Written by Lt Marc-André Jean, 53 Const Tp Comd

During Ex STALWART GUARDIAN 16, Construction Troop deployed to the field with the intent to practice and confirm their general engineer support skills as part of the road to high readiness. Our mission was to setup several modules of the Relocatable Temporary Camp (RTC), operate and maintain the RTC, and provide support to 2 CMBG and 4 Can Div members. The RTC was procured in 1999 and is designed to provide accommodations, power, cooling, kitchen facilities, ablutions, fuel, water, waste disposal, laundry support via modules (mods) fitting in standard 20’ ISO containers.

“It was a great learning experience to work with new pieces of kit.” Sgt Groenenberg, EGS Tech

The preparation began with the generation of the requirements based on the intended output: provide showers, laundry and vehicle washing capability to the rear echelon. Construction Troop was then able to make load calculations, design layout configurations and send the formal request to CJOC to get the RTC mods required. By the time we received all the mods and the setup equipment and the various contracts were awarded it became clear that the setup and operation of the RTC is a Brigade effort.

Now the exciting part, setup! Since only few members of Construction Troop received the training on the mods we were relying on their expertise to lead the sections to success. The main RTC mods installed consisted of the Vehicle Wash Rack (VWR), 3 x Ablution units, 2 x Laundry units and 2 x 150KW Generators. All of them were installed on rough terrain with the exception of the VWR which was setup on an old hard stand. The Construction Troop completed the setup well ahead of the expected time. After only 12hr the mods were ready to receive their fuel and water to start operations!

“Since I have been posted to the unit I was looking forward to working with the RTC mods and supporting exercises. I am glad to see it finally happened.” MCpl Wieser, ED Tech.

When we received our fuel and water there were still some minor adjustments to be made to begin operations, but it was nothing too complicated for Construction Troop. Many members came up with creative solutions using their engineer skills and we were able to begin operations. The setup phase was completed and it was clear that 2 CER Construction Troop had the level of expertise required for the job. The troops really enjoyed the training and the experience they gained. This will be tested on subsequent exercises such as Ex STORMING BEAR in November 2016 where it will be a similar setup and Ex ARCTIC SAPPER in January 2017 where ingenuity will be essential to operate the mods in sub-zero temperatures.

“The RTC provides quick comfort and support to deployed troops; it would be nice to see it more often.” MCpl Coady, PH Tech.