New program links Guard, Reserve mechanics with active units
By Kevin Lilley, Staff writer 11:30 a.m. EDT October 21, 2015
A first-of-its-kind program designed to integrate National Guard and Army Reserve mechanics into an active-duty Army unit led to a substantial reduction in overdue maintenance, a welcome learning experience for more than two dozen hard-charging soldiers — and a big win for the bad guys at Fort Irwin.
Soldiers participating in exercises at the California base’s National Training Center do battle with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, which provides the opposing force (or OPFOR) for the visiting units to work against. When the training unit heads home, the OPFOR resets. While a unit might rotate through the NTC once every two or three years, the 11th ACR takes on all comers.
That puts pressure on maintainers and often pushes the unit’s vehicles – two dozen variants, including everything from Abrams tanks to Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Humvees – beyond their maintenance windows. That need became the inspiration for Platinum Wrench, a 26-member platoon of Guard and Reserve soldiers with 91-series military occupational specialties, getting the OPFOR ready to meet its mission.
“We needed the help, and they needed the training,” said Capt. Will Brant, support operations maintenance officer with the unit, which usually has about 80 maintainers. “It ended up kind of evolving into this 90-day pilot program.”
The evolution paid off: The platoon performed 118 maintenance jobs in about 70 working days, piling up more than 2,400 man-hours and reducing the unit’s backlog – termed “delinquent services” – by 50 percent, Brant said.
The success rate has led to plans for a yearlong Platinum Wrench that could begin as early as this month, pending budget approval. And the OPFOR “bad guys” aren’t the only team that will benefit.
Participants “will take that [experience] back with them to their Reserve and Guard units,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Tim Vickers, the chief architect of the pilot program. “They have an exact grasp of how an active-duty maintenance system works, whereas in times past, there’s been a learning curve everybody has to go through, with the Guard and Reserve, to figure out how the active duty wants to do things."
“It was an absolutely outstanding opportunity for all of them to get some active-duty experience.”
Spc. Antrone Stevenson, from an Alaska Army National
Spc. Antrone Stevenson, from an Alaska Army National Guard unit, and Spc. Edra Murdock, from a Ga. Guard unit, hook up an engine pack sling in order to replace an engine as part of vehicle maintenance during the Platinum Wrench pilot program at Fort Irwin, Calif. (Photo: Army)
Boots (and tools) on the ground
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Matthew Hansen, a squadron maintenance technician, recalled speaking with Vickers about addressing the 11th's maintenance backlog with some Guard and Reserve assistance. Hansen said the OPFOR unit has the highest operational tempo of any unit he’s served with in 19 years in uniform; a regular Reserve training rotation wasn’t going to cut it.
“Two weeks, we thought, would not be beneficial, because they would still be getting familiar with the equipment and the processes,” Hansen said. “We didn’t see a great advantage of them coming here. Ninety days, we saw the ability for them to produce more.”
So they came up with the three-month plan. And they came up with it quickly: A team led by Vickers began preparing in earnest in May, received funding in June and had mechanics on the ground by mid-July, Brant said.
“From the time I clicked on the Tour of Duty [reserve-component website] … until I got up here, it was four days,” said Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Domingo, head of the training platoon. “Coming in, I didn’t know what to expect.”
Domingo’s trip to Fort Irwin from Whittier, California, only took about two hours, but his soldiers came in from all over the map, including the East Coast and Alaska. Charged with quickly establishing unit cohesion, Domingo kept his message simple.
“It says ‘United States Army’ on the shirt. It does not say ‘Guard’ or ‘Reserve,’" said the Reserve NCO, with 163rd Ordnance Company. "Once you put that uniform on, you belong to me and the active-duty Army component. And you are all mechanics, here to do one job.”
He was told he’d receive the “aces” of the specialty and he said their skills didn’t disappoint. Hansen agreed, saying that any inexperience the mechanics had on unfamiliar vehicles was overcome by their strong work ethic and ability to learn quickly.
“They were looking to get stuff done,” Hansen said. “The M1s, I gave them a mechanic to help walk them through it, they worked side by side, and after two tanks, they were trained, they were good to go. They could complete the services on those without assistance.”
Lt. Col. James Stephens, head of the 11th Armored Cavalry
Lt. Col. James Stephens, head of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment's support squadron, presents the Army Achievement Medal to Spc. Michael Williams, a reservist from Fla., for his outstanding performance during the Platinum Wrench pilot program. (Photo: Army)
Getting familiar
When he’s not with his Alaska National Guard unit, Spc. Daniel Pruski serves as a civilian service maintenance mechanic with the Defense Department. Despite that full-time experience, he felt the exercise gave him a chance to expand his skill set.
“Me and one other individual were working on the M1000 [Heavy Equipment Transport] trailers primarily since we’ve been down here, and that’s a piece of equipment in my unit in Alaska, we don’t have,” Pruski said. “I had experience on it in training, but down here … I learned a lot more about them than I previously knew.”
Spc. Steven Trotter shared a similar story: Serving as a mechanic with 178th Military Police Company in Monroe, Georgia, the Guard member spends most of his time on Humvees and other light tactical vehicles.
At Fort Irwin, he said, “We worked on the M1s. The tanks. … It was a great experience. We learned a lot.”
Both Trotter and Pruski praised their active-duty counterparts for sharing their expertise and offering hands-on assistance – training Trotter hopes will come in handy as he pursues a move to the active force.
The learning went both ways, Pruski said: “In some instances, I had some more knowledge on some of the wheeled vehicles than other soldiers, and they were asking me how to do stuff.”
Both the active-duty soldiers and Domingo, the E-7 in charge of the platoon, said there were few, if any, assimilation problems, and that they looked forward to the expanded benefits a yearlong program could offer. In addition to improved maintenance records for the active-duty unit, Domingo said the training itself can be a retention tool for hard-charging Guard and Reserve soldiers.
“As the senior NCO, our job is to try to keep these soldiers in, to keep them motivated,” Domingo said. “We can retain the soldiers [by helping them] do what they actually were trained to do.”
Active-duty mechanics worked alongside National Guard
Active-duty mechanics worked alongside National Guard and Army Reserve members during Platinum Wrench, making a major dent in the 11th ACR's maintenance backlog. (Photo: Army)
365-day tour
Organizers are hoping for another quick turnaround with the proposed yearlong program. If funding can be secured, plans call for recruiting new mechanics in a matter of weeks.
Interested soldiers with a 91-series MOS can apply via the Tour of Duty website by establishing a volunteer profile, Vickers said. Guardsmen and reservists both require approval from their chain of command.
“Over an extended period of duty, less can do more because of no equipment movement, no unit travel time and 91-series soldiers on-site 24/7, as required by the mission,” Vickers said.
As Brant, the OPFOR captain, put it, “As long as they are a mechanic, we have something for them to work on and learn proper procedures for.”
http://www.militarytimes.com/story/military/2015/10/21/new-program-likes-guard-reserve-mechanics-active-units/73440300/
