Army Reserve Soldiers' expertise in high demand at Army manufacturing center

By John B. SnyderJuly 30, 2015

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4 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Nearly 15 years after the last troops had deployed to Watervliet, several Soldiers from the 305th Engineer Facility Detachment, from Staten Island, N.Y., arrived this month to support the Arsenal's construction projects. From left: Maj. John Coppola... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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8 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Standing in front of the Arsenal's historic Big Gun Shop are:

Front row: Capt. Mario Boemio, 1st Lt. Anthony Richards Second row: Maj. Brian Mykulak, Maj. John Coppola, 1st Lt. Louis Boisnier, Staff Sgt. Nandram Shiwnath, Sgt. David Diano, Capt. Cor... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army)
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WATERVLIET ARSENAL, N.Y. (July 2015) -- Not since 9/11 has the Watervliet Arsenal had U.S. troops deploy to support its operations, until now, as nine personnel from the U.S. Army Reserve's 305th Engineer Facility Detachment from Staten Island, N.Y., deployed here July 13 to do critical support work.

There was no crisis or force protection concern, as was the case when the last Guard and Reserve units deployed here following the devastating attacks on our homeland on Sept. 11, 2001. This support is more about efficiently leveraging critical engineering capability to support the Arsenal as it undergoes $27 million worth of construction projects, said Col. Lee H. Schiller Jr., the Arsenal commander.

"This year, we added more than $20 million of new construction work with no increase in public works personnel who do the planning, coordination, and the oversight for all construction projects," Schiller said. "And so, when the 305th Army Reserve unit volunteered to conduct its two-week annual training here, we jumped at the opportunity to have an experienced engineer team perform critical work for us, at no cost to our operations."

Maj. John Coppola, the detachment commander, said that his team is providing engineering expertise that ranges from civil engineers to architects to electricians.

"What is great about supporting the Watervliet Arsenal is that we are able to provide engineering support that will stay in New York State and that everything we do will support our annual training requirements," Coppola said. "This is definitely a win-win situation for the Reserves and for the Arsenal."

Coppola said that on day one his team was already making a difference on the Arsenal.

"The detachment immediately accepted tasks that have eased the workload for some of the Arsenal staff, provided an extra set of eyes, as well as experience, to the quality control process of a $5 million water project, and assisted in the mapping and minor repair of electrical systems," Coppola said.

1st Lt. Anthony Richards, a licensed electrician by trade, said that the experience he is getting by inspecting the Arsenal's electrical grid is unlike anything he has ever experienced.

"The Arsenal has a unique electrical system that can only be found in a large manufacturing center," Richards said as he was inspecting an electrical panel in the Arsenal's historic Big Gun Shop. "I believe that what I am doing is so important that I almost feel as if I am becoming part of the Arsenal's history."

This detachment remained on duty here until July 24, said Robert Shadlock, the Arsenal's senior engineer who is also the liaison with the Reserve detachment.

"These guys are great in that they came in on day one and immediately went to work providing quality control oversight to a major waterline project, as well as drafting statements of work for future public works projects," Shadlock said. "The bottom line is that they are saving us a bunch of money by providing critical engineering expertise to our public works department just as several major construction projects are at their peak."

Coppola added that he hopes this new relationship with the Arsenal will continue and that he will invite his sister units in the brigade, which deal with vertical and horizontal construction, to support the Arsenal during their future annual training.

Schiller said he is already envisioning what could get done on the Arsenal next year if he had more Reserve support.

"Having this team here has really opened my eyes as to the realm of possibilities of how we could significantly improve the infrastructure of this post," Schiller said. "If we could get continued support next year by this detachment or even better yet, if the Reserves could add more units to support, we could truly make a huge impact on upgrading the infrastructure of this 202-year-old post."

Other than providing office space and limited computer-network support, there was no cost to the Arsenal.

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The Watervliet Arsenal is an Army-owned-and-operated manufacturing facility and is the oldest, continuously operating arsenal in the United States, having begun operations during the War of 1812. It celebrated its 200th anniversary in July 2013.

Today's Arsenal is relied upon by U.S. and foreign militaries to produce the most advanced, high-tech, high-powered weaponry for cannon, howitzer, and mortar systems. This National Historic Registered Landmark has an annual economic benefit to the local community in excess of $90 million, and its 2014 revenue was about $117 million.

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