Wisconsin National Guard’s 229th Engineer Company improves Fort McCoy through troop project support

Soldiers with the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s 229th Engineer Company (Horizontal) combined realistic engineer training with lasting installation improvements while supporting troop construction projects during annual training at Fort McCoy in July 2026.

Working alongside the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works (DPW), the Soldiers completed a sidewalk improvement project that enhanced pedestrian infrastructure while allowing the unit to sharpen the construction skills required of horizontal engineer units.

The project was one of numerous troop projects coordinated each year by the Fort McCoy DPW that provide engineer units with hands-on training while improving the installation’s infrastructure and training capabilities.

According to Larry Morrow, troop projects coordinator with the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works, troop projects are designed to accomplish two important objectives at the same time — providing meaningful training opportunities for Army engineer Soldiers while completing infrastructure improvements that benefit Fort McCoy for years to come.

“The projects give Soldiers the opportunity to perform real-world engineer missions while making permanent improvements to the installation,” Morrow has said in previous Fort McCoy articles describing the troop project program.

For the 229th Engineer Company, the sidewalk project required Soldiers to employ many of the same skills they would use during deployed operations, including surveying, site preparation, excavation, grading, aggregate placement, concrete forming, concrete placement, finishing, and quality control. These tasks mirror the construction missions horizontal engineer units routinely perform in support of combat and contingency operations.

The completed sidewalks will continue serving Soldiers, civilians, family members, and visitors long after the annual training period ends.

Fort McCoy’s troop project program has become an important component of annual engineer training over many years. Coordinated by the DPW, projects are carefully matched with engineer unit capabilities to ensure training objectives are met while addressing installation infrastructure needs. The DPW oversees facility maintenance, repair, engineering design, and construction projects, including those completed by military engineer units.

The installation's troop project history spans decades and has resulted in improvements throughout Fort McCoy.

Projects have included construction of roads, parking areas, sidewalks, training facilities, utility systems, office buildings, drainage improvements, concrete work, electrical upgrades, tank trails, and numerous other infrastructure enhancements supporting Fort McCoy’s mission as one of the Army's premier training installations.

One of the largest recent efforts has been the continuing development of facilities at Life Support Area (LSA)-Liberty on North Post. Beginning in 2022, multiple Army engineer units have worked on constructing office buildings and supporting infrastructure there, with each successive unit building upon work completed by previous organizations.

In 2024, Wisconsin National Guard Soldiers with the 229th Engineer Vertical Construction Company completed electrical, carpentry, and interior finishing work on one of those buildings as part of their annual training.

Likewise, sidewalk replacement projects have become recurring troop projects at Fort McCoy. Previous engineer units have replaced aging sections of sidewalks throughout the cantonment area, allowing Soldiers to gain valuable concrete construction experience while improving safety and accessibility across the installation.

Morrow said the cumulative effect of troop projects is significant because each year’s engineer units build upon the work completed by those who trained before them.

Rather than conducting simulated construction, Soldiers complete projects that have lasting value while developing the technical proficiency, teamwork, leadership, and heavy equipment skills required for future operational missions. At the same time, Fort McCoy benefits from improvements that strengthen both quality-of-life facilities and the installation's ability to support training for the Total Force.

For the 229th Engineer Company, the July 2026 annual training period represented another chapter in that continuing partnership between Army engineers and Fort McCoy — one that strengthens Soldier readiness while leaving behind infrastructure that will support generations of future trainees.

Fort McCoy has supported Army engineer troop projects for decades, and each summer engineer Soldiers from the Active Army, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve continue that tradition by improving one of the nation’s premier training installations while preparing themselves for future missions.

Fort McCoy has supported America’s armed forces since 1909. Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.

The post’s varied terrain, state-of-the-art ranges, new as well as renovated facilities, and extensive support infrastructure combine to provide military personnel with an environment in which to develop and sustain the skills necessary for mission success.

The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.

Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Flickr at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortmccoywi, and on DVIDS by visiting https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/FMPAO.

Also try downloading the My Army Post app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”