FORT LEE, Va. - The U.S. Army Ordnance School’s Basic Electronics Maintenance Training Division at Fort Lee received the latest iteration of basic electronics training devices, the Basic Electronics Maintenance Trainer Iteration II (BEMT-II), during the weekend of March 20-21, 2021.
The 360ST Basic Electronics Maintenance Trainer provides theoretical and practical training on basic electronics subjects using computer-aided instruction and hands-on experiments using industry-standard test, measurement, and diagnostic equipment.
The 130ST has several improvements that make the trainer more durable and easier to operate while delivering the same high quality of basic electronics training the Ordnance school and several other institutions have come to expect. Improvements include a more robust solid-state power supply, more durable connector pins and improved man-machine interface via a high-resolution LED display.
The 130ST console, a component of the BEMT-II, replaces the aging 130E console, which reached the end of its life cycle in 2011. The 130E trainers were originally fielded to Redstone Arsenal, Aberdeen Proving Ground, and Edgewood Arsenal from 1995 to 1999 and relocated to Fort Lee as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure Act.
Fielding of the new BEMT-II trainer to the Ordnance school began in fiscal year 2019 with Fort Gordon, Georgia receiving 224 student stations, 14 instructor operator stations, and one server. Later in the same fiscal year, trainers were delivered to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Fort Benning, Georgia, and Regional Training Sites – Maintenance at Pearl City, Hawaii and Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Because the Ordnance campus at Fort Lee is the Army’s largest BEMT user, fielding will occur in two phases during fiscal years 2021 and 2022.
Phase I of the fielding will include 260 130ST consoles as well as the improved curriculum.
Phase II will provide the remaining 68 consoles, 328 computers and monitors, 2 servers, and 14 switches required to route the lesson material as well as domain control and learning management system data to and from the servers.
According to Paul Walters, an instructor in the BEMT division, the new trainers will significantly improve training by minimizing downtime for repairs and providing more current lesson content.
“This fielding is a big step for us here at Fort Lee,” said Joseph W. Kirby, the Ordnance school’s director of training. “We have the primary responsibility for developing training for the entire Ordnance school, and now we have the right tools to develop and execute the best electronics training possible.”
The new BEMT-II has the flexibility and adaptability to meet the diverse needs of the students who will use it at the Ordnance school and throughout the Total Army, including the U.S. Army Intelligence School at Fort Huachuca, Arizona and the U.S. Army Aviation School at Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Weapons and vehicles constantly change in today’s Army. This latest iteration of BEMT is available to train the diverse range of electronics skills required to keep the Army’s vast array of weapons and vehicles operational and ready for combat.
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