Celina Tent, Inc. has contracted with the Cyber Innovation Center to produce a custom, inflatable shelter that can pivot around the Advanced Extremely High Frequency Antenna in order to protect Air Force Global Strike Command missile maintainers. (Courtesy of Celina Tent, Inc.)
By Sean Green | Communications Manager
BOSSIER CITY, La. — Celina Tent, Inc. has contracted with the Cyber Innovation Center (CIC) to develop a custom shelter that will protect missile maintainers from extreme weather while increasing productivity.
Via STRIKEWERX, CIC’s innovation hub for Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC), subject matter experts collaborated during a previous design sprint to develop a rapidly-inflatable, tent-like prototype to protect Airmen from extreme cold and heat while working on the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) Antenna.
Extreme temperatures require Airmen to follow “Work Rest Cycles” to minimize weather related injuries such as hypothermia or heat exhaustion. The new, two-piece, 20-foot-tall prototype will be set-up with the one shelter fixed and connected to the Environmental Control Unit, with the second shelter enclosing the antenna and crane used in maintenance. The second shelter can pivot open for the crane to complete maintenance operations and pivot back to seal off the work area once the crane has completed its work.
This modernized shelter will provide a barrier from weather to protect Airmen, reducing the need for rest cycles and damage to AEHF antennas that are not all-weather proof. The prototype’s quick set-up and take down will also cut maintenance time by 50%, with the intention of reducing overnight stays at missile alert facilities.
“Environmental hazards are one of the major problems Airmen must face across multiple career fields,” said AFGSC Chief Scientist Dr. Donna Senft, who is sponsoring this research and development project. “This new prototype will not only protect ICBM maintainers but also drastically reduce maintenance time and reduce costs from damage to antennas.”
During the STRIKEWERX design sprint, Airmen from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana; Malmstrom AFB, Montana; Minot AFB, North Dakota; and F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming, worked with Celina Tent to develop requirements for the shelter.
“Celina Tent has been manufacturing this style of inflatable structures for the U.S. military since 2013, so while the manufacturing of these proposed shelters is a proven technology, the size is more than two times taller than what we typically manufacture,” said Allan Bruns, Celina Tent business development director. “The newest feature of this prototype will be stabilizing its lightweight with tie-offs that can be quickly connected and relocated as needed while the maintainers are working.”
The CIC and STRIKEWERX will continue to work with Celina Tent and AFGSC Airmen to complete the development of the prototype solution to a minimum viable product for testing. Pending results, the prototype could be refined and delivered to AFGSC for implementation across all three of AFGSC’s Missile Wings, ensuring that the United States’ nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure, reliable, and effective in deterring 21st-century threats and reassuring our Allies and Partners.
About the Cyber Innovation Center
Cyber Innovation Center (CIC), located in Bossier City, Louisiana, is the anchor of the 3,000-acre National Cyber Research Park and serves as the catalyst for the development and expansion of a knowledge-based workforce throughout the region. As a 501c3 not-for-profit corporation, CIC fosters collaboration among its partners and accelerates technology, research, and development. One of its primary missions is to develop a sustainable knowledge-based workforce that can support the growing needs of government, industry, and academic partners.