Email   Print   Share By Capt. Monika Comeaux, 13th ESC Public Affairs

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Maj. Reginald Satterwhite, Network Support Operations, inspects network cables at Forward Operating Base Delaram, Afghanistan, May 15. Courtesy photo

CAMP EGGERS, Afghanistan - Coalition forces are working on projects that may have a long-ranging impact on the people of Afghanistan. One of these projects is building the Afghan National Security Forces’ network infrastructure.

The team in charge of this important development in Afghanistan works under NATO Training Mission Afghanistan’s Deputy Command of Support Operations. They refer to themselves at Network Support Operations, or NET SPT OPS, for short.

“We plan and execute installation projects at key Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police facilities to provide access to the Ministry of Defense or Ministry of Interior networks,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Craig Berg, the officer in charge of NET SPT OPS.

“This includes installing all of the on-site wiring within and between the buildings, as well as the long-haul connectivity back to Kabul. This can be as few as one building for 10 personnel, and as many as 2,300 personnel in the case of the Afghan National Defense University,” he said, adding that all of the work is done by Afghan companies under individual contracts his section manages.

Within NET SPT OPS there are actually three focus areas: logistics automation, network expansion and network support. Logistics automation for example focuses in enabling the Afghan partners to conduct automated inventory management.

“Logistics automation section manages and develops the STAMIS (Standard Army Management Information Systems) software and provides functional oversight and training for CORE IMSEE (a shipping, receiving and inventory management system), and Afghanistan Property Accountability System,” said Air Force Master Sgt. William Hebb, the noncommissioned officer-in-charge of logistics automation.

The NET SPT OPS team consists of 27 people in management

positions. The actual work on the ground is done by Afghan companies under individual contracts, Berg said.

“Our mission is to develop simple, survivable and sustainable networks in order to advance the command and control capabilities of the Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army by completing installation projects at all of the ANA and ANP priority locations,” Berg said.

These locations are the corps and brigade headquarters for the ANA, which encompasses a total of 28 sites. NET SPT OPS also works on installation projects at the regional headquarters, provincial headquarters, Operational Coordination Center – Regional and OCC-P’s for the ANP, which means an additional 79 sites, Berg explained.

His crew is a mix of U.S. military, coalition forces and civilians. Everybody brings something different to the table and, for some, it is a new territory.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Eszra

Tanner from Hurlburt Field Air Force Base, Fla., has always worked on actual computer systems during his career. Today, he manages network development contracts for the Afghan National Security Forces in the capital and eastern regions of the country.

“I have never done it before; something new to learn,” Tanner said. “I never dealt with contracts, or money or bidding for contracts, like we do it here.”

Now, Tanner said he has new tools to put in his toolbox and thinks that his experiences in Afghanistan will help him better understand the bigger picture even back at home.

“Every day I learn something new professionally and also in the matter of the English language,” said Albanian army Capt. Klodian Goirica, one of the officers dealing with logistics accountability within NET SPT OPS.

Goirica said he is grateful for the opportunity of being able to work in this mission and having the chance to take these experiences home with him. The most important lesson he learned from his colleagues was “that there is always a solution for any problem,” Goirica said.

NET SPT OPS encounters many challenges from the field. Some locations in southern Afghanistan only have Wi-Fi connectivity, which tends to be much slower than fiber optics, Tanner said.

Berg said there are no real challenges from a technical perspective. However, there are other unique challenges.

“We have to be creative with getting materials, personnel and tools to the site where the work needs to be performed,” he said. “The folks here in Kabul, as well as the folks in the Regional Support Commands who work the projects at their level, have to work hard to ensure security is thought about when they are completing their missions as well as helping the contractor get to where they need to be.”

Just recently, NET SPT OPS finished the installation of network infrastructure for the Afghan Ministry of Defense’s Ground Forces Command and Joint Operations command in Kabul, Tanner noted.

The goal is to have a solid network in place for the ANSF by the end of 2014.

Gorica thinks that their efforts “will contribute to a professional army and to a safe and secure country,” which he said will open the road to prosperity and “a great future for the Afghan people.”