The new Consolidated Seamanship Training Facility (CSTF)―also known as the Stadacona drill shed―will provide a training facility unlike any other in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Todd Osmond, DCC Coordinator, Construction Services in Halifax, explains that along with a drill hall, offices and classrooms, the $42-million facility (including site demolition and civil works) will feature two very special training areas.
“The most important is the naval boarding party trainer. This replica of a ship’s interior extends up through three floors of the building, allowing personnel to simulate boarding a ship at sea, entering either through the ship's deck (the roof) or the sea container storage area (first floor), and progressing through ship’s hatches, doors and ladders to clear the vessel,” he says. The second training element simulates a ship-to-ship replenishment at sea with equipment for both a supply side and a receiving side.
“This will be a flagship training facility for the Navy, since it enables them to train on land and with inside conditions,” Osmond notes.
As a modified design-build project, the facility is a collaborative effort between DCC, DND and the contractor to create a design and then negotiate construction costs. “DCC is overseeing the overall process, offering added value in moving it through to completion,” Osmond says.
The building is scheduled for completion in January 2020.