UNDERSTANDING ARMY ACQUISITION


ENGINEERING THE THEATER


The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers works in water and on land to lay the groundwork for multidomain operations in 2028.


by Nicholas Boone


This is the first in a series of articles about the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) support for multido- main operations. “The U.S. Army in Multi-Domain Operations 2028” concept proposes a series of solutions for the rapid and contin- uous integration of all domains of warfare—land, sea, air, space and cyberspace. ERDC and engineer capabilities span the multidomain operations cycle from competing short of armed conflict, to solving a layered standoff, to returning to competition on more favorable terms. This article contains examples of modernized software currently being used to refine war plans, conduct mission rehearsal and disseminate cross-domain intelligence for multidomain operations success.


E


ven before our nation’s formation, the first Continen- tal Congress organized an Army and appointed a chief engineer to assist Gen. George Washington in solving the revolutionary challenges of the time. After partner-


ing with allied nations and delivering success with this inaugural mission, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) broad- ened its national service and embraced diverse responsibilities, such as managing the nation’s first military academy and engi- neering institution, developing our country’s defenses, mapping the western frontier, managing federal flood control, provid- ing hydroelectric power and leading natural disaster response missions.


Based on these successes, our nation’s military leaders once again turned to USACE three-quarters of a century ago as they began to consider one of the boldest multidomain assaults in modern warfare. In planning the D-Day invasions at Normandy, the scale of which was unprecedented, national leaders leaned heav- ily upon the engineering expertise tucked away at the Corps’ Waterways Experiment Station in Vicksburg, Mississippi—the location of today’s U.S. Army Engineer Research and Develop- ment Center (ERDC).


Our engineers advised military leaders on the challenges they could encounter with coastal logistics and built models of Mulberry harbors—the temporary portable harbors developed by the United Kingdom during World War II to facilitate the rapid offloading of cargo onto beaches—to understand their response during extreme seas. Tose tests confirmed, if not improved, British designs that aided in calming coastal waters during the invasion. Researchers conducted scaled testing of float bridges and advised the military on which designs provided greater oper- ational capability in extreme river-crossing conditions, a role that continues today. Tese engineers and scientists also leveraged their geotechnical expertise and forged the beginnings of airfield engineering for military operations, developing design criteria and materiel solutions to support heavy wheel loads required by


https://asc.ar my.mil


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