 Living
It's unusual though, how these projects seem to grow larger and nearer to completion every morning. At one time, these sites were a beehive of activity throughout the day. The sailors of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion-5 were everywhere; on top of the buildings, inside them, walking around them, all looking for their next task. This was the case every day, from sun up to sun down. "Construction projects would go smoothly during the day until the afternoon," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Beigmann, crane mechanic and lifter, NMCB-5, "but then the wind and sandstorms would pick up, not to mention the extreme temperatures, causing work to slow or stop completely." The Seabees' primary focus since March has been the completion of the Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan, Regimental Combat Team-3 and Camp Leatherneck Garrison Combat Operations Centers. Their first project, the MEB-Afghanistan COC, was a project of record proportions completed in record time. The construction plan for the building was estimated to take at least five months to complete, said Petty Officer 1st Class Thomas Damron, builder, NMCB-5. The Seabees did it in three. "Personal pride and dedication helped us get through the first project," said Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher Britner, builder and crew leader, NMCB-5. "We would've liked to go back to our racks and stop, but we had a personal commitment to get the job done." Their successes in the first project did not come without hardships. The Seabees worked from around 6 a.m., to 6 p.m., each day. But with the temperature rising to an average high of 125 degrees every afternoon, and the constant sandstorms and high winds flowing across the camp, work efforts were often stalled. "The sun itself took a toll on people," said Britner. "Even if you weren't doing any hard labor, you were still exhausted from the heat beating down on you. The wind and sandstorms would make things more difficult and cause progress to really slow because of it." The Seabees determined from their lessons learned on the first project that changes needed to be made to increase productivity and safety. Instead of working constantly during the day, they decided to do it all under the night sky. And it has paid off. Since the change to a night-time construction schedule, productivity increased by 26 percent. Britner mentioned that the cooler temperatures and calmer environment, coupled with the experience gained by the crews in the first project, are key factors of their continued success. As for safety, NMCB-5 leaders are taking steps to avoid potential hazards. Every night, before going to work, they conduct a safety briefing to remind everyone of the present dangers. "There's nothing that we do in construction that isn't hazardous," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Doug Hoffman, safety supervisor, NMCB-5. "As for the heat index, I'd say it's 90 percent safer working at night." But this doesn't mean nighttime operations are completely safe. According to Hoffman, it comes down to vigilance and being aware of your surroundings at all times. Getting closer to completing all three buildings, the Seabees are staying out of the sun during the day, out of the clinic and on top of their game. Productivity has increased and they haven't had any accidents. ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:
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