The conclusion of a two-year effort addressing capability gaps in ensuring survivability of operational activities and critical infrastructure against newer threat weapons was marked with a full-scale field demonstration, part of support efforts for the Hardened Installation Protection for Persistent Operations (HIPPO) Joint Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTD). The event marked a job well done for ERDC researchers, who were able to provide successful mitigation options to improve airbase resiliency.
“Research hasn’t been done on hardened structures since the Cold War,” said Research Civil Engineer Dr. Mike Hammons. “Now, we’ve had a new threat emerge and it was time for us to take what we’ve learned about Soldier protection in the past 30 years and apply it to new technology.”
The main purpose of hardened structures is to protect critical assets from enemy attack. The protective shelter is permanent and built to withstand large blasts. The technology differs from the ERDC-developed and currently-deployed-in-theater Modular Protective System, a rapidly deployable and recoverable system made from a lightweight space frame and composite armor panels and used to protect existing infrastructure in need. Hardened structures strive to do things better from the beginning, starting with construction.
Researchers from ERDC, as well as collaborating organizations Air Force Research Laboratory and Naval Facilities Engineering Command, were able to test proposed changes to hardened structured efforts at a recent full-scale demonstration at Ft. Polk, LA, Eglin Air Force Base, FL, and Tyndall Air Force Base, FL. The goal was to ensure the modified structures provided the level of protection required, and the overall outcome was positive. Most were able to withstand the blasts, and those that did not were eliminated from potential use. Specific elements tested include threat characterization, single and multi-layered systems, expeditionary protection, interior protective systems, expedient protection and repair and restoration.
Results have already influenced FY13 military construction, as well as future construction in theater. The tests also identified some technology gaps, bringing in the possibility of extended research and funding.
“The science of protective structures is basically putting materials together in novel ways to defeat a special threat,” said Hammons. “ERDC got involved because of our unique expertise, capabilities and facilities, and we’ll continue to work as long as we are needed with the goal of keeping our Soldiers safe.”