ERDC and NATO experiment advances engineer survivability

U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center
Published July 7, 2025
U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, transports Italian VBM Freccia at a wet gap crossing during exercise Saber Guardian 25 in Frecatei, Romania, June 12, 2025. ERDC researchers worked closely with Soldiers in Romania as part of an experiment focused on improving tactics, techniques and procedures for Warfighters conducting wet gap crossings.

U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, transports Italian VBM Freccia at a wet gap crossing during exercise Saber Guardian 25 in Frecatei, Romania, June 12, 2025. ERDC researchers worked closely with Soldiers in Romania as part of an experiment focused on improving tactics, techniques and procedures for Warfighters conducting wet gap crossings.

U.S. Army Sgt. Jalen Brown, 12C Boat Crew Member assigned to the 809th Multi-Role Bridge Company, 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, grabs a hook to secure and lift the M30 Bridge Erection Boat out of the water during wet gap crossing rehearsals for Saber Guardian 25 on June 8, 2025. Exercises like this allow the U.S. Army to operate at new ports while also rehearsing the deployment and integration of U.S. military combat equipment throughout Europe, ensuring that the U.S. Army is ready at all times to support and defend NATO allies and partner forces across all domains.

U.S. Army Sgt. Jalen Brown, 12C Boat Crew Member assigned to the 809th Multi-Role Bridge Company, 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, grabs a hook to secure and lift the M30 Bridge Erection Boat out of the water during wet gap crossing rehearsals for Saber Guardian 25 on June 8, 2025. Exercises like this allow the U.S. Army to operate at new ports while also rehearsing the deployment and integration of U.S. military combat equipment throughout Europe, ensuring that the U.S. Army is ready at all times to support and defend NATO allies and partner forces across all domains.

Carey Price, a senior research engineer with the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory briefs a group of U.S. Soldiers assigned to 809th Multi-Role Bridge Company, 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command during exercise Saber Guardian 25 in Frecatei, Romania, June 10th, 2025.

Carey Price, a senior research engineer with the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory briefs a group of U.S. Soldiers assigned to 809th Multi-Role Bridge Company, 7th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command during exercise Saber Guardian 25 in Frecatei, Romania, June 10th, 2025.

FRECATEI, Romania— The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), along with the NATO Military Engineering Working Group’s Camouflage, Concealment, Deception, and Obscuration Team of Experts, recently conducted an experiment in support of “surviving the gap” during wet gap crossing exercises in Frecatei, Romania.

From June 6-13, 2025, the experiment was conducted alongside and in coordination with the 7th Engineer Brigade and V Corps and demonstrated signature management methods and other effects to enhance the survivability of combat engineers and critical mobility and logistics assets. Finding new and improved ways to reduce risks to troops and equipment is especially important during wet gap crossings and similar maneuvers where forces tend to be more vulnerable as they bridge and cross contested water obstacles.

ERDC’s team of subject-matter experts were in Romania for Saber Guardian 25 to employ new technologies and better understand how they work in operational environments. Saber Guardian 25 is an exercise co-led by V Corps, Hungarian Defense Forces and Romanian Land Forces. The exercise took place at various locations in Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania.

“This exercise provided invaluable Warfighter touchpoints that directly inform ongoing ERDC research efforts in survivability and protection of critical force projection capabilities,” said Carey Price, a senior research engineer with ERDC’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory.

The information learned will feed future experiments and programs focused on keeping Soldiers safe during large-scale combat exercises and real-world operations.

In close coordination with U.S. Army Europe and Africa, U.S. European Command and other U.S. units in theater, ERDC regularly works hand-in-hand with NATO Allies and other U.S. partners to develop and provide innovative solutions to military engineering challenges.

“The opportunity to collaborate with allies not only enhances interoperability between partner nations, but allows the U.S. research enterprise to leverage diverse skillsets and capabilities that are not always available domestically,” said Price.

The NATO Military Engineering Working Group and the Camouflage, Concealment, Deception, and Obscuration Team of Experts were also strong partners for collaborating internationally, integrating allies into joint exercises, and including their technologies in this experiment.

ERDC has worked closely with the engineer community for years to improve Army engineers’ abilities to safely conduct wet gap crossings. The organization’s military engineering portfolio conducts extensive work in both force protection and force projection. This exercise allows both of those fields to collaborate in the area of protected maneuver.

“This work is crucial to ensuring the survivability of the limited bridging assets and personnel available worldwide,” said Price. “Recent conflicts have highlighted the vulnerability of this mission set, and at ERDC, we are working to provide viable protective countermeasures.”

Experiments like this directly contribute to improving tactics, techniques and procedures for Warfighters, increases readiness, effectiveness and lethality of units engaging and defeating America’s adversaries.

“ERDC will continue pursuing unconventional protection methods and delivering those capabilities to our engineer units, because we know first-hand that they’re counting on it,” said Price.