the floor and theelectrical system were especially “dilapidated.” This was no surprise to Delta Company. In the former hangar, they plugged a cart-mounted power distribution box into a wall socketand then drew power from the box. The boxwould convert the German voltage into powerthat they could use for the aircraft, but the powerwas unreliable. “Some days we would plug in and it wouldstop working. We would have to move theaircraft to the hangar next door to get power,”said Warrant Officer Daniel Loomis, ProductionControl Officer, Delta Company.

Hangar: Safety features and state of art equipment installedcontinued from page 3

Tim Anderson, construction representative for Europe District’sHanau office points out the magnitude of the steel support frameused in this $2.75-million hangar in Hanau, Germany.


was there along during the process to help with itsconstruction thanks to the project team concept. Henry said the key to working through the design,as well as the construction, was bringing all the partieson board. “What could have easily been a disastrous situation… has turned out to be an exemplary facility that willbe usable for the next 60 plus years; especially with allthat steel!” Henry said. “Since the process … included a representative ofthe end-user, the actual helicopter mechanics, theirpoint-of-view was directly conveyed and represented inthe resulting facility. It pays to be inclusive of the realstakeholders. That’s the whole point of successfulteamwork.”

USACE Leadership -Gettin’ Out, Shaking Hands

(Above) Brig. Gen. Carl Strock, Director ofMilitary Programs for USACE (left), visitsSimon Rosa, chief of Plans, Security andOperations Division (middle), and Lt. Col.Stephen Tennant, Deputy Commander, EuropeDistrict, during a March visit in Wiesbaden.

Photos by Grant Sattler

(Left) Maj. Gen. HansVanWinkle, DeputyCommanding General,USACE, meets GreggTakamura, Chief ofConstruction, as well asother Europe Districtemployees during hisMay visit to Wiesbaden.

You don’t have to talk to Loomis for long toknow that he is ready for the battalion’s new home.The days of electrical blowouts are soon over. The newhangar has a built in power supply that converts theelectricity and can directly power the aircraft. A new overhead hoist that travels the length of thehangar will also save them some muscle aches. Thehydraulic system can be used with a push of a fewbuttons. Loomis said, “It is very convenient for thehelicopter maintainers. They don’t have to move heavyobjects around the hangar, or leave a lot of extra cordslaying around. The new system is very simple and it’svery safe with how they developed the power box.” When the doors are opened, the facility shouldunquestionably meet the needs of Loomis and crew. He

Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002 5

By Grant Sattler

Renovation Preserves HistoricalBuilding for Accountant Headquarters

Although renovation is just 20percent into the “pardon our dust” phase, Defense

Finance Accounting Serviceemployees throughout Europe canbank on their new consolidatedheadquarters being fit for a kaiser. The three story Building 3200 onKaiserslautern’s Kleber Kaserne,with its historic Jugendstil façade,sunny courtyards and clock tower,will be ready to take on new life asan administrative center forapproximately 270 workers byAugust 2003. That is thanks to a time lineshortened by almost two yearsbecause of authorization from theGerman Ministry of Defense for theU.S. Army Corps of Engineers,Europe District to manage theproject directly with the contractor,without going through theStaatsbauamt KaiserslauternLBB. “We were approached by[DFAS] a couple of years ago witha study on the project,” said LalitWadhwa, Europe District’s chief,project design section, InstallationSupport. When DFAS plannerslearned that LBB did not projectcompletion of the project until 2005,they requested Europe District askfor permission to manage theconstruction. “We said ‘OK, we’ll assistwhere we can … that’s a veryunusual process, but we’ll see,’”Wadhwa said. Europe Districtpresented justification based oncommunications installations for theDFAS financial network andreceived permission from Bonn,with provision that designs becoordinated with the local German

historical office and theStaatsbauamt. DFAS is consolidating itsEurope-based offices to placeoperations under one roof and torealize cost savings from thereduction in the number of facilities.“We’re establishing ourconsolidation date based on theavailability of the new facility,” saidJan Nordsiek, the project managerfor DFAS. The $7.7 million project is thelargest Europe District hasundertaken in recent years inGermany outside the indirectprocess stipulated by theinternational agreement known asABG75.

Pho

to b

y B

rian

H. T

empl

e

Contract workersfor SKE GmbH gutthe interior andrebuild the roof ofBuilding 3200 onKaiserslautern’sKleber Kaserne.This century-old,three story,122,000 squarefoot historicalbuilding will be theEuropeanheadquarters forthe DefenseFinance AccountingService. Thebuilding isexpected to beready by August2003.

See “DFAS” on Page 14

Gutting and rebuilding a century-old, three story, 122,000 square foothistorical building could be anightmare, as extensive renovationsare often fraught with hiddenproblems, escalating costs andslipping timelines. But carefuladvanced structural analysis anddetailed preparation for work on thebuilding is keeping the project withinbudget. “We did a thorough investigationof the building beforehand, includingenvironmental issues and asbestosabatement,” Wadhwa said. “Wealso hired an architecture andengineering firm to do structuraldesign to supplement our in-housedesign.”

Atop a 3,000-foot mountain south of Ankara, the U.S.Army Corps of Engineers, EMTA Construction Co., Inc., andSun Power are installing 212 solar panels to keep a seismictower active year round. The tower, located at Elmadag, a

6 Summer 2002

Engineering in Europe

Contract Floodgates Open in Ankara

Shake, Rattle, and Roll

By Brian H. Temple

John Rogers, chief of Ankara Project Office (left), updates Maj.Joe Gandara, area engineer for the TUSEG office, on the status ofthe Elmadag tower solar project in May.

I Get By With a Little Help …

The U.S. Engineering Group’s (TUSEG) recentlyresurrected Ankara office in the Republic of Turkey is doingjust about everything under the sun - from new roofs andseismic work to guard posts and installing solar panels. Arecent revival of construction in Turkey’s capitol is keepingTUSEG staff busy with a diverse workload.

remote site amid sheep, cattle and their herders, is one in anetwork measuring earth-shifting activity throughout Turkey. Local power is unreliable and is cut off during the wintermonths said John Rogers, chief of the Ankara Project Office.The Corps was hired to ensure the tower remains active -solar power was the answer. The $206,000 project, completed in June, is the largestsolar project of this type in Turkey. The continued powersource will enable staff at the Kandili Observatory andEarthquake Research Institute at Bogazici University to usethe structure with its 300-foot cable descending below theearth’s surface to gather data on earthquake activity. TheElmadag tower sits on a relatively stable plateau, and thismakes it one of the more reliable towers for the university,Rogers said. Formerly, the U.S. Air Force Technical ApplicationsCenter, under the guidelines of the Comprehensive NuclearTest-Ban Treaty, operated the tower to measure undergroundnuclear detonations but turned it over to the Turkishgovernment about a year and a half ago. Under the transferagreement, the U.S. military was obliged to assist in theoperations of the station, said Air Force Maj. Jeffrey Rumrill,Chief Installations and Activities for the Office of DefenseCooperation, Turkey. Subsequently, the Turkish military gave the tower to theKandili Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute atBogazici University, but the U.S. still helps with its upkeep,Rumrill said. The university did not have the technical capability on handto maintain the site, but with a permanent solar-power systemthe university can get a broader and more consistent range ofdata, he said.

Most of the Ankara Project Office’s work is in themetropolis of just over 3.5 million people, and the doors to theAnkara project office opened full time with Roger’s arrival inearly May. With April’s end to an approximate five-year delayon military construction at the Office of Defense Cooperation,projects for the office are quickly gaining momentum. With the arrival of the updated “2002 ConstructionCircular,” the international agreement between the UnitedStates and the Republic of Turkey dictating constructionpractices, the floodgates on a back log of projects are about toburst open. The former construction circular, which was implementedfrom 1997 through early 2002, bureaucratically suffocated thedirect contratincg process. Because of the lack of flexibilityduring that timeframe, much military construction was put onhold.


Summer 2002

Maj. Joe Gandara, area engineer for the TUSEG office (left) gets an update on the Officeof Defense Cooperation roof construction from Orkun Dincer, EMTA Consruction Co.,Inc., Project Manager. Europe District and EMTA Construction are working together onseveral renovation projects at the Office of Defense Cooperation in Ankara.

Renovations to the ODCheadquarters were among the projectsthat were in limbo. Between now and November of thisyear, $1.4 million is budgeted for ODCrenovations alone Rumrill said. Thebuilding’s roof is already under way andonce the exterior work is completedinterior renovations will begin. Rogers said he was heading to workin the Republic of Georgia, but wasasked if he would take an assignment inAnkara to develop relationships withU.S. agencies, including staff at theODC. He was happy to oblige. “My vision for the Corps here is tobe the construction manager of choice,”Rogers said. “I’m the Corps salesman,the Corps inspector, the Corpsestimator, the Corps statement of workauthor … I’m the Corps in a nutshell inAnkara.”

Ankara’s projects over the past have not had multi-milliondollar price tags attached, but even with the “nickel and dime”nature of their work the Corps has overseen approximately$256,000 in renovations and construction at the ODC, saidRogers. “Our projects in Ankara are much more diverse than whatyou may see in Germany. Not only are we doing standardconstruction projects such as roofing or building a playgroundat the DoDDS (Department of Defense Dependants Schools)school, but we’re also doing communications and solar work,”he said.

Nickel and Dime Jobs Add Up

The entrance of the Office of Defense Cooperation once haduneven, stone steps. Visitors now enter via smooth concretesteps. The 72-year-old building’s $25,000 facelift is one ofseveral upgrades completed to the ODC by Europe District.

Rumrill, the staff engineer for theODC, and the single point of contactbetween the Turkish and U.S. militariesfor just about anything related to building,intends to tap into that shell and use Roger’s talents. With the U.S. government back on track with majorconstruction projects, other locations throughout Turkey -Incirlik Air Base, Izmir, and Eskisehir - should see renovations,new construction, and possible expansions as well, he said. Rumrill said he plans to use the Corps’ talents wherever hecan and wherever else construction may occur. “I think the Corps of Engineers is going to see atremendous increase in work over the next five to 10 years,”he said.

External renovations to the ODC headquarters and groundsare examples of how the projects add up. The entrance of the headquarters building once haduneven, stone steps like set of crooked teeth that were ahazard to walk on, Rumrill said.

See “ODC” on Page 10

Photos by Brian H. Temple

8

$50 Million AFRC Resort Under WayBy Brian H. Temple

(Above) Workers with Porr AG ofMurnau, Germany, work on thefoundation to the Armed ForcesRecreation Center Europe’s latestaddition - a $50 million, 330-roomresort hotel in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Europe Districtembarked on the two-year projectthis Spring and is scheuled to becompleted in April 2004.

(Left) Brig. Gen. Antonio Taguba,Commanding General CFSC (left)and Richard LeBrun, GeneralManager AFRC-Europe (right)receive hard hats and ceremonialshovels from Lt. Col. StephenTennant, Deputy Commander,Europe District at the May 7groundbreaking.

The 330-room facility is prettymuch an artist’s rendering and aconcrete foundation at this point,but come fall 2004 it will be a $50million resort hotel at the base ofGermany’s Bavarian Alps. The U.S. Army Corps ofEngineer’s Europe District hasembarked on a two-year project tobuild a premiere resort for theArmed Forces Recreation CenterEurope in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Peter Isaacs, chief operatingofficer for the Community andFamily Support Center inAlexandria, Va., said the new hotelwill replace the antiquated, smalland operationally inefficient existinghotels with a modern structure. With larger rooms, a fitnesscenter, spa and wellness center,swimming pool, two restaurantsand a lounge, service members andtheir families will reap the benefits,he said. “The Corps has been involvedto some degree with AFRCprojects in Europe, the Hale KoaHotel in Hawaii, Shades of Greenacquisition at Walt Disney World,and the Dragon Hill Lodge inYongsan, Korea,” Isaacs said. “Wehave a long history of successfulpartnership with the Corps ofEngineers.” Partnering with AFRCengineers and leadership, theCorps is building the hotel throughconstruction phases. Phase one,completed before May’sgroundbreaking, was for a $246,000berm and perimeter fence. “Phasing the work allowed usto do excavation and startconstruction in the spring in orderto make our completion date ofApril 2004,” said Europe DistrictProject Manager Heidi Meissner.

common German practice,Meissner explained, and is similarto American Design-Build. Itspeeds up the start of constructionconcurrent with detailed finaldesign planning. “By completing the majorstructure and getting the roof onover the summer, workers will beable to continue constructionthrough the winter months inside,”Meissner said. With an April ’04 completionthis will give AFRC staff about sixmonths to equip and prepare thehotel for its fall opening.

The existing hotels, two inCheimsee and two in Garmisch,have been a part of southernBavaria’s post war history, but inorder to bring the facilities up toAFRC’s current standards theCorps is building the new facility. “We are extremely excitedabout giving guests so manyoptions for relaxation andrecreation in one facility,” saidRichard LeBrun, general managerof AFRC Europe. For information on AFRChotels: www.armymwr.com/portal/travel/recreationcenters.

Photos by Brian H. Temple

Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002

Phasing work is a fairly

9

Photo by Grant Sattler

Seventeen members of North Atlantic Division’sRegional Management Board met May 14-16 in Trier,Germany, for an off-site conference. Europe District hosted the bi-monthly meeting in theoldest of Germany’s cities, founded in 16 B.C. by theRomans under Emperor Augustus as a trade center onthe Mosel river. Amid enduring landmarks ofengineering, it proved an appropriate place forrepresentatives of the North Atlantic Division and itssix districts to map progress in the development of theRegional Business Center and to benefit from aprofessional development tour. “This has been one of our most successfulmeetings, both in terms of process and in product,” saidJames Thomasson, Norfolk District’s chief of PPMD. The working group — composed of representativesfrom the division headquarters and its districts — ischarged with making recommendations to NorthAtlantic Division’s senior leadership and districtengineers who gather several times annually as theRegional Business Center’s Board of Trustees. “The RMB’s initial structure was dictated byheadquarters asdirectorate andprogram managersand the resourcemanagers of eachdistrict, plus the twoSESs,” said TomWaters, NADDirector of CivilWorks and BusinessManagementDirectorate. “We’veadded three functional

Staff ride attendees visit Clervaux, Belgium, where the 110th

Infantry Regimental Headquarters held off Wehrmacht forcesfrom a medieval fortress.

convenes as the group members know each other well.While each individual represents his or her ownorganization, together they are in fact as well as inname a group serving the region. “Forever in the Corps we’ve functioned asindividual districts. The current business environmentwe’re in requires that we not only operate well asdistricts, but that we also operate as a region,” RMBCo-chair Waters said. “The benefit we get is that wetake the good things that are happening in all six of ourdistricts and share it and get the compounded successand synergy.” Becoming a catalyst for change has been a growthprocess for the RMB. “We met more frequently earlyon and then started by recommending the structure [forthe RMB] based on what we needed to accomplish,”Thomasson said. “Most of our meetings were spent taking a look atcertain issues, execution of the program, resolvingobstacles to executing the program. Then we reallyfocused on business monitoring rather than businessimprovement. Now we are looking at how we improve it.” Waters explained, “Priorities and agendas are

driven by thecommanders — whocomprise the board oftrustees — andthey’ve given us fourbroad areas to workin.” Agenda items aredeveloped andregionalization issuesassigned for studyunder the four topicalareas defined ascapable workforce,regional workload

Regional Management Board Talks Better BusinessBy Grant Sattler

See “RMB” on Page 17Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002

chiefs, two chiefs ofengineering and onechief of contracting.” The RMB’s typicaltwo-day meetingsinvolve conceptualizing ways to better operate as aregion. Regional workload and resource managementinitiative topics for the Trier meeting included a longterm look at shore protection programs in the U.S. andthe MILCON program in Europe. Their intent is toensure NAD has the technical knowledge and capacityto meet future engineering mission needs. It’s “get down to business” as soon as the RMB

management, sharinggood ideas, andcontingencyoperations.

RMB Co-Chair Susan Turek, NAD’s Director ofResource Management, said that the Board of Trusteeshas taken an active role in the Regional BusinessCenter concept. “That is part of the success … whywe’ve been able to move out,” bringing about goodresults she said, indicating there is some varianceacross the Corps in implementation of the RegionalBusiness Center concept.


Summer 2002

Visitors now enter the building via smooth,pyramid fashioned concrete steps. With newhandrails, lighting, paint and landscaping the 72-year-old building’s $25,000 facelift is one of severalupgrades. The new motor pool gate and guard shack, theparking lot behind headquarters, and a safe roomadded $31,000 to the tab. Water leaks in the ODC’s roof bumped it’sreplacement to the top of the priority list, Rumrill said.The $200,000 project started in May and is expectedto last until November. Once completed, workers canstart the interior improvements. The electrical systems and plumbing have beenneglected and are in need of serious help, Rumrill said. However, now that money is available and theupdated construction circular makes it easier for

ODC: Workload to last for yearscontinued from page 7 contracting, headquarters will be busy with interior

work once the roof is complete. Other projects in town totalling approximately$715,000 add to the Corps’ mission. The U.S. embassy nearby will get a newguardhouse this summer, and the commissary will getan improved sprinkler system. The DoDDS combined school will seeconstruction making it a safer place for the studentsand faculty. Sheer wall will be installed forearthquake protection, and asbestos based tiles willbe replaced over the summer. And, when the students return to school in thefall, the school bus will have enlarged turn aroundspace so it does not have to back out of the parkinglot each morning and afternoon. “The Corps is involved in just about every facetof this community,” Rogers said.

Field Force Engineering MakesDifference During WarfighterBy Brian H. Temple

When today’s combatengineer deploys he canbring thousands of civilian

and military advisors with him in asuitcase-sized deployable kit —well, sort of. Through the use of a selfcontained secure tele-engineeringcommunications system, scores ofcommanders have interacted withU.S. Army Corps of Engineersemployees worldwide to get expertguidance when they need it on thefront lines. During V Corps’ MarchWarfighter in Grafenwöhr, Germany,members of the EngineeringResearch Development Center(ERDC) in Vicksburg, Miss., as wellas staff from Europe District, helpedField Force Engineering doctrineinch closer to reality.

Col. Todd Semonite, V Corpsengineer and commander of the130th Engineer Brigade fromHanau, Germany, said the union oftechnology and USACE talentsplays a pivotal role in hisengineering missions. “I’ve been with the Corps ofEngineers, so I know whatcapabilities they have. The problemis most of the Corps expertise is nothere on the battlefield,” Semonitesaid. But with Field ForceEngineering Semonite can bringthose experts closer to the front.

For example, Semonite saysfriendly forces consider usinga bomb-damaged bridge. One

of his combat engineers can shootvideo of the bridge’s damage, suchas exposed rebar, save it to disk,and then send it along with pertinent

data to ERDC for analysis. TheERDC team receives theinformation via the secure system,makes the analysis, and shoots itback to the command. “It’s the ability to be able toreach back, to be able to takeadvantage of that capability and tobring that capability from CONUSonto the battlefield. It’sphenomenal,” Semonite said. Lt. Gen. Robert Flowers,USACE commanding general,visited Warfighter and said hiscustomers were taking advantageof Corps resources. “Every commander in chief’sstaff that’s had the augmentation ofa Field Force Engineering elementhas enjoyed and appreciated theincreased capability that it brings,”Flowers said.

See “FFE” on Page 24


Photo Illustration by Byron S. Kimbrough

These two Adana locals pose in front of the SabanciCentral Mosque. The mosque was completed in 1998and can hold approximately 20,000. Incirlik Air Base islocated about 15 kilometers from Adana.

By Brian H. Temple

Concrete pyramids linked together by rusty cableswere common obstacles blocking parking for months,but with an increase in force protection construction,parking lots on Incirlik Air Base are starting to reopen. When a joint security vulnerability assessment teamvisited Incirlik about two years ago, base staff chose toheed their suggestions. “We shut down practically every parking lot onbase,” said Capt. Todd Plotner, Project Engineer for theCorps of Engineer’s Incirlik office. “Dragon’s teethwere strewn all over base.” Lots were closed with concrete blocks, or “dragon’steeth,” to keep vehicles from parking within 25 metersof buildings. This caused a significant reduction in thequality of life for residents, Plotner said, as about athird of the parking spaces were lost. Europe District is now working with Base CivilEngineering and EMTA Construction Co., Inc., on a$440,000 venture installing anti-terrorism parking lots.Higher curbs are being installed to keep vehicles fromramming facilities, and vertical pipes are being placedin delivery driveways as well. The pipes run about three feet underground and aresomewhat challenging to lift out of place, Plotner said.They do provide a significant defense against ramming.They are also more practical. “With the pipe barriers you have a moremaintainable system. Otherwise you shut downparking lots with steel cables and blocks.Every time you want to enter, it’snecessary to unlock the wires with apadlock and move them out of the way,”Plotner said. The raised curbs can help preventincidents such as the 1996 KhobarTowers truck bombing, hesaid. The curbs helpmaintain the standoffdistance from the mostpopulated buildings such as

Chief of Engineering Design, Base Civil Engineering.“At the Hodja Inn we took away 60 spaces, but gavethem back 60. We arranged it so they park furtheraway from the building but still have a reasonable standoff.” Safety is not the only aspect of the new parkinglots. The redesign includes aesthetic improvementssuch as new grass and landscaping. Cox said that outside of the headquarters buildingthey removed a driving lane and replaced it with grassand sidewalks fanning out from the building toward theparking lot.

The construction has incorporated grass intoselected projects and bougainvilleas have beenplanted with the hopes that they will grow

and cover walls, Cox said. Hecompared the bougainvilleaplants to the combination ofrocks, chainlink fencing, andvines that cover the ATFP(Anti Terrorist Force Protection)work used in Germany. Plotner said that theengineers have been atIncirlik for some time, butthere has been a recent shifttoward force protectionconstruction.

Incirlik Improves Anti-Terrorism Measures;Greater Stand-Off

EMTA Construction Co. workers replace concrete pyramidsor “Dragon’s Teeth,” (foreground) with higher curbs andwider sidewalks providing improved anti-terrorismprotection.

the base exchange, thedormitories, the diningfacility, the club, etc. “We’re doing what wecan to provide parking wherewe can,” said Kenneth Cox,

“Our work will make thebase a safer place,” Plotnersaid. “Part of what we do isdiscourage [attack by]making the base a hardertarget.”



Summer 2002

Israel: Bases for Peace, Ba

Kenneth Goldberg (left) talks with a supervisory foreman at the southern base site.Photo by Grant Sattler

By Grant Sattler

Europe District’s Israel Program Office is takingconcrete steps, so that a long-hoped for peace maymove closer to reality. The IPO is overseeing

construction of three military bases being built on Israeliterritory to house Israeli troops and equipment to be relocatedfrom facilities in the West Bank. The concept is a part of the1998 Wye RiverMemorandumagreement betweenthe PalestinianAuthority and Israel. The U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineers ismanaging theconstruction of twoinfantry training bases,designed by the IsraeliDefense Forces, and adesign-build reservedivision storage base.They will soon solicitbids for a smallerfourth site, with thefifth Wye Riverproject scheduled tobegin next year. “It’s quite unique.It’s fascinating, in fact,building small cities out in the desert, out of nothing,” said Col.Larry McCallister, Deputy District Engineer of the IsraelProgram Office. “It’s a win-win situation. The Israelis agreed to move troopsout of the West Bank if they could get new facilities to movethem into,” McCallister said near the end of his two-year tenureas head of the IPO. “The Israelis get their troops out of harm’sway and the Palestinians get the troops out of the West Bank.”

Funding for the bases was included in the FY 2000Consolidated Appropriation Act as a Foreign Military Salescase authorized under the Arms Export Control Act. “The Corps of Engineers was pulled in to do the oversightof the construction,” he said. “We started in the fall of 2000on the ground, but the planning effort began much earlier that

year.” Beginning witha handful of peoplein Israel –McCallister, Chiefof TechnicalCoordinationGordon Simmons,Program AnalystAdrien Gero,AdministrationOfficer LorrieLloyd, and ProgramManager RobSaari, CADDmanager Ed Hiles,and others at theEurope Districtheadquarters – theprogram has grownexponentially, butthe IPO staff

throughout Israel remains small at fewer than 20. The Wye River program is being managed via the directprocess and is unique in that it is directly fund. “The money’sin the bank and that’s it,” McCallister said. “The Israelis arevery interested in seeing that every dime goes into bricks andmortar, as opposed to paying for additional manpower. That’swhy on every site we have just the minimum number of Corpsemployees, and the Israeli Ministry of Defense (MOD) has


The Southern Infantry Training Base is situated a fewkilometers north of Beersheva in the Negev desert region.

Southern Infantry Training Base

agreed to give us additional inspectors to help us do thework.” Work on all three of the major bases is well under way,while the next project, the Jerusalem-area Site 276 with itsunique challenges because of its location and proximity tohistorical buildings, will begin this fall.

asis for Progress

Photo illustration of Nachshonim Storage Base job site by Byron S. Kimbrough

“It’s quite unique. It’s fascinating, in

fact, building small cities out in the

desert, out of nothing,”

Col. Larry McCallisterDeputy District Engineer

Israel Program Office

Construction on this, themost remote of the threebases, began mid-March2001 and is now overhalfway to completion. “This is in one of theisolated areas that isalready being used by theIsraelis for training,” saidSig Milerski, qualityassurance engineer forSouthern Infantry TrainingBase 81. “Now we’rebuilding a substantialtraining base with the whole range of support: barracks, diningfacility, synagogue, offices, gymnasium and classrooms…” The cost of the 80-structure project is about $40 million. Kenneth Goldberg, who like Resident Engineer DavidPeng, joined the SITB Project Office from PhiladelphiaDistrict, said it is not often one gets to build a synagogue whileworking for the Corps of Engineers, especially one that facesnorth to Jerusalem. Another cultural feature of the base is itsdining facility with special equipment that will ensure kosherdietary restrictions will always be followed, including a timer

on building’s power which will ensure no cooking takes placeduring Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath. While most of the southern base is straight-forwardvertical construction, Milerski notes that all of theinfrastructure – potable water, fire suppression systems,electricity, communications, sewer lines and drainage culvertshad to be built before any buildings were begun. “Initiallythere was nothing but a goat field,” Milerski said. The installation’s positioning across a narrow hill valley,bisected by a rainy season stream called a wadi, required thata giant culvert be installed beneath the site and 360,000 cubic

meters of earth and stone tobe drilled, blasted and dugfrom the hillsides. Threequarters of that material wasre-used as fill in low placesand as berms for 14 weaponsfiring and maneuver lanes intwo ranges that are part ofthe base. Topsoil from thecuts was saved and stoneswere crushed into gravel onsite for compaction into padsto serve as level foundationsfor buildings. But the baseitself is by no means flat —

facilities are positioned at varied elevations. “The design is a combined Ministry of Defense and IsraelDefense Forces effort,” Milerski said. Construction is a jointventure by Solol-Boneh and Minrav Holdings Ltd. McCallister said, “[The program] is quite unique for theIsraelis.” He said the quality and caliber of construction andthe level of design effort that went into the project on theIsraelis’ part is a new development. “They are looking forthese [bases] to be showpieces for the future in the way theywant to train their soldiers and store their equipment.”

See “Israel” on Page 20


Summer 2002

DFAS: Customer involved throughout design processcontinued from page 5

Europe District Construction RepresentativePeggy McBride said the structural study calledfor temporary installation of special I-beam and

turnbuckle bracing for wooden trusses to help ease loaddistribution to exterior walls as floors are demolishedand replaced. The exterior appearance of the three-block longbuilding, last used as a contingency barracks for troopsflowing through to the Balkans, must be preservedbecause of the building’s location in a historical zone. “It’s an historical facility for the Germancommunity,” said John Moreno, Resident Engineer atthe Kaiserslautern Resident Office. “It fronts right onthe city.” Built at the advent of the 20th Century as a barracksfor the German kaiser’s troops, the building faced alarge parade ground, now a parking lot. Changing the

Safety enforcement is Europe District’s responsibilitybecause the project is being executed directly. The main work visible now on the exterior is theremoval of the roofing tiles so that a moisture barrierand new lattice can be installed. “We’re going to reusea lot of the roof tiles, and the pavers, which on aproject this size saves a lot of money,” McBride said.“The roof tiles are in good shape. It’s surprising to seehow many they can save.” Like reusing materials, limiting modifications to adesign while construction is ongoing can also limitcosts. Close coordination between DFAS and EuropeDistrict and the input of the 26th Area Support Groupand 415th Base Support Battalion Directorates ofPublic Works on the building’s design are keeping workwithin budget. “During the design phase there was intensivecoordination between Corps designers and DFAS.

“You’ve got to get the

demo right because it’s

so dangerous.”Peggy McBride

Construction Representative

exterior of the building is“verboten,” but most of the interioralterations are allowed. “Thebuilding will be an admin buildingand it will be totally gutted out andrenovated, reinforcing the structureof the floors and installing a newelectrical system, communicationssystems and local area network,phones, and handicap access withelevators. The windows werereplaced 10 or 12 years ago, sothey won’t be replaced now,” Wadhwa said. “Certainthings they told us not to do, like change the design ofthe stairwells.” McBride said work up to this point has beenconcentrated on demolition. The structure has beendivided into four sections for the phased removal ofinterior walls, electrical, plumbing and heating systemsand the removal of floors by a 30-member crew withcontractor SKE Maintenance GmbH. Interior floors,while sound enough for use as a barracks, did not havethe load-bearing capacity necessary for systemsfurnishing and heavy files and automation equipmentthat will be going into the building. Structural demolitionbegan March 11, 2002 with the removal of the atticfloor slab on the north end of the building. “Up to this point, we’ve been concentrating on thedemo,” McBride said. “You’ve got to get the demoright because it’s so dangerous. When they’re jackhammering on the floor they’re standing on threestories up, getting them to tie off properly is important.”

technicians Andreas Busch and Clau Dey, andtranslator Kieran Sheehan. McBride said the customer will be even moreinvolved at the worksite as the project gets closer tocompletion, such as when installation for electrical,LAN and phone lines is to begin. “That’s when wewant them here, so we can be sure everything is rightwhere it needs to be,” she said. “It also helps thembecome more familiar with their new facility.”

Wadhwa said the Europe District will contractfor installation of the modular officefurnishings to be used throughout the

building, making it a turn-key project, ready foroccupancy. Wadhwa said the hard work of all involved isleading to success for this major MCD project. “Thecustomer is pleased so far, and at this point we don’tsee any future major problems other than normalconstruction issues. It’s a major thing we’re doing outthere and the word will get around.”

They were going through thedrawings again and again, sowe don’t expect anychanges,” said ProjectEngineer Rudi Mehrmann.The Europe District designteam included architectsWinfried Aust and HorstZenker, electrical engineersCaecilie Kloeter and KonradHiller, mechanical engineerAlfred Waldhofer, CADD

15Engineering in EuropeSummer 2002

Celebrating Construction German Style

Anbach’s “Richtfest” Rare OccassionBy Brian H. Temple

(from left to right) Gerhard Koffler, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projectengineer; Dieter Wagner, Bauleitung Weiss, Hohe and Partner; and HolgerKunze and Jens-Uwe Schüler of Züblin construction, hammer roof nails intothe rafters of an Ansbach barracks project to prove they still have the“oomph” to do a carpenter’s work. Koffler and others participated in aRichtfest on Katterbach Kaserne, May 15 along with Axel Labs (behind), amaster carpenter with firm Ullrich Wendler.


At the sound of glass breaking acheer went up from the 120German carpenters, architects,construction workers and guestsgathered on Ansbach’s KatterbachKaserne, May 15. In a time-honored tradition a mastercarpenter guzzled a glass of wineand then shattered his glass againsta brick wall of an unfinishedbarracks building to wish health andprosperity to its future occupants. The Richtfest, or “topping off”ceremony, celebrated the installationof the last roof supporting rafter ofBuilding 5815, a $16.7 million, 240-room barracks project, managed bythe U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,Europe District. “TheGermans have asaying thatbroken glassbrings good luckto you. Andthat’s what’sbehind throwingthe glass - andthe glass mustbreak … It is ablessing to thehouse,” saidAxel Labs,master carpenterwith Firm UllrichWendler, andemcee for theevent. He said theRichtfest is atime-honoredritualaccompanying thecompletion of theshell and roof

construction of a dwelling. Themaster carpenter reads an ode tothe carpenter, makesseveral toasts and thenplaces a decoratedevergreen tree upon thecompleted roof. In larger projectssuch as Building 5815,a crown made of treebranches is dressedwith ribbons and

Ursula Pfefferlein, a contractspecialist for Europe District’s

Ansbach office said thatcarpenters used to travel with

their tools and a sleepingbag and went site to sitelooking for work.Theylabored for months on a

project with littletime off, and theRichtfest was a

suitable time for themto party. It was also a

See “Richtfest” on Page 17

Richtfest crownhoisted from a craneover the site. Both thetree and the crown are symbols ofcontinued fortune. Labs said when the roof is donethe building owner pays for acelebration for the people whoerected the building.

turning point, as they hadto say goodbye to friends and searchfor more work. Because of its deep roots, the tiesto a Richtfest go beyond what somemay see as superstition – traditiondictates that the ritual take place. “If you are the owner of the

building andyou’re too stingyto spend themoney on theRichtfest, whatsome of theworkers do isput up an upsidedown broom [onthe roof] andthat tells yourneighbors, ‘ahlook at thisperson, he didn’tpay for thefest,’” saidPfefferlein. According tofolklore, shesaid, if you donot hold a partyyou have a goodchance of beinga miserablefamily when youmove into thehouse.


Summer 2002

In May 2000, Project EngineerEd Argueta traded in the AmericanSouthwest for a tour of duty innorthern Bavaria with the AnsbachProject Office. With 15 yearsexperience with the U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineers Fort WorthDistrict and its Southwestern AreaOffice, Argueta was looking fordifferent challenges. He has found them working on$24.6 million worth of barracksrenovations and a dental clinic forthe 235th Base Support Battalion inAnsbach, earning Europe District’snomination for the USACE HardHat of the Year award for 2001. Most of Argueta’s projects atthe White Sands Missile Rangewere complex research anddevelopment facilities. Here he hasfound the complexity not in thedesign of barracks to the U.S.

See “Argueta” on Page 17

By Grant Sattler

Ed ArguetaProject Engineer

Ed ArguetaProject Engineer

accurate contractadministration,and worked withhis projectdelivery teams toturn aroundprojects thatwere behindschedule. To accomplishthat, Argueta hadto be a quickstudy on theindirect process,coordinating withthe Bauamt andlearning Germanconstruction andsafety standards. “Thelanguage iscertainly achallenge,” hesaid. Communicating with peoplefrom different backgrounds andwith different skills on amulticultural job site can be difficult.

get that closure, or feedback loop,confirming that you have thatmutual understanding, there can besurprises.”

“You need feedback so that youknow you’ve had a meeting of theminds — that understanding,”Argueta said. “I’ve already seenseveral instances where you thinkthey understand what you’re tryingto convey to them, but they take itcompletely differently. If you don’t

“Things are done

differently here, but

they accomplish the

same thing.”

Argueta, who earned hisbachelor’s in civil engineering in1985 from the University ofNew Mexico but attended rivalNew Mexico State Universityat Las Cruces to earn hismaster’s in industrialengineering, said he enjoysworking as a team leader withseasoned and knowledgeablecolleagues.

Army Europe 1 + 1 standard, butin dealing with different types ofcustomers and coordinating withdifferent agencies. “This is something new,”Argueta said. Working withGerman government engineers inthe Staatsbauamt and learningdifferent approaches toconstruction projects on the jobhas been very valuable, he said.“Things are done differently here,but they accomplish the samething.” Since joining the AnsbachProject Office, Argueta hasassured project quality to thesatisfaction of the Directorate ofPublic Works and tenant unitcustomers, ensured timely and

But the chance to work withgreat people, a job change andpromotion potential were not all thatmotivated him to move to Ansbachwith his wife Vanessa anddaughters Nicole, 14, and Lauren,8. He wanted the chance for his


Pfefferlein said although the Corps traditionallyfunded these celebrations as part of the contract, thefunding stopped after a legal review about 15 yearsago. It was decided that U.S. taxpayer’s dollars wouldnot be used to fund this type of get-together. She said the issue is not one that would cause insult,but the question does come up.

Richtfest: Crowns hoisted, glass broken, new barracks will be blessedcontinued from page 15

Argueta: Continues his service as a teacher to fill voidcontinued from page 16

17

children to see a different part of the world. “Theyreally like it here.” His interest in learning has other outlets as well.Argueta has also served as a mentor for co-workersand DPW employees as a Construction QualityManagement Course instructor for Europe District.Outside of duty hours, he is a part time mathematicsinstructor with Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.The instructor roles fulfill a need he filled in the pastworking with the Upward Bound program as a tutor

and math instructor during the summer months in NewMexico for high school students who are firstgeneration college-bound. In the meanwhile, Argueta is busy completing therenovation of the Illesheim dental clinic, finishing thefinal environmental upgrade on Barton Barracks for thelast of five POL gas stations, and completing therenovation of Building 5815. Other projects will includeupgrading the Katterbach railroad off loading station toTüV standards and future barracks renovations toBuildings 5818 and 5843 to the 1+1 standard.

“If we drew a line to see whereall the Regional Business Centersare, I think we’d be farther along inthe implementation,” Turek said. For example, some of the resultsinclude collaboration between thesix districts in NAD on theacquisition of regionalenvironmental and MATOCcontracts, or the sharing ofengineering expertise. An examplewas the recent RMB assessment,that shore protection engineeringexpertise should be locatedprimarily in two districts forpurposes of economy and sustainingof expertise and support the otherswith shore protection programs. Europe District has benefitedfrom the regional managementconcept by using the engineeringdepth of Norfolk, New York, andBaltimore Districts, and the support

of the Philadelphia and NewEngland Districts in manning theIsrael Program offices. One itemof business, which will be directinterest to the members of thedistrict was recommendation by theRMB to establish some high-gradetechnical engineer positions in thedistricts to sustain expertise andregional support. The Field ForceEngineering doctrine forcontingences support implementedwithin NAD, depends directly onregional teaming. Turek said RMB memberscollectively agree that in the pastthey have not done a good jobcommunicating to the workforcewhat happens at the RMB andBOT level. “We’re doing a betterjob, each of the RMB members aremaking sure they’re sharing things,”Turek said. “It’s hard when youwork as six separate businesses

and then have to work as a singlebusiness. [People want to know]what does the Regional BusinessCenter do for me?” She said people can learn moreat the RBC’s web site at:www.nad.usace.armyh.mil/RBC/rbc.htm After the conclusion of RMBbusiness, members were educatedabout the significance of theirhistoric European location and U.S.Army heritage by participating in aprofessional development staff rideof key World War II battlefields.RMB members learned howtenacity, incredible courage, andteamwork overcame extraordinarychallenges in December 1944 at the“Battle of the Bulge.” Led by aprofessional military history guide,the staff ride included stops atmemorials at Bastogne, Belgiumand Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

RMB: Board meets in Europe, advances regionalizationcontinued from page 9

not fund a Richtfest,” she said. Züblin, the contractor working with the Corps,funded this particular event for the employees withouttaking offense and continued the tradition of wishingothers well. Good luck and prosperity should continue forBuilding 5815. Labs, who has more than 100 Richtfestsunder his belt, did shatter his glass, and not only one,but two crowns were hoisted over two of the fourwings of Building 5815.

“As members representing the U.S. governmentthere are problems explaining why the contract does

18

Europe Distrist Helps ‘PrepBattlefield’ in Bulgaria ExerciseBy Grant Sattler


(Left) Project ManagerTim Huwe talks with Capt.Jason Kalainoff,commander of the 38thEngineer Co., 130thEngineer Brigade, prior tothe kick off ofCornerstone 2002 inBulgaria.

See “Cornerstone” on Page 19

(Below) The Sinitevobridge standing nearlyready for Seabees tocomplete.

Europe District’s InternationalEngineering Center recently helped“prep the battlefield” for U.S.European Command’s engineeringexercise Cornerstone 2002, whichbegan June 3 in Bulgaria. Europe District preparations forfour diverse construction andrenovation projects in the monthspreceding the Bulgaria-basedexercise helped U.S. militaryengineers and the engineer taskforce of the seven-nation SouthEast Europe Brigade (SEEBRIG) toaccomplish their training objectives.Work involved renovation of a four-story barracks, construction of anew bridge and repair of another,and renovation of an orphanage. Capt. Jason Kalainoff,commander of 38th EngineerCompany, 130th Engineer Brigadefrom Hanau, Germany, explainedthat Cornerstone 2002 allows themembers of SEEBRIG to worktogether to prepare their engineersto respond to a natural disaster orsome other contingency mission.“It’s [also] a chance for Americanengineers to practice deployabilitytasks while working with membersof other nations,” he said. Cornerstone 2002 includedengineer troops from Albania,Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, theFormer Yugoslav Republic ofMacedonia, Greece, and theSeabees, and active and reserveArmy and Marine engineers fromthe United States military. Cornerstone 2002, the ninthsince 1995, is helping non-NATOparticipants learn more about thealliance, IEC Project Manager TimHuwe said. “These nations seek

interoperability with NATO. It’s anopportunity for them to work withour soldiers, learn what our soldiersdo and how they do it. We learnsome lessons from them, too. Aswe interoperate, it enhances theirability to join NATO at some pointin the future,” he said. As part of the exercise, VCorps’ 130th engineers conductedtraining. “The soldiers in mycompany will be teaching trainingon the medium girder bridge, on thetrestle bridge and the compact 200bridge to members of SEEBRIGforces,” Kalainoff said. But even as early as March, the130th Engineer Brigade began workas the lead agency for the exercise,renovating a barracks to be used tohouse the exercise participants at

the Bulgarian Engineer Regiment44220 base camp in Plovdiv. Huwe said “[Europe District]assisted troops getting set up withcontract support to get theirbarracks in place so they have aplace for a task force headquartersand to live and eat while they’re outhere doing their work.” Renovations by the 130th

engineers, who are usually bridgebuilders, included extensive interiorplumbing, masonry, painting,carpentry and electrical work,installation of new parquet flooringand complete rebuilding of toilet andshower areas. The host nationdemolished the existing toiletfacilities and the Corps scoped thework for planning for the



Cornerstone: Building new bridges, improving teamworkcontinued from page 18

renovations and materiel purchases,Huwe said. 1st Lt. Natalie Card, brigadeconstruction management officersaid, “The Corps of Engineerswrote the contract for all the majoritems we knew beforehand werebeyond the realm of troop labor.They went through the whole legalprocess and contracted that for usto ensure it was done in accordancewith American standards andgovernment regulations.” The renewed 22,000 square footbarracks facility was turned over tothe Bulgarian army for use in theCornerstone 02 Exercise on June 2. In a cost-saving move, the 130th

Engineer Brigade’s presence forthe barracks renovation allowed theCorps to designate Card as theContracting Officer’sRepresentative for the exerciseprojects. “It worked out veryconveniently,” Card said. “Someonefrom the 130th had to be intimately

Breaking ground April 22 for the299th Forward SupportBattalion’s $7 millionmaintenance shop on ConnBarracks, Schweinfurt are(pictured) Project Engineer JohnAdams; Lt. Col. Timothy Gorrell,commander 280th Base SupportBattalion; (behind) Col. DennisDingle, commander 98th AreaSupport Group; Klaus Glöcke ofGlöcke GmbH; DISCOMcommander Col. Mark Bellini;Brig. Gen. Douglas Lute, 1stInfantry Division; and NorbertBöhm, Staatliches Hochbauamt,Bad Kissingen. Also participatingwere Col. Peter Plamer,commander 2nd Brigade, 1stInfantry Division; and Lt. ColHook, 98th ASG DPW.

Courtesy photo

Digging It Up For Maintenance

Tim Huwe meets some of the childrenat the Anna Gizdova Orphanage atBratzigovo, Bulgaria.

Photo by Grant Sattler

involved in all the projects and atthe same time the Corps needed tobe here on the ground to monitor allthese contracts. Simply to comehere periodically would not havebeen enough to enable [EuropeDistrict] to monitor the USACEcontracts. The contractor needed a

supervision,” Card said. The dual-hatting not only savedmoney, but provided a uniqueopportunity for the lieutenant. “The personal benefit isoutstanding,” Card said, indicatingthe role increased her knowledge ofall aspects of the projects. “I wouldnever get to work this much with acontractor in the rear. It’s good for acivil engineer like myself to get thisopportunity.” In addition to the barracksrenovation, Huwe said another key toCornerstone’s success was thecontracted construction work topartially complete a five span bridgeover the Miritza river whichseparated the village of Sinitevo frommarkets in area towns. Huwe explained Europe District’smultiple roles. “It’s providingtechnical expertise to help thisexercise and the Army, and to get thecontractor in place here to set up theproject so that troops can completethe bridge within the time available.”

See “Cornerstone” on Page 23

lot more guidance and daily


Israel: Security may affect constructioncontinued from page 13

For the southern base that means IDF Logistics BranchConstruction Center designers considered thepsychological aspects of training a cohesive infantry

company and the impression the design and layout of the facilitywill make upon trainees. Aesthetics are also considered. The MOD/IDF designincorporates regional style with cut stone facades along themain street and roof tops designed to hide unsightly airconditioning units — one feature of the new training base that

has some Israeli soldiers referring to it as the “Hilton forsoldiers.” “It will be a lot more comfortable for the trainees with airconditioning for all the buildings,” Milerski said. Compared totraining locations now used, the southern base and its sisterbase, the Northern Infantry Training Base, will have largerrooms, more barracks space, more common use areas, alarger, more efficient dining facility, a gymnasium and runningtrack, he said. Nevertheless, it is their new locations inside Israel thattrainees will most appreciate.

“I think they will appreciate moving to anew facility and a new area that is saferfor the soldiers and their families whenthey come to visit them as they go throughbasic training,” Milerski said. Parkingoutside the facility is designed toaccommodate family visitation days oncetrainees occupy the new southern base. With an aggressive 18-monthconstruction schedule, completion was setfor October 2002, but has been delayed byheavy spring rains that converted thechoking desert dust into slippery ooze thatmired men and equipment for weeks on end. Firing ranges were finished in Januaryand since that time the 10 companyquarters areas, company headquarters,staff housing and all the support facilitieshave taken shape. However, the securitysituation in the country may impact thecontractor’s ability to continue work onschedule. As the type of work changes tofinish work, different workers withdifferent skills are needed. As of lastDecember, Israeli Ministry of Labor rulesprohibit bringing Third Country Nationalsinto the country. “[The situation] is Israel-wide. It is notdirected against our projects. The laborissue is affecting the entire constructionindustry across Israel,” McCallister said.The IPO is working through the IsraeliMOD Building and ConstructionDepartment to see what solutions can befound. “We look at our projects as not anymore special than any other constructionprojects, but these were agreed uponcountry to country,” he said. “We’venotified all the authorities that there will beimpact if we don’t get relief. It’s going tobe time and money, and money’s critical.”

(Right) Nachshonim StorageBase Project Office electricalengineer Helmut Walter talks

with a contract supervisorabout installation of portals in

the wall of the prototype DryStorage Building Type A. Thedry storage buildings on the

base will be sealed andpressurized to control

humidity and temperature.


(Below) The helopad for theSouthern Infantry Training

Base overlooks the structurestaking shape. Beyond the hills

lies the “Greenline,” thedemarcation between Israel

and the West Bank.

20


The Northern Infantry Training Base, located nearHadera, mirrors the southern base in design, but is sitemodified for a hilltop location adjacent to an existing IDFtraining camp. The northern base is being constructed as a sole ventureby U. Dori Engineering Works Ltd., an Israeli company. “Normally, under Foreign Military Sales the contractorhas to be a U.S. company, but under Wye River, Israeli firmscould do it alone,” said Michael Tibbs, a project engineer atthe northern base. “In the three bases we have all threecombinations: U.S., Israeli, and joint venture between U.S.and Israeli. “Another difference, besides the terrain, is they’rebuilding more firing ranges,” Tibbs said. “We have six[existing lanes] we’re modifying, two we’re making longerand we’re building two more on the existing range in phaseone.”

The construction of an additional four rangesnorthwest of the base, is on temporary hold due to anarcheological find where it is to be built. “It rests atop

of what is believed to be an ancient city,” Tibbs said. Hehopes a planned excavation to determine the extent of thearcheological site will allow a shift of the range closer to thebase. The contractor is planning on obtaining fill for the centerof the base from soil removed from the present hilltop rangelocation. “He needs that soil,” Tibbs said. If the range cannot bebuilt, it could necessitate a major contract change becausefill materiel would have to be trucked in from off site. Thearcheological issue is key because work on some of thebuildings cannot begin before the earthwork is completed. Although the northern base is the last of the three to bestarted — ground was broken in February of this year —work is moving ahead quickly and the contractor is erectingcranes for a different building technique than that used atthe southern base. “At the southern base a lot of the buildings were goingup at the same time. Our contractor wants to start with atechnique that he feels will be more efficient and effectiveusing six tower cranes. They will start with the [10] barracksfacilities, doing one at a time, in hopes to overcome themanpower shortage by moving workers to each building,”Tibbs said. Cranes will move pre-built forms from building tobuilding. Probably the most critical facility on any training base, thedining hall has been started already to avoid some difficultiesexperienced at the southern base.

Northern Infantry Training Base

lessons being learned can’t be overstated,” Tibbs said.Also of tremendous value is that the same IDF projectmanager is involved with each location, Tibbs said. The current problem with bringing foreign workers alsomay affect the northern base in the future. “The southernbase is out in front, hopefully they’ll solve it. We can get some[workers] from the southern base because they’ll be finishing,but the Central Base will be competing for same personnel,”Tibbs said. He expects, however, that the IDF will placepriority on completing the training bases, as they impact thegreater number of people.

See “Israel” on Page 22

21

(Above) Workers tie inrebar in preparation forplacing concrete for aroof at the SouthernInfantry Training Base.

(Left) Sig Milerski,quality assuranceengineer for the $40million SouthernInfantry Training Base,stays hydrated.

“We’re really appreciative that there’s a base 8-monthsout in front of us. The value of the southern base and the

and the Joint Venture. “We are used to giving criteria to acontractor for design and then checking if the designmeets the criteria,” Blackburn said. “Here the IDF ischecking to see if it meets their standards, not just thecriteria, so it’s a bit more design review than is normalfor a Design-Build. “We have good working relationships with themanagers within the IDF and have contact with themevery day,” Blackburn said.


The Nachshonim Storage Base, commonly calledthe central base, east of Tel Aviv, is a $125 milliondollar base designed for long-term storage andmaintenance of IDFcombat equipment andvehicles. “It is the biggestproject in the WyeRiver program, apretty significant steptowards stabilizingthings here in theMiddle East,” saidJody Blackburn,Resident Engineer. “It’s an Armyreserve armoreddivision maintenanceand storage facility that

Nachshonim Storage Base

dining halls and support facilities for a cadre of about500 people. More than half of the base structures aredry storage buildings designed to maintain low humidityand temperature. There are 14 different types of drystorage buildings. “The contractor is building a prototype Dry StorageBuilding Type-A now to test, but foundations are being

prepared for others,”Blackburn said. Thebuildings are sealed tomaintain overpressureinside and will all bemonitored from acentral location. “With theinfrastructure designfinished, the contractorhas startedconstruction whiledesign workcontinues.” The IDF isintimately involved inall phases of the

While the Wye River program and requirement tobe the manager for FMS is the reason the Corps is inIsrael, the IPO’s presence has also allowed the Israelisto opt for the Corps to manage additional projectsthey’ve chosen to use other FMS funding to build. Sofar, those projects include construction of two flightsimulator buildings for the Israeli Air Force, an aircraftrefueling system at Nevatim Air Base and renovationof a Patriot missile maintenance facility. “It’s timing, they see what we [the Corps] bring tothe table in terms of quality, safety andprofessionalism,” McCallister said. Conditions thatmake the prospect of more work coming to the IPO alikely one over the next few years as the Wye Riverand Israel programs continue.

Other Projects

Jody Blackburn watches excavation work at the central base.Photo by Grant Sattler

Israel: Massive amount of earthwork needed on projectscontinued from page 21

22

covers about 320acres,” Blackburn said.“One of the purposes of this site is to provide a place toreposition reserve units from other areas within Israeland within the West Bank. It will increase Israel’sreadiness to any adverse actions and therefore it willadd to the stability of the area.” The facility will storethe supplies, vehicles, weapons, ammunition andmateriel for artillery, infantry and armored brigades thatwill fall in on their equipment during a call up. Construction began in September 2001 and is beingaccomplished by a U.S./Israeli Joint Venture firm ofABB SUSA, A. Arenson, and Baran Group as adesign-build project. Project duration is three yearswith completion expected in summer 2004. Like the southern base, the central base locationalso required a massive amount of earthwork, over 2.6million cubic meters of excavation, and requiredconstruction of a 1.1 kilometer box culvert large enoughto drive an ATV through beneath the site. “In no waywill the site be flat,” Blackburn said. “We’re moderatingthe relief to the point where we can build on it. The central base is laid out like a pie with 10wedges. Roadways, like spokes in a wheel, connectedan interior and exterior ring road. When completed, 205structures will be rest at varied elevations around thebase. The core of the base is a logistics center forequipment maintenance and administrative space,

Design-Build projectalong with the Corps


“The contractor has laid the‘groundwork’ for the troops to comein and finish the job,” he said. TheCorps was involved in the designprocess, reviewing the design and inmaking sure the contracting processwent smoothly. U.S. Navy Seabees arrived duringthe exercise to complete the decking,railings and the approaches to theSinitevo bridge. Huwe said, “The object here is toprovide some humanitarianassistance by giving the Bulgariansback a bridge that they lost in a flooda number of years ago, so we’vesited a bridge that will be a goodtraining project for our engineers anddo it in partnership with theSEEBRIG and the South East EuropeDefense Ministerial Nations. It’sreally an international effort.” The110-meter long bridge was a realvalue, costing only $300,000. Downstream about fivekilometers at the town of Ognianovois the site of a second bridge beingworked on with humanitarianassistance funds as a part ofCornerstone 2002. Marine engineers from NMCB 7took on the repair of damaged

girders and the replacement of 170meters of asphalt decking with areinforced concrete deck to allowthe bridge to be re-rated to 30-toncapacity, Huwe said. Contractworkers removed the substandardbridge surface. Although completing two bridgesthat will economically benefit thepeople of Bulgaria is something theengineers can feel good about,work accomplished at the AnnaGizdova Orphanage at Bratzigovowill even more directly impact thelives of the 84 children living there. Engineers from the TennesseeNational Guard, Bulgaria’sPartnership for Peace partner state,worked on the orphanage during theexercise. “For each Cornerstone exercisethe host nation will recommendprojects to us. This year theyrecommended this orphanagebecause it definitely hassubstandard facilities where thechildren have to shower, and in thekitchen,” Card said. “The scope ofwork entails an entire renovation ofall the bathroom facilities, theelectrical system, new circuit boxes,lighting, cosmetic building repairs,adding doorways, closing other

doorways in, painting, and work inthe kitchen. “This isn’t typical troopconstruction like that for ranges andtroop facilities,” Card said. “It’sdefinitely a finer quality product thatwe’re leaving behind.” When asked about learning thather facility had been chosen for thework, orphanage director MariaNajenova said through a translator, “Icouldn’t believe it. I wanted it to betrue, not a dream. But moreinteresting was the reaction of thechildren. They all asked what thenew home would look like and theybegan to draw pictures.” The children were temporarilyrelocated to another facility duringthe renovation. Card said engineerswill leave a better facility behind forthe children and improve their qualityof life, but even bigger benefits comefrom the relationships between theseven nations involved in theexercise, “ …working on thatrelationship and leaving a goodimpression of America.” Najenova said, “I think thatbiggest ‘thanks’ to the U.S.Government will be the smiles on thechildren’s faces when they comeback to their new home.”

Cornerstone: Humanitarian work puts smiles on childrens’ facescontinued from page 19

Lt. Gen. Daniel Petrosky, United States EuropeanCommand Chief of Staff (left) congratulatesJoseph Zaraszczak, project engineer for theStuttgart office, after he awarded him with acertificate of appreciation in Stuttgart in May.Zaraszczak received the kudos from Petroskyfor his oversight of the $1.4 million renovation ofthe EUCOM headquarters. Zaraszczak’ssupervision of 14 sub-contractors during theconstruction, and his ability to keep the projectmoving through daily visits of dignitaries withoutinterruption, was recognized by the leadership.

Rewarded for a“Can do” Attitude


Maj. George Simon, operations officerfor the 130th Engineering Brigade(left), updates Lt. Gen. RobertFlowers, Commanding General ofUSACE, on the common operatingpicture while Col. Todd Semonite,Commander, 130th Engineer Brigade,looks over the status of the battlefield.

Flowers said that commandersare able to leverage the entireengineer regiment - uniformedsoldiers, civilian contractors,academia, and laboratories - andfocus them to solve a problem anyplace in the world. It works without question,Semonite said. “There are many things going onin the rear where I don’t have thetime, or a lot of times, the expertiseto be able to accomplish it all, andthat’s where I reach back to theCorps,” he said. Solving problems in the field iswhat Field Force Engineering isdesigned to do, and by havingUSACE boots on the ground tonudge the process along, thecustomers get better service. As a forward deployed “one manshow,” one Europe District officersupported V Corps during the week-and-a-half-long exercise. Maj. ErnieEdgar, a reservist for the EuropeDistrict who works as an attorneypractising government contracts lawin Washington, D.C., headed toGrafenwöhr to be the U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineers’ plug into U.S.Army, Europe’s war fightingmachine. Edgar, a Forward EngineeringSupport Team member, was there toget V Corps commanders theanswers they needed. “I’ve been pinch hitting on thecombat stuff where it has beenappropriate, but by and large it hasbeen plugging into the Corps andgiving the V Corps engineer answersso he can provide engineeringsupport on the battlefield,” Edgarsaid. Edgar’s presence saved thebrigade valuable time. One of the biggest tacticalchallenges engineers faced during theexercise was how to get troops

across a river in which the hydrologywas “very, very complicated even byriver standards,” Edgar said. “It’s not the water that’s theproblem, its the dirt,” Edgar said.“It’s the kind of obstacle where there

isn’t enough bridging available. So,now we have to figure out whatother bridging options there are thataren’t in the traditional combatengineer inventory.” Edgar said a solution could befound with Corps’ talenttroubleshooting the river. How doestoo much, or too little water affectconstruction? Would the soil enablethem to use vehicles to cross? “We’ve had a lot of dialogue withthe guys back in Vicksburg on‘here’s an idea what do you think?Here is a problem, can you do theanalysis?’” Edgar said. The dialogue via these deployablecommunications systems is

instantaneous and, in combat, thequick turn around on answers cansave lives. When faced with getting50,000 troops across a body ofwater, tapping into these engineerresources makes sense, Semonitesaid. “I can have a lieutenant who hasa degree in civil engineering, butdoesn’t have any experience, sitdown and try to note something out,or I can just say, ‘get on the horn,tell Vicksburg I need a design andsend me a blueprint,’ and then myengineers will put it in the river,”Semonite said. “That’s what we’redoing here.” Edgar said the main significanceof the FEST teams today, versus thead hoc methods of begging,borrowing, and stealing to get peopleinto the theater, is that USACE cannow start to get into the planningstages on the “ground floor.” “We’ve never been in at thebeginning of a crisis, and that’sprobably the biggest reason to gowith Field Force Engineering … toestablish doctrine that puts us, if notin a seat at the table, at least in theroom whispering in that staffengineer’s ear, ‘hey I can do this foryou. I’ve got that capability. Youneed to be thinking about this …based on our past experience,’”Edgar said. Edgar and Semonite bothworking together through theplanning stages to ensure thatlogistical and combat operations areready is a way to work towardsuccess. Field Force Engineering isgradually moving from doctrine toreality and customers and providersare working together to reap thebenefits. “We are only just beginning tosee the real contributions that thisField Force Engineering can bring, aswe are better able to apply theengineer regiment as a whole tosolve problems in the field,” Flowerssaid.

FFE: Field Force Engineering greatly appreciated in the fieldcontinued from page 10


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