Army lab channels expertise to non-traditional areas.

• Author: Kennedy, Harold
• Position: Chem-BioDefense

* ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- When the United States invaded Iraq, the Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center began tackling a host of problems that were far removed from traditional chemical or biological defense, such as roadside bombs.

"The war on terror has increased what we do here rather dramatically," Associate Director Jim Baker told National Defense. "More and more people are discovering we exist."

This summer, Edgewood built and shipped to the Army's National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., four mine-clearing surrogate vehicles for use by soldiers preparing for deployment. The mine-clearing vehicles, known as Buffalos, are in urgent demand in Iraq, and are not available for training.

To fill this need, engineers modified existing five-ton Army trucks to resemble Buffalos, inside and out. "We have had 60 people on this project," said Mark Schlein, senior team leader.

Edgewood received the request in early June. The fourth vehicle was shipped in August.

At a computer-aided design and engineering facility, meanwhile, technicians are creating molds for artificial body parts for Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Johns Hopkins University, explained engineer Rich Moore. The system uses sophisticated three-dimensional scanning hardware and software to generate design models for prosthetics for military personnel disfigured in combat.

Designers strive for the most lifelike look possible, Moore said. "Our prosthetic ears come in eight different colors so we can try to match each patient's natural skin tone," he said.

The facility also is working at a breakneck pace to meet the heavy demand. "To tell you the truth, I never understood the need for speed before 9/11," Moore said.

Such examples are not unusual, Baker said. Growing ranges of military and civilian organizations are coming to Edgewood for assistance. Among them: the Army's Rapid Equipping Force, the Special Operations Command, the Defense Department's Technical Support Working Group, the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the FBI, the Secret Service, and the Departments of State, Justice and Homeland Security.

To accommodate the increased workload, the center has added 550 employees during the past five years, which brings the total workforce to 1,500 scientists, engineers and technicians.

Edgewood has an annual budget of $400 million, and that does not include congressional add-ons, Baker said.

The center--established during World War I to help protect American...