I attended the industry and academia day for the opening of the latest TARDEC laboratory GSPEL or Ground Vehicle Power and Electricity Laboratory. The event on Thursday, April 12th allowed industry representatives into the new lab to see the testing capability that the Army now has in the GSPEL facility.
Participants were taken on a guided tour of approximately 10 stops throughout the new lab and given access to some current facilities at TARDEC. At each stop, TARDEC/GSPEL staff were on hand with a quick presentation on the type of testing that will be carried out, the machinery available, and the mission result from the work. The guides did an excellent job tying the work of the laboratory back to the overall mission of keeping our soldiers safe. The tour included the Thermal Management lab, Electronic Controls for Vehicles, Fuel Cells, Non-primary Power Systems, the Air Filtration Lab, the Heat Exchange Lab, the Energy Storage Lab and a very advanced (and cool!) Vehicle Testing lab that includes dynamometers, solar radiation, replicated wind, and GPSing of terrain.
A good way to get acquainted with TARDEC is through the SBIR or CRADA system. You can connect at https://tardec.groundvehiclegateway.com/.