Depot K23, Department of Engineering, Military Region 3, established on March 20th, 1951, is mainly tasked with receiving, distributing, managing, preserving, maintaining, and storing special tank and armored vehicles and machines. Over 70 years of construction and growth with several changes in name and organisational structure, the Depot’s cadres, soldiers, and employees have always upheld the spirit of self-reliance to overcome difficulties, fulfill the assigned tasks, and contribute to the achievements of the Military Region Armed Forces. For its achievements, Depot K23 has been conferred multiple noble awards. Especially in 2000, the Depot was honored by the State with the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces in the renewal era.
 |
| Depot K23 hands over tank for Z153 Factory |
In recent years, along with managing and storing a large number of tank and armored vehicles and machines, the Depot has been assigned with the tasks of repairing, maintaining, upgrading, and synchronising tank and armored weapons and technical equipment, training the reserve force, etc. Tasks are highly demanding, while the Depot’s staff is unstable with small number of skilled technical staff, degraded technical assurance equipment, low synchronisation, etc. In the face of that fact, the Depot Party Committee and Commanders have implemented several drastic undertakings and solutions to promote the spirit of solidarity and self-reliance in building comprehensive capacity and meeting its assigned tasks.
First of all, to regularly thoroughly grasp tasks, properly assess the situation, and promote solidarity, unity and high determination in performing tasks. This is the experience of the Unit drawn after 70 years of construction and growth. Promoting such tradition and experience, the Depot leaders and commanders have always attached great importance to communicating the tasks, strengthening political education, building motives and proper working attitudes for the staff, and correcting misperceptions and manifestations of underestimating the work of depot workers. In recent years, to meet the requirements and tasks, the Depot has actively developed detailed plans and clearly identified targets in each period. It has also disseminated, communicated, assigned tasks with responsibilities clearly defined for each department and individual, and required cadres and Party members to promote their pioneering and exemplary role in words and actions. Therefore, the Depot’s cadres, employees, and soldiers have always been enthusiastic with their work, stayed united and highly determined in performing tasks. Over the past 5 years, the Depot has always exceeded the planned targets by 15% or more. In 2020 alone, it achieved 122.5% of the plan and successfully fulfilled the task of coordinating with Factory Z153, the General Department of Engineering, in synchronising a large number of special vehicles and machines to ensure quality and absolute safety.
To ensure long-term storage and minimise damage and degradation of weapons and technical equipment, the Depot has promoted the regularity adherence in reception, distribution, storage, maintenance, and preservation. As the weapons and technical equipment managed in the Depot are diverse in types, most of which have been used for many years and lacked synchronisation with high potential risks of safety; Meanwhile, the warehouse system has degraded due to the impact of climate and weather. Over the past time, to overcome this problem, the Depot has checked, reviewed and firmly grasped the status of the technical infrastructure and proactively coordinated with functional agencies in advising the Military Region to develop the technical warehouse planning for the 2010 – 2020 period, with a vision to 2030. On that basis, all resources are mobilised for investment, consolidation, and upgrading towards basics, uniformity, synchronisation, and standardisation, to contribute to significantly improving the quality of storage and preservation of weapons and technical equipment.
Along with the construction of technical facilities, the Depot has reorganised the vehicles and machines according to each type; classified and scientifically arranged areas for storage and preservation of synchronous supplies and equipment for vehicles and machines under the motto of "Being easy to find, easy to see, easy to take, and easy to check"; and fully developed diagrams, procedure, books, warehouse cards, import-export notes, and vehicle and machine profiles to make it easy for reception, distribution, storage, and maintenance. At the same time, it has strictly maintained the orders, regimes, regulations, rules, and professional work processes; directed the application of a variety of manual with modern storage measures to limit the impact of the environment and prolong the lifecycle of supplies, equipment, vehicles, and machines, especially electronic equipment for tank and armored vehicles; and actively promoted technical innovation initiatives for professional work to gradually automate the storage, maintenance, and repair of weapons and technical equipment, that has contributed to saving materials and labour and enhancing the quality and capacity and technical assurance.
In safety assurance, the Depot has regularly conducted education to raise the cadres, employees, and soldiers’ awareness of the work goods and warehouse safety assurance and proactively formulated and completed plans for patrolling, guarding, and fire, explosion, rain, and storm prevention. At the same time, it has periodically organised the practice of plans for unit protection fire and explosion prevention and fighting; strictly maintained regulations on fire and explosion safety and safety in the Depot’s operations, repair, maintenance, and synchronisation of weapons and equipment; strengthened measures to ensure warehouse safety, such as clearance of safety corridors and inspection and repair of fire explosion systems; and strictly maintained regulations on entry and exit of warehouses, occupational protection, and labor hygiene and safety.
As the Depot is based in a mountainous area where local people’s living standards and intellectual level are low, political and security situations are potentially complicated, to ensure the safety of the warehouse, it is required not only to strictly guard the area of the Unit but also to ensure the safety from afar. Accordingly, over the past time, the Depot has often cooperated closely with local Party committees and authorities to firmly grasp the situation in the area and promote mass mobilisation work, which has contributed to consolidating and strengthening the Army - people solidarity and building a safe area.
To fulfill their tasks, "Depot soldiers" are required to have not only high determination but also good qualifications. Recognising that, the Depot has always attached great importance to coaching and training. Accordingly, the Depot Party Committee and Commanders have directed functional agencies and subordinate units to review and assess the quality and quantity of cadres and employees at all levels and develop plans for source generation, training, and fostering with planning and training to ensure steady succession sources. In the condition that the Depot’s small number of troops have to perform several tasks at the same time, so over the past time, it has implemented various forms of training, particularly on-spot training and fostering in combination with task performance. The contents of training and fostering are practical and relevant to the expertise of each department, especially new contents on management, storage, maintenance, repair, and other issues to be solved. In addition, the Depot has actively held competitions and contests for the cadres and employees to improve their professional qualifications and skills. As a result, the Depot has built a contingent of cadres and employees with high skill and expertise, capable of working at different positions.
Promoting the achieved results, Depot K23's cadres, employees, and soldiers will continue their efforts and uphold the tradition of "Solidarity, persistence, and creativity" to build a comprehensively strong unit to be ready to receive and fulfill all assigned tasks.
Senior Colonel NGUYEN THANH TRUONG, Depot Manager