HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan - The Seabees of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 74 recently completed placing the trusses on another Super Southwest Asia Hut at Camp Leatherneck in Afghanistan. The SWA-Huts are being erected to provide the Combat Logistics Regiment at Leatherneck a work environment that is both efficient and comfortable.
The truss operation was executed during nighttime hours to allow the crew to escape from the heat of the day, and although scheduled for three days it was completed in only one and a half. The speed at which the trusses were put in place can be attributed to their completion of one other SWA-Hut this deployment.
Chief Steel Worker Roger Baker, charlie Company operations chief, stated the fact succinctly when he said, "They found their battle rhythm."
Construction Mechanic 3rd Class David Prejean, crane signalman and Project Safety, maintained that the crane was the centerpiece of efficiency. "A crane is worth its weight in gold out here. Without it you do half the work in twice the time," said Prejean.
During the construction of these 32-foot by 120-foot SWA-Huts it is standard to use a crane to place the more than 500-pound trusses. For most of the Seabees on this project it is their first time using this method and working on buildings so large. Using a crane also makes the job a joint company operation utilizing expertise from NMCB-74's Alfa and Charlie companies.
"The integration went really well. We tried a few different things as far as rigging, and we all agreed on what was safest for them up in the rafters bracing the trusses," said Equipment Operator 1st Class Robert Gargus, crane crew supervisor.
Builder 3rd Class Daniel Cindric, crew leader, expressed positive feelings toward the company integration as well. "Communication was key, letting everyone know what needed to be done and working as a team," said Cindric. Baker added, "These guys have to be working together and they have to be communicating."
Safety is always of primary importance during any construction project, and the use of a crane to hoist the trusses into place on the roof saves the energy of the crew and therefore results in less physical injuries. There are still safety concerns when operating with a crane, however, and those concerns are brought before the crew at the start of each day at the safety brief.
"Be aware of tripping hazards, if you don't have to be inside the envelope, don't, and if you don't have to be under the load, walk around," Prejean instructed the crew.
To further increase safety on the project, Prejean keeps an eye on the rigging crew at all times during rigging and stays in direct radio contact with the Crane Operator. Once the truss moves up and over the building, he walks inside to monitor the operation from there, while Gargus oversees the riggers outside.
The Seabees of NMCB-74 have two Super SWA-Huts in progress now and one more to erect for this project, and everyone involved expresses confidently that they will complete the job early. In fact, Baker communicated nothing but the highest confidence in the abilities of the Seabees on the project.
"These guys are awesome! I can't put it into words how proud I am of them, how much they have picked up in the amount of time since we have turned over with NMCB-5, and then making their small adjustments to make it work for them to make them excel the way they do," said Baker.
| Date Taken: |
09.11.2009 |
| Date Posted: |
09.28.2009 06:39 |
| Story ID: |
39346 |
| Location: |
HELMAND PROVINCE, AF |
| Web Views: |
236 |
| Downloads: |
187 |
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This work, Swinging Trusses, Just a Night's Work for Naval Mobile Construction Battalion-74, by SCPO Ryan Wilber, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
