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News | July 31, 2020

DLA Troop Support helps 1st Stryker Brigade keep its chill

By Nancy Benecki DLA Troop Support Public Affairs

The Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support is helping an Army brigade stay cool during training as the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Carson, Colorado, prepares for training exercises at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in San Bernardino County, California.

DLA Troop Support received the urgent request for 365 coolers on May 21, said Tom Hall, the Subsistence supply chain Group Rations and Equipment branch chief.

The coolers are part of a critical risk mitigation plan to help soldiers cope with the extreme temperatures at the training site which can reach above 115 degrees, Hall said.

“Soldiers will be wearing full combat gear and, potentially, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense protective equipment during this time, and the risk of overheating is very high,” Hall said.

The required delivery date was July 26, but the coolers arrived at the NTC on July 20, he said.

“The Customer and Supplier Support teams worked together to ensure the proper Food Fielding and Food Service Equipment were procured, stocked and delivered to customers in a timely manner,” Hall said.

While procuring coolers is not unusual, the large amount in a short time span was unique to this order, he said.

“It’s just a small part of what the [Food Fielding Equipment team] does,” Hall said.

The 1st SBCT performed a number of exercises in June to prepare for a training event at the NTC, which included tactical exercises, engagement area development, sustainment operations, medical operations, command post training, a live-fire exercise and other tasks.

“All of this is keyed in to prepare us for the unexpected at NTC,” Maj. William Yang, field artillery officer and executive officer, 1st SBCT, said in an article in The Fort Carson Mountaineer. “The idea is, if we make it strenuous and intense enough now, our Soldiers will be conditioned to be successful at NTC.”