By SWCN Dominique Brown, NMCB 5
Seabees from NMCB 5 and Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) personnel celebrate the opening of new construction at a Port Hueneme, Calif., sports complex. From left, Lt. Patrick Nacey, NMCB 5; BUC Logan Ash, NMCB 5; BUC Deanna Hesserer, NMCB 5; BU2 Nathan Manning, project crew leader, NMCB 5; and NBVC Commanding Officer Capt. Larry Vasquez. Photo by BU3 Taylor Dietz
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 5 completed a restroom facility construction project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC), Port Hueneme, Calif., Jan. 23. The NMCB 5 construction project began in December 2013, and was finalized in October 2014, one day before the start of the battalion s month-long field training exercise at Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif.
NBVC Commanding Officer Capt. Larry Vasquez said keeping momentum during homeport cycle and completing a project without turning it over is tough for Seabees while personnel are transitioning to new commands, going through training courses and participating in long field exercises.
Completing this project in just one [homeport] cycle is huge, said Vasquez.
Many NMCB 5 Seabees were involved in the completion of this project, but one in particular was recognized the crew leader, Builder 2nd Class Nathan Manning.
BU2 Manning led the project and instilled pride and ownership in the crew, said Lt. Cmdr. Chris Casne, NMCB 5 s operations officer. The crew was just phenomenal. With the personnel on the crew changing out, it is rare that all of them maintained pride and ownership throughout the whole project.
When asked what it meant to work, start-to-finish, on this project, Manning said, It means a lot to see it completed is an exceptional experience.
This restroom facility is in a well-placed sports field located near housing, a soccer field, hockey rink and wide open field where many units undergo physical training. The project served as a training ground, and saved the Navy $290,000 in labor cost.
This project matters for readiness, said Casne. It truly tested everything we do.
Seabees, created to fill contingency construction needs in World War II, use local construction projects to train personnel in their respective job ratings and skillsets. Casne said it was a great project because it had significant work requirements for all of the construction skills in the battalion.
During an 18-month homeport, NMCB 5 completed five projects from start to finish on NBVC and completed additional community construction projects in Colorado, Nevada, Alaska and California through the Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) program.
NMCB 5 is deploying to the Pacific area of responsibility in support of humanitarian assistance operations and to maintain relationships with regional governments through bilateral construction projects.