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Cargo Company Expands Ops at Taqaddum

Photo By Sgt. Jason Mikeworth | Pfc. Calvin Jones, a heavy equipment operator with the 21st Cargo Transfer Company at...... read more read more

AL TAQADDUM, IRAQ

04.14.2006

Courtesy Story

207th Public Affairs Detachment

CAMP AL TAQQADUM, Iraq - Moving material and supplies across a theater as large as Iraq is no simple task, but the Soldiers of the 21st Cargo Transfer Company's 4th Platoon at Camp Al Taqaddum make it look easy.

The 21st has expanded operations at the Central Receiving and Shipping Point (CRSP) for Camp Al Taqaddum.

"We get some Marine stuff, some Navy and some Air Force stuff, but mostly it's Army stuff," Sgt. Cassandra Bridick, the NCOIC of the CRSP yard, said. "Now a big mission is battle-damaged vehicles going on to Kuwait."

Bridick said the CRSP serves a collage of customer units, processing everything from letters and bolts to CONEXs (Container Express) and vehicles.

"We're just sort of the distributor," said Bridick. "We have everything from rolling stock to Air Force pallets."

Some improvements the 21st has made are creating storage lanes based on the destination of the cargo.

"We built lanes here to sort cargo by destination and implemented pallet position numbers," Bridick said. "It speeds things up. It's a pretty big yard so it helps to know where everything is."

Bridick said she hopes her mission helps improve safety for Soldiers in Iraq.

"One of our biggest goals is to keep drivers off the road. The more stuff we can fly, the less it takes to move it," said Bridick. "As long as we can keep them off the road we're happy."

Combat logistics patrols (CLPs) are greeted at the gate and assigned to a lane to receive or unload cargo. The CLP liaison then informs the CLP commander of how long of a wait is expected.

Bridick said her Soldiers take pride in assisting any customers who need their help.

"We'll move Marine equipment if the Army is transporting it," Bridick said. "Like the Marines here that are redeploying. Since the Army is handling that, we'll move their equipment."

She added that the amount of work they accomplish each day contributes to her Soldiers" pride.

"To my knowledge, we're the only CRSP yard in theater that handles the containers, the cargo, Fed Ex, rolling stock as well as the air cargo," said Bridick. "We're definitely one of the busiest yards."

Spc. Jason Hunsaker, a CLP liaison, explained how the service begins when CLP arrives at the yard.

"We greet convoys, download and upload cargo, and try to figure out where cargo is going," said Hunsaker. "Maintaining the yard is a full-time project itself."

Hunsaker added that paperwork can prove challenging for the CRSP staff.

"The paperwork varies, so there's a lot of detective work involved," Hunsaker said. "Sometimes stuff will come in with just an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag, so you have to hope that was burned correctly."

He noted that efficiency at the CRSP has increased with the new systems the 21st has implemented.

"There was almost nothing in place when we got here. Now everything is broken down into lanes by the major areas we serve. Everything has been sped up a lot," said Hunsaker. "We've become a yard people can depend on, and that we can be proud of."

Pfc. Justin McSorley, a forklift operator, said the biggest challenge for him is adding to the speed of the new system.

"It can be challenging when you get a 30 truck convoy in at 3:00 p.m.," said McSorley. "You're running around trying to get it loaded or unloaded while there's still daylight, or if there's a lack of personnel, then it can be stressful."

McSorley, a cavalry scout by trade, said he was surprised when he was assigned to a cargo transfer company when he deployed.

"I had no idea what I"d be doing. I though maybe I"d be pulling security on gun trucks or something," McSorley said. "When we got here, they didn't really have the resources to train scouts, so I fell in under them and do what they do now."

Although the assignment was unexpected, McSorley said he's enjoying the work he does now.

"They have pretty good living conditions, but the hours are kind of long," said McSorley. "But, that's war, right? I really can't complain."

McSorley, along with Hunsaker, has taken on the additional mission to create shelters in the CRSP yard to provide shade for Soldiers to take breaks and store water.

"I enjoy looking at my work and saying, "I built that"," McSorley said. "No one can take that away from you."

Pfc. Calvin Jones, a heavy equipment operator with the 21st, said he likes his job, and looks for positive activities to keep him motivated.

"The morale is good. They help us out with the internet and phones," Jones said. "Other than that, I write a lot of letters and try to keep in contact with my family."

Jones said his favorite part is the wide range of experience he is receiving on this deployment.

"They try to rotate us so we can get experience at every point of the operation," Jones said. "When you're out there in the yard, filling in paperwork, you might be in a rush just to get things done, but then you remember what it was like when you were in the office. They want us to see the whole mission."

Jones said he is pleased with the results of the hard work he and his teammates have put into the CRSP yard.

"I can look back now at the yard and say, "Man, a lot of my sweat went into that."