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  • Corps of Engineers projects prevent an estimated $734 Million in flood damages during February storms

    A preliminary analysis of data from the heavy rain event in mid-February, conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District, indicates that USACE flood risk management projects prevented an estimated $734 million in flood damages across the Cumberland River Basin.

  • New Construction Criteria for a Changing Arctic and Subarctic: The UFC 3-130 Series Revision Process

    Abstract: The DoD operates significant and strategically important installations in the Arctic and Subarctic domain. Geopolitical, economic, and climatic changes require an upgraded ability to rapidly deploy and sustain forces into Arctic and Subarctic regions. Relevant engineering criteria and guidance to support these efforts are the Unified Facility Criteria 3-130–Arctic and Subarctic Construction (UFC 3-130) documents, originally a seven-volume series. The series has been ‘inactive’, indicating the specifications are not current and potentially technically noncompliant. Therefore, designers may resort to methods that do not meet current military or civilian standards, or they may use the outdated guidance leading to costly design and construction failures. Infrastructure owners and operators must be confident that up-to-date technology and criteria are specified to ensure life safety, mission readiness, and infrastructure longevity. This report highlights the process and resources used to generate a new five-volume UFC Arctic and Subarctic series that aligns with current technology and standards while also addressing a changing climate. These new documents are appliable for use by planners, engineers, and architects when planning, designing, constructing, and maintaining DoD infrastructure. The full UFC 3-130 series is available on the Whole Building Design Guide (WBDG) website at https://www.wbdg.org/dod/ufc.

  • USACE staff observe dam infrastructure in Switzerland in preparation for tunnel project in Alaska

    Staff from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District toured dam infrastructure in the heart of the rugged Swiss Alps as part of a temporary duty trip. After cataloguing their findings abroad, the team returned to Alaska with a renewed perspective for the improvement of the Lowell Creek Flood Diversion project set in similar mountains near Seward.

  • From antiquated to advanced: Army Corps navigates the future by modernizing locks across Ohio River Basin

    When people think of the Ohio River, they may think of a single, natural waterway traveling 981 miles from the Point of Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois. However, the river exists as part of the much larger and more complex Ohio River Basin, which urgently needs modernization.

  • A Dynamic Aircraft Response Model for Determining Roughness Limits

    Abstract: Runway roughness poses significant risks to aircraft and aircraft personnel. Roughness irregularities can be found in both civilian and military airfields, from rutting to bomb-damaged repairs. Various methods exist for determining roughness criteria, such as discrete surface deviation evaluation and dynamic response models. Although validated dynamic response models such as TAXI-G were used extensively in the HAVE BOUNCE program from the 1970s up to the late 1990s, modern military aircraft have not undergone the same formal analysis. This paper presents the mathematical formulation and validation of the WESTAX dynamic response model. The computer program is capable of simulating the responses of different critical aircraft components while trafficking over idealized runway profiles. The validation results showed that the numerical model was capable of closely matching field data over single- and double bump events. The findings suggest that the WESTAX dynamic response model is a capable candidate for establishing aircraft roughness limits.

  • Infrastructure Innovation: New Poe Lock arrestor arm is the largest U.S. civil works component produced by 3D printer

    As America’s civil works infrastructure ages, managers need innovative solutions to replace parts that have been in service for nearly a century. Often, these original components were fabricated using vintage material and manufacturing methods, making them costly, burdensome and time-consuming to replace. Responding to this need, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is employing cutting-edge 3D-printing techniques to manufacture these parts faster and at a lower cost while maintaining, and even improving, their properties.

  • Infrastructure Innovation: New Poe Lock arrestor arm is the largest U.S. civil works component produced by 3D printer

    As America’s civil works infrastructure ages, managers need innovative solutions to replace parts that have been in service for nearly a century. Often, these original components were fabricated using vintage material and manufacturing methods, making them costly, burdensome and time-consuming to replace. Responding to this need, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is employing cutting-edge 3D printing techniques to manufacture these parts faster and at a lower cost while maintaining, and even improving, their properties. In early March, the USACE Detroit District installed the largest U.S. civil works infrastructure component produced by a 3D printer – a 12-foot-long metal part for the ship arrestor system on the Poe Lock, one of the two active locks on the Soo Locks facility. Building on years of research performed by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), the part was manufactured in 12 weeks, compared to a projected 18-month lead time for conventional manufacturing. The part was installed, tested and commissioned during the Soo Locks’ winter maintenance cycle. The rapid repair ensured normal operations at Poe Lock, a major transit point for domestic iron ore.

  • President’s 2025 Budget Request: $122 million for Pittsburgh District

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District reports that the President's Fiscal Year 2025 Budget request includes more than $122 million in federal funding for the district's civil works program.

  • FY25 President's Budget designates $155 Million for Buffalo District Projects

    The President’s Budget for fiscal year 2025 released yesterday includes more than $7.2 billion in discretionary funding for the Civil Works program of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with just over $155 million set aside for Buffalo District projects.

  • Officials planning to conduct one-day test release at Rathbun Lake

    Officials plan to conduct a one-day test release from Rathbun Lake later this spring. As part of the detailed design process for the Rathbun Lake Fisheries Section 1135 project, the information gathered during the test will assist in the design of critical project components aimed at reducing the outward migration of adult walleye and other fish species. This test release will allow measurements to be performed near the tower and the measurements will map water velocity around the intake structure. Testing will take place once the lake elevation raises to 905.0 feet. The lake is currently at an elevation of 902.89 feet. The release will be increased from low flow of 11 cubic feet per second to 3,000 cubic feet per second. Water will be released in 500 cubic feet per second hourly increments up to 3,000 cubic feet per second.