thedrifter
10-12-03, 07:48 AM
Calibration Lab 'sets standard' in combat success
Submitted by: MCLB Barstow
Story Identification Number: 2003109161710
Story by Lance Cpl. Andy J. Hurt
MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif.(Oct. 9, 2003) -- Without an accurate listening device, a Marine hears no evil. Improperly calibrated night vision goggles could mean a Marine sees no evil. And without accurately calibrated weapons systems, a Marine kills no evil. But that just isn't the case, thanks to MCLB Barstow's Calibration Lab.
The Calibration Lab, consisting of Cost Work Centers 680, 681, 684 and 685, hides in the looming shadow of MCLB Barstow's Building 573, the Maintenance Center building. It's not much to look at from the outside, but like the old saying goes, "You can't judge a book by its cover." Such is the case.
The "Cal" lab, as its dedicated employees commonly refers to it, is consistently supporting and maintaining breakthrough technology in democracy's war on terrorism. Marines in the trenches, fighting holes or separated from their units as "forward observers" can all trace their combat specialties back to the Cal Lab.
"We handle almost everything dealing with accuracy," said Staff Sgt. Perry Sikes, Cal Lab supervisor.
Sikes compared the shop's role to a mathematic equation.
"Calibrated equipment and a fast supply train are a formula for success to the end user, or grunt," Sikes proclaimed.
The formula begins in the shop, when test equipment from shops around the Marine Corps is shipped to the receiving section. Equipment is sorted and problem areas are identified.
A common piece of equipment in the shop is the revolutionary TS-4317 Test Device. The TS-4317 is a Single Channel Ground Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS) tester. A SINCGARS radio is known around the U.S. armed forces as a frequency hopping radio.
The TS-4317 jumps into action as a trouble-shooting device, testing encryptions and operating conditions on SINCGARS systems.
According to Sikes, the Army first implemented the system in the late 1980s, and the Marines caught on shortly thereafter. It replaced many late-model Test Measurement and Diagnostics Equipment (TMDE) systems, boasting its ability to perform the functions of many pieces of TMDE in one compact cell.
"You can use it for a multitude of functions," Sikes quipped.
After receiving the TS-4317, it is moved into the calibration phase.
John Gilbert, a retired Marine gunnery sergeant and now a calibrations technician in the Cal Lab, is responsible for most of the TS-4317 calibrating and testing. Gilbert has let his hair and beard grow a little since his days as a Leatherneck, but his work ethic hasn't waned a bit.
Gilbert said the systems are first checked to ensure they are running on up-to-date software. The test sets are then taken through a nine-hour series of tests ranging from frequency checks to voltage and amp regulations. Gilbert references a 13-page checklist consisting of up to 25 verification checks per page.
Because of the laws of nature, delicate electronic equipment can corrode, interrupting normal function and causing system failure.
If the equipment fails a test, electronic pots are carefully twisted and turned to get the systems back up to par, said Gilbert. It's a process that requires a steady hand.
"In calibration theory, they teach that calibration is a science as well as an art," stated Gilbert, noting that sometimes adjustments can mean only a hair of a rotation in the sensitive belly of the TS-4317.
But radioing enemy positions back to the front lines is a weak strategy if grunts cannot tell the difference between 1,000 meters or 5,000 meters. Range finding has progressed since the days of counting fingers between prominent land features, and properly calibrated laser range finding devices play a crucial role in the art of war.
The TS-3620GVS-5 test set is a device used for calibrating GVS-5 Laser Range Finders.
Actually, according to Ed Mann, electronic technician in the Cal Lab, the TS3620GVS-5 test the GVS-5, ensuring range finders on the battlefield have been calibrated accurately before forward observers in artillery batteries and aircraft attack squadrons risk their lives in support of combat operations.
The range finders work by sending out lasers by the push of a button, which bounce off of enemy targets, such as tanks and strategic positions, and are sent back to the device as an electronic pulse, giving a reading of distance to target.
"They have to know their equipment is reliable," said Mann.
Test sets sent to the Cal Lab are placed on a standard test set and "fired" on target simulations.
"That's where the (TS-3620) comes in," said Mann.
The equipment checks to see if the laser systems in the device are working by reading the laser output, utilizing custom-made one-of-a-kind equipment engineered by the Navy, and sends signals back to the TS-3620, providing an accurate reading of the lasers function. Adjustments are made and the test sets are given stickers indicating when they were calibrated, said Mann.
"If you've ever been to a gas station and noticed the sticker showing a date on the pump, that's how you know it's been certified and you're not getting gouged," said Sikes.
With an accurate location radioed on properly encrypted frequencies back to Marines looking down range through the bore sight of a TOW missile, Marines can kill evil, given the TOW system sights have been properly calibrated.
In order for the missile to strike a 36-inch target from roughly 3,750 meters away, a Marine's sights have to be guided true.
Bill Hanify, a Cal Lab technician, is responsible for allowing this glorious devastation to happen.
Hanify maintains the Target Collimator Unit (TCU) that "bore sights" the day sight on the TOW. The TCU mounts on top of the day sight on the night sight bracket, said Hanify. This is how the Marine in the field verifies the accuracy of his weapon, Sikes added.
"That's how they killed Saddam's sons," said Hanify, with an ear-to-ear grin.
It's the kind of enthusiasm for the job that keeps the ethic of the shop held to a standard of excellence by the Marines and civilian Marines at the Cal Lab.
"They're into what they do," said Sikes. "It's good to have people that like their job."
The Cal Lab is a place where, given the situation and mission, lives are at stake, Sikes said. "Trust and a code of ethics are paramount here."
Ethics and conduct in the Cal Lab are just two of its qualities that are constantly preparing Marines to see, hear and kill the world's evils.
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/2F14EBD7B7049B5285256DBA006F6F94?opendocument
Sempers,
Roger
:marine:
Submitted by: MCLB Barstow
Story Identification Number: 2003109161710
Story by Lance Cpl. Andy J. Hurt
MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif.(Oct. 9, 2003) -- Without an accurate listening device, a Marine hears no evil. Improperly calibrated night vision goggles could mean a Marine sees no evil. And without accurately calibrated weapons systems, a Marine kills no evil. But that just isn't the case, thanks to MCLB Barstow's Calibration Lab.
The Calibration Lab, consisting of Cost Work Centers 680, 681, 684 and 685, hides in the looming shadow of MCLB Barstow's Building 573, the Maintenance Center building. It's not much to look at from the outside, but like the old saying goes, "You can't judge a book by its cover." Such is the case.
The "Cal" lab, as its dedicated employees commonly refers to it, is consistently supporting and maintaining breakthrough technology in democracy's war on terrorism. Marines in the trenches, fighting holes or separated from their units as "forward observers" can all trace their combat specialties back to the Cal Lab.
"We handle almost everything dealing with accuracy," said Staff Sgt. Perry Sikes, Cal Lab supervisor.
Sikes compared the shop's role to a mathematic equation.
"Calibrated equipment and a fast supply train are a formula for success to the end user, or grunt," Sikes proclaimed.
The formula begins in the shop, when test equipment from shops around the Marine Corps is shipped to the receiving section. Equipment is sorted and problem areas are identified.
A common piece of equipment in the shop is the revolutionary TS-4317 Test Device. The TS-4317 is a Single Channel Ground Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS) tester. A SINCGARS radio is known around the U.S. armed forces as a frequency hopping radio.
The TS-4317 jumps into action as a trouble-shooting device, testing encryptions and operating conditions on SINCGARS systems.
According to Sikes, the Army first implemented the system in the late 1980s, and the Marines caught on shortly thereafter. It replaced many late-model Test Measurement and Diagnostics Equipment (TMDE) systems, boasting its ability to perform the functions of many pieces of TMDE in one compact cell.
"You can use it for a multitude of functions," Sikes quipped.
After receiving the TS-4317, it is moved into the calibration phase.
John Gilbert, a retired Marine gunnery sergeant and now a calibrations technician in the Cal Lab, is responsible for most of the TS-4317 calibrating and testing. Gilbert has let his hair and beard grow a little since his days as a Leatherneck, but his work ethic hasn't waned a bit.
Gilbert said the systems are first checked to ensure they are running on up-to-date software. The test sets are then taken through a nine-hour series of tests ranging from frequency checks to voltage and amp regulations. Gilbert references a 13-page checklist consisting of up to 25 verification checks per page.
Because of the laws of nature, delicate electronic equipment can corrode, interrupting normal function and causing system failure.
If the equipment fails a test, electronic pots are carefully twisted and turned to get the systems back up to par, said Gilbert. It's a process that requires a steady hand.
"In calibration theory, they teach that calibration is a science as well as an art," stated Gilbert, noting that sometimes adjustments can mean only a hair of a rotation in the sensitive belly of the TS-4317.
But radioing enemy positions back to the front lines is a weak strategy if grunts cannot tell the difference between 1,000 meters or 5,000 meters. Range finding has progressed since the days of counting fingers between prominent land features, and properly calibrated laser range finding devices play a crucial role in the art of war.
The TS-3620GVS-5 test set is a device used for calibrating GVS-5 Laser Range Finders.
Actually, according to Ed Mann, electronic technician in the Cal Lab, the TS3620GVS-5 test the GVS-5, ensuring range finders on the battlefield have been calibrated accurately before forward observers in artillery batteries and aircraft attack squadrons risk their lives in support of combat operations.
The range finders work by sending out lasers by the push of a button, which bounce off of enemy targets, such as tanks and strategic positions, and are sent back to the device as an electronic pulse, giving a reading of distance to target.
"They have to know their equipment is reliable," said Mann.
Test sets sent to the Cal Lab are placed on a standard test set and "fired" on target simulations.
"That's where the (TS-3620) comes in," said Mann.
The equipment checks to see if the laser systems in the device are working by reading the laser output, utilizing custom-made one-of-a-kind equipment engineered by the Navy, and sends signals back to the TS-3620, providing an accurate reading of the lasers function. Adjustments are made and the test sets are given stickers indicating when they were calibrated, said Mann.
"If you've ever been to a gas station and noticed the sticker showing a date on the pump, that's how you know it's been certified and you're not getting gouged," said Sikes.
With an accurate location radioed on properly encrypted frequencies back to Marines looking down range through the bore sight of a TOW missile, Marines can kill evil, given the TOW system sights have been properly calibrated.
In order for the missile to strike a 36-inch target from roughly 3,750 meters away, a Marine's sights have to be guided true.
Bill Hanify, a Cal Lab technician, is responsible for allowing this glorious devastation to happen.
Hanify maintains the Target Collimator Unit (TCU) that "bore sights" the day sight on the TOW. The TCU mounts on top of the day sight on the night sight bracket, said Hanify. This is how the Marine in the field verifies the accuracy of his weapon, Sikes added.
"That's how they killed Saddam's sons," said Hanify, with an ear-to-ear grin.
It's the kind of enthusiasm for the job that keeps the ethic of the shop held to a standard of excellence by the Marines and civilian Marines at the Cal Lab.
"They're into what they do," said Sikes. "It's good to have people that like their job."
The Cal Lab is a place where, given the situation and mission, lives are at stake, Sikes said. "Trust and a code of ethics are paramount here."
Ethics and conduct in the Cal Lab are just two of its qualities that are constantly preparing Marines to see, hear and kill the world's evils.
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/2F14EBD7B7049B5285256DBA006F6F94?opendocument
Sempers,
Roger
:marine: