Engineer Research and Development Center News

Building the expertise behind installation readiness: Inside ERDC’s EBCx training

Sarah Clark, public affairs specialist — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 21:37:00 GMT

Keeping Army buildings operating at their best helps strengthen installation readiness and resilience, and improvements don’t always require major renovations. Sometimes, they require a trained eye to identify hidden inefficiencies and optimize the systems already in place. Through a recent hands-on training at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's (ERDC) Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL), facility managers from across the Department of War and other federal agencies learned just that.

CRREL working to keep ‘people out of harm’s way’ by using drones to find and identify unexploded ordnance

Justin Campfield, public affairs specialist — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:07:00 GMT

A team of researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) and Dartmouth College is pioneering a new way to keep humans out of harm’s way by using drones to find and identify unexploded ordnance.

ERDC, LEMA Power the Fight During FLEX 2026

Sarah Clark, public affairs specialist — Tue, 19 May 2026 17:00:47 GMT

As unmanned surface vessels carved through the waters off Key West, Florida, and autonomous aerial systems scanned the horizon for illicit trafficking targets, a quieter but equally critical mission was unfolding behind the scenes at U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. Fourth Fleet’s Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026 exercise. Inside a network of command trailers operating advanced unmanned systems, researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL) and industry partner LEMA were proving that the future of expeditionary operations depends not only on autonomous platforms and artificial intelligence, but also on resilient, unmanned energy systems capable of providing uninterrupted power in austere environments.

ERDC, U.S. Forest Service make historic agreement to accelerate forest capabilities

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Mon, 11 May 2026 19:58:00 GMT

Thanks to a historic agreement between the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) and the U.S. Forest Service, a foundational dataset has been created to bolster the nation’s forests.

ERDC Advances Joint Port Damage Recovery Capabilities Through Tri-Service Training

Kaley Webb, public affairs specialist — Tue, 24 Mar 2026 18:20:44 GMT

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is strengthening expeditionary logistics capabilities through the development and deployment of innovative Port Damage Recovery (PDR) kits, designed to rapidly restore damaged maritime infrastructure in contested environments.

ERDC Hydrogen Energy Node Installed at Fort Bliss Innovations Lab

Sarah Clark, public affairs specialist — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 18:19:09 GMT

The 1st Armored Division (1 AD) Innovations Lab, located on Fort Bliss, Texas, is now at the forefront of Army energy modernization following the installation and operational validation of a cutting-edge hydrogen nanogrid, also known as an energy node, developed with industry collaboration at the U.S. Army Engineer Research Development Center (ERDC)’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL).

Dr. Sally Shoop awarded American Society of Civil Engineers Can-Am Amity Award

Justin Campfield, public affairs specialist — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 16:07:10 GMT

Dr. Sally Shoop, research engineer with ERDC’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, has been awarded the 2026 Can-Am Civil Engineering Amity Award by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).

Artificial Intelligence R&D: A Force Multiplier for our military and nation

Pentagon News — Sat, 14 Feb 2026 18:07:37 GMT

From ensuring the resilience of America’s critical infrastructure to giving Warfighters a decisive edge on the battlefield, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center is pioneering the use of artificial intelligence across the full spectrum of its civil and military missions.

CRREL researchers discover new species frozen in Alaskan permafrost

Justin Campfield, public affairs specialist — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 16:45:35 GMT

Research microbiologists at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) recently discovered 26 new species of microorganisms.

ERDC researchers conduct water assessment at USAG Bavaria-Garmisch in Germany

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 16:15:54 GMT

Ensuring safe, reliable drinking water is critical to protecting Soldier health and maintaining mission readiness at U.S. military facilities worldwide. To support that objective, three researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Environmental Laboratory (EL) recently traveled to a U.S. military base in Germany to evaluate water quality, resilience and treatment needs.

New software helps military planners predict mud season

Justin Campfield, public affairs specialist — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 20:21:00 GMT

A new software tool called the “Mud Threat Score” now provides military planners with real-time frozen ground and thaw predictions at 30-meter resolution, anytime, anywhere in the world. Developed by ERDC laboratories and their Hanover, New Hampshire-based industry partner Creare, the new tool combines existing weather forecasting data residing within the geospatial decision support tool GeoWATCH with newly developed frozen and thawing soil algorithm to highlight locations that are experiencing or will experience muddy conditions due to the spring thaw.

ERDC explores Nuclear Energy Systems to power future mission

Sarah Clark, public affairs specialist — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 17:10:31 GMT

A strong, resilient energy supply is critical for military installations, and researchers at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) are evaluating domestically produced nuclear energy systems to provide critical research in support of the Army’s Janus Program.

ERDC advances Army readiness through resilient, off-grid power

Sarah Clark, public affairs specialist — Thu, 18 Dec 2025 20:18:00 GMT

A small, self-contained electric power system unit called an “energy node” has been installed at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) to facilitate further research towards fulfilling the U.S. Army’s requirement for reliable and resilient energy to power the mission.

Autonomous barge kits improve logistical capabilities for joint forces

Carol C. Coleman, public affairs specialist — Mon, 15 Dec 2025 17:09:46 GMT

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) has partnered with the U.S. Transportation Command to develop Scalable Autonomous Modular Propulsion kits for coastal and riverine Operational Logistics, or SAMPOL.

USACE celebrates opening of new I-ATLAS facility

Mary Margaret Edney, Public Affairs Chief — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 20:03:04 GMT

In partnership with the Hancock County Port & Harbor Commission, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) cut the ribbon on the new home for I-ATLAS — a collaborative coastal mapping effort that provides the data needed to prepare, respond and stay ahead of emerging challenges in both civil works and national defense operations.

ERDC, USACE host workshop in Botswana to help mitigate lead contamination

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Thu, 11 Sep 2025 14:03:36 GMT

Subject-matter experts from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Europe District recently traveled to Gaborone, Botswana to conduct an Environmental Soil Screening Workshop with the Botswana Defense Force (BDF) at their shooting ranges.

CRREL’s Randy Hill Inducted into Gallery of Distinguished Employees

Justin Campfield, public affairs specialist — Tue, 09 Sep 2025 14:53:28 GMT

Physical scientist Randy Hill was inducted into the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory’s (CRREL) Gallery of Distinguished Employees on Aug. 21.

CERL’s Melanie Johnson wins Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) Career Exceptional Service Award

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 15:38:30 GMT

One of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) electrical engineers earned recognition for her contributions to improving microgrid technology. Melanie Johnson, a research electrical engineer and team lead at ERDC’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL), earned the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) Career Exceptional Service Award.

ERDC welcomes 13th Commander, Lt. Col. Joshua Haynes

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Wed, 16 Jul 2025 16:31:00 GMT

ERDC welcomed Lt. Col. Joshua Haynes as its 13th commander during the Change of Command Ceremony on July 15, in the ERDC Headquarters Building. Haynes replaces outgoing Commander Col. Dr. Christian Patterson, who leaves ERDC after six years of service, three of which he served as commander.

ERDC earns its first Army Superior Unit Award

Justus Reed, Public Affairs Specialist — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 17:51:00 GMT

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) received recognition for its exemplary support to the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency received its first Army Superior Unit Award streamer during a special ceremony held at ERDC Headquarters.