Advanced insulation materials provide resistance to heat flow. Properly insulating shelters can reduce heating and cooling costs, as well as improves comfort. However, the long-term performance of insulation materials is relatively unknown. This research investigated the long-term performance of five commercially available insulation materials including nonwoven insulation liner, aerogel blankets, closed cell spray polyurethane foam (ccSPF), extruded polysterene (XPS), and fiberglass batt. Accelerated aging simulation experiments were conducted in an environmental chamber. All materials were subjected to 5 weeks in the chamber and exposed to various temperature and humidity conditions. Thermal conductivity using a heat flow meter apparatus (HFMA) and corresponding Rvalues of each material were calculated. The results indicate that moisture absorption was a major contributor to changes in the thermal properties of the materials. Additional degradation in R-values in ccSPF was caused by loss of blowing agent over time. The results of this research are expected to help formulate an accelerated aging methodology that allows reliable prediction of long-term advanced insulation materials performance.
The Army has many enterprise Operation and Maintenance (O&M) systems that require manual input of the same facility data collected through-out the facility life cycle. This manual input of data costs Army installations valuable time and labor. A standardized approach to deliver the O&M information in a consistent, accurate, timely, and digital method for expedited input into the numerous systems is needed. A United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)-led team consisting of O&M subject matter experts within USACE and industry developed a standardized process for collecting and exchanging facility data for downstream applications. The process is defined in the Engineering and Construction Bulletin (ECB) 2018-6 and includes utilization of Unified Facilities Guide Specification (UFGS) 01 78 24.00 10. An initial pilot study verified that asset data collected during facility construction could effectively be imported into the Army General Fund Enterprise Business System (GFEBS). This second pilot study focused on facilitating the import of facility asset and equipment data collected during construction into the BUILDER Sustainment Management System (SMS) web-based software application. The project scope included investigation of current Army installations’ processes as they relate to BUILDER SMS as well as initial testing of information transfer approaches.
The U.S. Army has an inventory of over 140,000 buildings, ranging in age from decades old to newly construction. When an Army installation experiences a mission change or force reduction, a number of the installation's buildings may become vacated; sometimes, years pass before they are reused again. How buildings are deactivated and prepared for long term storage will determine the speed and cost of their reactivation. This work developed a protocol for deactivating, storing, and reactivating buildings to minimize maintenance costs and effort during the vacancy period, and to allow the Army to quickly bring these buildings to operational status when they are reoccupied. This work implemented and evaluated the protocol at the Kelley Hill cantonment area at Fort Benning, GA, where a significant number facilities of various types, ages, and conditions had been deactivated. The protocol prepared approximately 100 buildings vacated in the first half of 2016 to remain in a dormant state for more than 3 years, after which, when a reactivation need arises, they must be able to be made ready for occupancy within 2-4 months. DISCLAIMER: The contents of this report are not to be used for advertising, publication, or promotional purposes. Citation of trade names does not constitute an official endorsement or approval of the use of such commercial products. All product names and trademarks cited are the property of their respective owners. The findings of this report are not to be construed as an official Department of the Army position unless so designated by other authorized documents.
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