The U.S. Army Environmental Command (USAEC) is improving range sustainability through technology transfer. Each year, the Army spends millions of dollars on research and testing new technologies with limited fielding to installations. In an effort to improve this return on investment, USAEC is conducting workshops that transfer technologies and capture best practices that will ultimately benefit the long-term viability of training ranges, and therefore the readiness of Soldiers. This past year, in the U.S. and overseas, USAEC conducted approximately ten technology transfer workshops.
The workshops provide Army program managers, range management personnel, and the environmental community with practical technologies and tools that help determine issues requiring new development or study, and build relationships between various Army and DoD organizations. Providing installations with the tools to better service their ranges ensures that these areas continue to operate and maintain training capabilities to enhance Soldier readiness for generations to come.
The focus is with the Operational Range communities at installations and how to improve training ranges for Soldiers. Some of the topics discussed include, but are not limited to, State-of-the-Art unexploded ordnance (UXO) Detection and Discrimination, Small Arms Ranges, Maneuver/Impact Areas, Emissions Management, and NEPA Categorical Exclusions.
One success of these workshops is with regard to active training ranges and unexploded ordnance (UXO). The workshops enabled the understanding of the applicability and limitations of state-of-the-art UXO detection and discrimination technologies. The result included the integration of high-tech UXO technology implemented into future range construction projects along with the identification of potential study sites for further development and testing of technologies and management tools.
The technology transfer workshops are implemented through on-site visits from the sustainable range technology team through a request from the installation or higher headquarters. These personnel meet with the installation's range and environmental staff to exchange ideas and lessons learned as well as to review any relevant projects and tools that USAEC and the research community have developed and/or validated.
For more information and to schedule a technology transfer workshop, please contact the hotline at (800) USA-3845, DSN 584-1699 or e-mail.
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