Maintenance section keeping Soldiers cool

Photo By Sgt. Jason Mikeworth | Sgt. Tammy Fowler, the compressor and general repair section leader, and Pfc. Ian McIntosh, both from the 694th Maintenance Company (Direct Support) service the air conditioner of an RT240 Kalmar.  

AL TAQADDUM, IRAQ

04.25.2006

Courtesy Story

DVIDS Hub       

CAMP AL TAQQADUM, Iraq - In Iraq, summer temperatures can soar over 120 degrees, making air conditioners a valuable commodity.

The 694th Maintenance Company (Direct Support) works up a sweat in their air conditioner shop to keep the servicemembers of Camp Al Taqqadum cool.

"There's not enough to be said. We're in that season," said Staff Sgt. H. Rico Hopson, the 1st squad leader. "We've got a lot of troops depending on us and we're not going to let anyone down."

Hopson said his squad works in tandem with several military contractors.

"It's a combined effort with the military and civilians. We work together well here, and learn a lot from each other," said Hopson. "I've got some great Soldiers and great civilians. I think it should be a template of how contractors and the military should work together."

Hopson said the added experience the contractors bring to the mission has benefited some of his younger Soldiers who haven't received their military occupational specialty certification.
"Pfc. McIntosh isn't AC qualified as far as school training, he's a 21B (Combat Engineer)," Hopson said. "But he's jumped in here and hit the ground running. He's like a sponge with the things he's been learning."

Pfc. Ian McIntosh, working as a mechanic with the 694th, agreed with Hopson.

"It makes the job easier. We have one person here with over 30 years of experience," McIntosh said. "I'm learning a lot. There are a lot of times I have to ask questions of the guys who are qualified, but I have to show that I'm confident in the equipment I'm working on."

McIntosh said he hasn't had too much trouble picking up on his new job while surrounded by experts.

"It hasn't been too difficult," said McIntosh. "With all of the people we have and all of the knowledge they've got, it hasn't been much of a problem."

McIntosh said he was shocked when he was first transferred to 694th.

"Originally I was like, "What the? I don't know anything about this stuff," said McIntosh. "But I'm doing pretty well now."

He added that the morale of the shop is great, and that has helped him learn.

"Everyone's always laughing," McIntosh said. "It's usually light hearted here."

Hopson added that his squad handles more than just the air conditioner mission.

"Within the squad we have the AC shop and the compressor section," Hopson said. "In that area we do a lot of general repair, like washers and dryers. We're the catch-all shop. We've even worked on sewing machines."

Hopson said the section never flinched at the request to repair sewing machines.

"They took on a task they have never seen before, doing operations checks and repairs," said Hopson. "They even fabricated parts for them. In doing so, they managed to get well over 90 percent of the machines operational."

Hopson also expressed confidence in his squad to handle any mission they are called upon to complete.

"There's nothing we can't accomplish," said Hopson. "It's like the old adage"if it's hard, it'll take a few minutes, and if it's impossible, it'll take 15 minutes more."

Sgt. Tammy Fowler, the compressor and general repair section leader, said her section has come to expect a challenge each day.

"For the most part, we service and repair the air compressors, washers and dryers," said Fowler.

"We also worked on the sewing machines for the quartermaster company."

Fowler said the difficulties her section has faced has shown their character.

"Some of the challenges we have are the fact that some of our people aren't MOS qualified, and we're working on a lot of commercial equipment we haven't seen before," Fowler said. "A lot of times we don't have access to the parts we need for them, so we have to fabricate the parts ourselves. So far, we haven't had anything we couldn't fix."

Fowler said she enjoys the camaraderie of the squad.

"The squad is really close, so I think the best part of it is we all work close together and it's a learning experience for everyone," Fowler said. "Some of them are learning the MOS, and I'm learning how to run a shop."

Fowler added that the range of equipment her Soldiers are asked to repair makes their mission unique.

"Most MOSs focus on one general type of equipment. Ours covers anything from decontamination kits to pressure washers and even sewing machines," Fowler said. "We're the Maytag squad."

• Date Taken: 04.25.2006
• Date Posted: 04.25.2006 10:04
• Story ID: 6109
• Location: AL TAQADDUM, IQ