Rapid Equipping Force keeps Soldiers safe, effective downrange, Mobile lab teams solve tactical prob

By Brittany CarlsonOctober 25, 2013

REF
From left to right, Col. Steven Sliwa, Rapid Equipping Force director; Master Sgt. William Pascual, REF operational NCO and Brad Halsey, REF scientist from Exponent, provide comments to Jared Serbu, Federal News Radio, during a media roundtable discu... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Fort Belvoir is home to the U.S. Army's Rapid Equipping Force, which provides fast solutions for tactical challenges Soldiers face downrange.

The REF's newest director, Col. Steven Sliwa, hosted a media roundtable discussion and tour of the REF Expeditionary Lab, Oct. 16, to demonstrate what the REF does on a daily basis.

"We have the ability to take and harness emerging technologies and deliver those to the warfighter," Sliwa said. "The great thing about this job is that we can receive a requirement right from the field -- right from a commander, right from a Soldier, or from Army leadership -- and we can develop a solution."

Some of the REF's solutions have become Army-wide programs of record, including the Packbot, a camera robot that provides cave surveillance in Afghanistan; sniper defeat kits for Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles called "boomerangs;" and the Raven, one of the Army's first handheld unmanned aerial vehicles.

Often, the solutions are initiated by Soldiers in the unit.

For example, in the early days of the conflict in Afghanistan, one of the REF engineers overheard a noncommissioned officer voicing his suspicions that enemy forces were hiding weapons in wells, Sliwa said. Within a few days, the REF team created the "well cam:" a camera attached to a fishing rod that could look for the weapons without putting Soldiers in more danger.

"On their first fishing expedition, they caught a large cache of weapons. We were rapid and we were agile on the battlefield in support of that Soldier," Sliwa said. "It's not the most high-tech device in the world, but sometimes when you need something like that, you just need it."

The REF has three "Ex Labs:" one at Fort Belvoir and two in Afghanistan. Each REF team includes an NCO, an operations advisor with military experience and two civilian scientists and engineers, who work together to pinpoint tactical problems and come up with solutions.

Master Sgt. William Pascual, REF operational NCO, deployed twice with the REF in the past two years and said the combined knowledge and experience of the scientists and NCOs is crucial to the REF's success.

"The Soldiers on the ground know the tactical challenges the best," he said. "What we do at the Ex Lab is engage with the unit, talk with them about the tactical problems and see what we can do to help them. We identify that problem and then we try to come up with a quick solution. Once the solution is complete, we prototype it, give it to them, see if they like it, see if it works and then we build more if we need to."

The Ex Labs include 3D printers and automated milling machines that can build prototypes out of plastic or metal, based on input from a design program. REF team members can also weld, sew, solder, build robotics and help with electronic components and radio frequency diagnostics.

REF NCOs often go on patrols with units to help pinpoint problems.

During a recent deployment, Pascual helped a unit that kept getting stranded on patrol when trucks would get flat tires. He discovered that when the trucks drove against a wall or berm, the wheel valve that allows Soldiers to fill a tire was getting broken, causing the tire to deflate. In response, the REF team created valve stem covers that kept the trucks on the road and protected Soldiers.

The REF's main focus is Soldiers in Afghanistan, but it also helps Soldiers deployed around the world on a localized unit-by-unit basis. In 2013, REF was engaged in more than 20 countries. It can provide quick solutions because it has both the authority to approve requirements and acquire materials from sources outside of the Army's inventory.

The REF was initiated in 2002 in response to heavy casualties Soldiers in Afghanistan sustained from booby traps and grenades while conducting cave clearance. For more information, visit www.ref.army.mil.