Corps of Engineers Team Upholds 'Building Strong' Motto During COVID-19

April 27, 2020 | BY Julie Shoemaker

The Army Corps of Engineers consistently lives up to the motto ''Building Strong,'' with some 37,000 civilians and soldiers delivering daily engineering services to customers in more than 130 countries.

COVID-19 has caused unimaginable changes to people's lifestyles, attitudes about social interaction, hygiene and overall priorities. People are self-quarantining and avoiding contact beyond immediate family members. Large numbers of workers are teleworking from their homes, and major life events such as graduations, celebrations, weddings, and funerals, have been postponed or cancelled.

The Corps of Engineers, including the Transatlantic Middle East, or TAM, District, has continued its primary mission while also assisting the nation and federal agencies during the crisis, ''Building Strong'' through deeds, not words.

TAM's headquarters is in Winchester, Virginia., with offices throughout the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in the Middle East and Central Asia. Its work includes designing and constructing facilities for use by U.S. forces, performing engineering activities for other U.S. government and foreign agencies, and providing operations and maintenance services for various customers throughout the region.

''We don't have the luxury of waiting out COVID-19,'' said Army Col. Philip Secrist, the Middle East District commander, when he initiated maximum telework of Team TAM. ''Our mission partners are counting on us to continue to deliver during this challenging time.''

Projects still need to be completed on time, and Team TAM is doing whatever it can to do that, he said. The team in Winchester, including project management, contracting professionals, legal advisors and more, is coordinating through teleworking members and others deemed mission-essential. Contracts are awarded and project milestones are being met. The district continues to serve U.S. and allied mission partners, he added.

Work continues at TAM field offices, with many health and safety precautions being integrated into the daily routine.

''We are all doing our part to protect others, even when we cannot maintain the o[6-foot] distance while operating [or] riding our low speed vehicles to the job sites,” said Mark Wittrock, a Bahrain area resident engineer.

The list of essential office supplies required for daily activity has evolved during the pandemic. The Bahrain resident office now has an IP communicator, which is essential for many mandatory and daily conference calls, Wittrock said.Decontamination spray is kept on hand for daily wipedowns of the entire office. Decontamination wipes, face masks and antibacterial hand gels are used for travel outside of the decontaminated area, he continued. While maximizing telework and social distancing, several necessary phones are needed to keep in touch with team members abroad.

''I have my Saudi cell phone nearby to stay in touch with the Saudi teammates, since I cannot cross the border now,'' Wittrock said. ''And my U.S. cell phone to stay in touch with the TAM team in Winchester Plus the Bahrain cell phone to both stay in touch with Bahrain teammates and to use for taking pictures when needed.

''For nonsensitive information exchanges, we use several different group chats,'' he said. ''A specific Bahrain resident office group chat for our daily personnel status/COVID-19 check-ins, and our KAS Artillery Group chat is an effective tool for project updates and communicating among the project team members.''

The TAM offices are also doing their best to ensure that the contractors working for the Corps of Engineers on the worksites are safe, he added. This includes implementing techniques and tactics such as social distancing, wearing personal protective equipment, and establishing decontamination stations throughout the job site.

(Julie Shoemaker is assigned to the Army Corps of Engineers.)