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By Capt. Venson Walker
CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WAR PAINT, Iraq - A shower, laundry and clothing repair team provides daily laundry operations for approximately 500 soldiers and civilian contractors stationed at Contingency Operating Base War Paint, Iraq.
The SLCR team with the the 540th Quartermaster Company, 13th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 3rd Sustainment Brigade, 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), is one of a few teams in Iraq performing these duties. As most SLCR teams were replaced by contractors on larger bases, a few teams remain useful for remote locations throughout Iraq, said Sgt. Sonny Sanchez, the War Paint laundry facility non-commissioned officer-in-charge, and a Charlotte, Texas, native.
One SLCR team can provide uniform and shower maintenance for 1,500 to 3,000 soldiers at a base, he said. An SLCR team is comprised of six soldiers, and uses the Laundry Advance Drying System, an industrial sized washing machine with a user interface able to monitor the status and problems that may occur during the washing process, said Sanchez. It takes roughly five hours from the time clothes are turned in to wash, dry and fold them, he said, and most soldiers retrieve their laundry within 24 hours.
The laundry point processes approximately 250 bundles a day, said Spc. Joshua Butler, a textile service specialist with the 540th QM Company, and a Hagerstown, Md., native.
“Bundles can consist of as little as one set of ACUs or a set of sheets,” said Butler.
The SLCR team puts 20 to 25 bundles into the LADS, roughly 200 pounds of laundry to make up each load, which is considered a full load for this cycle, he said.
“The attitude of soldiers is obvious when they receive their clean laundry,” said Butler. “One of the best things about this job is the level of appreciation that you get from the soldiers you support.”
“The SLCR team provides clean uniforms and socks, which alone should earn them high praise and we love what they do for us,” added Capt. Kelsey, the 3rd Brigade Support Battalion Support Operations Service and support officer in charge.
| Date Taken: | 12.14.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 01.09.2011 12:05 |
| Story ID: | 63271 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE WAR PAINT, IQ |
| Web Views: | 192 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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