QUICK PIVOT


with the University of Pittsburgh Medi- cal Center to create a biocontainment unit to reduce the transmission of the corona- virus for medical personnel caring for COVID-19 patients. Te team designed an individual biocontainment unit that uses negative pressure to suction the air around a patient and filter out viral parti- cles. Because the air is actively filtered out, the individual biocontainment unit helps to reduce the spread of the virus, partic- ularly when a patient is being intubated.


THE SNIFF TEST


COVID-19 detection canine Poncho indicates a positive sample from multiple items presented on a canine training wheel. The Training Aid Delivery Devices attached to each arm of the wheel allow the dog to detect the substance inside, some of which are the proteins that a person produces in response to the virus. (Photo by Jack Bunja, U.S. Army DEVCOM Chemical Biological Center)


response to COVID-19 with our partners is an excellent example of pivoting against a previously unknown threat. You know, at our core in DEVCOM, whether it’s one of the seven centers or us in ARL, in the end, our people are driven to use their expertise and to partner to help those on the front lines, whether they are our Soldiers, or in this case, COVID-19 patients and health care workers.”


TRACKING TO REDUCE EXPOSURE DEVCOM CBC and the Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biolog- ical, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) found a way to screen nearly 4,000 Soldiers for COVID-19 before training rotations at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.


26 Army AL&T Magazine Winter 2021


Te center shipped two JPEO-CBRND mobile laboratories to Camp Ripley Train- ing Center, Minnesota, where the Soldiers were located. Te Soldiers were part of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division, Minnesota National Guard. In addition to shipping the mobile laboratories from Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, to Camp Ripley, they had to be outfitted with analytical equip- ment to screen the Soldiers. Members of the CBC Chemical Biological Application and Risk Reduction team transported the mobile laboratories to Minnesota. On the first day of screening, 117 Soldiers were tested. After a brief pause, nearly 1,000 Soldiers were tested each day.


DEVCOM ARL tapped into its vast network of academic partners to work


EQUIPPING SOLDIERS While the country struggled with what type of face coverings were needed, whether they would provide enough protection and how to properly wear them, people around the country became creative, donning everything from bandanas to scarves to homemade cover- ings. Ordering and receiving masks online during the onset of the pandemic was diffi- cult because demand far exceeded supply.


DEVCOM Soldier Center, which devel- ops textiles and uniforms for Soldiers, responded by designing, and later build- ing and testing, a prototype for a durable face covering for Soldiers in non-medical, public settings. Tis effort continued for several weeks and eventually produced more than 12,000 face coverings for Soldiers. Te face coverings, which were produced at the Soldier Center, were sent to Soldiers at Fort Benning, Geor- gia, allowing them to continue training. Te coverings were also distributed to the Natick Soldier Systems Center workforce, enabling them to return safely back to the workplace. DEVCOM Soldier Center also developed two videos, which were posted to YouTube, showing how to properly wear the face covering. Te team also created a technical data package, which is located on the Soldier Center website, with patterns and information on how to produce large quantities of the face covering.


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