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The Ft. Liberty military base, located outside of Fayetteville, North Carolina, is the most populated US Army base. More than 47,000 active-duty soldiers call Ft. Liberty home, and hundreds of soldiers live in each of the fort’s dormitories. Due to the high volume of residents, Ft. Liberty faced a unique challenge in maintaining the soldiers’ well-being during critical utility outages – particularly consumable water and heat.
The Challenge
Ft. Liberty has over 1,000 boilers on its campus. When a boiler goes out and a building can no longer access hot water, or heat in the winter months, it impacts morale and hinders training and overall base operations. It is difficult to move hundreds of soldiers from one dorm into another during an outage. Rapid repairs to water systems or commercial boilers are not always possible. And United States soldiers deserve comfortable, well-equipped housing.
Ft. Liberty needed a system that could deliver clean water and heat to its soldiers while utilities await repairs. Beyond functionality, the base needed this system to be portable and self-contained for easy use across multiple dorm buildings.
To address this pressing issue, Hoffman Mechanical Solutions (HMS) developed a solution with Hoffman Hydronics (HHY): emergency backup potable water and heating trailers.
The Solution
Jason Schuster, a Field Operations Coordinator for HMS, knew a temporary boiler system would be the answer for Ft. Liberty. The boiler itself needed to be powerful enough to meet a generous estimate of the energy load of a full dormitory, and small enough to fit in the enclosed trailer.
The system also required a heat exchanger to decouple the domestic water from the water used to generate heat in the boiler, the largest water storage tank that could fit in the trailer, as well as piping, lighting, and an electrical control panel.
Schuster worked with Sarah Lazo, a technical sales consultant for HHY, to design and equip the unit. During a lunch meeting, Schuster sketched out a draft of the trailer design on a napkin, and Lazo used her expertise to determine which manufacturers could supply the small but mighty equipment the trailers needed.
Ultimately, the trailer was designed to fit a Riello boiler, Niles Steel Tank water storage tank, and a heat exchanger and pumps from Taco. Each trailer is equipped with a multi-tap electrical transformer to ensure compatibility with 480-volt and 230-volt three-phase buildings.
All nine of the trailers were outfitted by a team of HVAC project specialists, pipe welders, and electricians in our Greensboro, NC headquarters and hand-delivered to Ft. Liberty.
Conclusion
By providing Ft. Liberty with nine self-contained, portable emergency heating and water trailers, Hoffman Mechanical Solutions and Hoffman Hydronics have equipped the base with a critical tool for maintaining soldier comfort and well-being during unexpected utility outages.
These trailers offer a rapid and effective response to disruptions, ensuring minimal impact on housing accommodations and base operations. This project exemplifies our commitment to providing innovative solutions that meet the unique challenges faced by our military.
If you're interested in an emergency backup water trailer for your facility, contact our sales team today!
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