The 28th Quartermaster Company at Goeppingen performs a large part of the overall division supply function. No less important than the supply missions of other technical service units such as ammunition and ordnance equipment, is the supply of food, fuel and water which is the responsibility of the division quartermaster.
POL
The 28th Div QM company POL section, for example, issued 400,000 gallons of gasoline to division and attached units in a seven-day field exercise recently.
In normal post operations, the POL section delivers about 250,000 gallons a month. In addition to gasoline, the section typically distributes between 500 and 800 gallons of oil and about the same number in pounds of lubricants monthly. Kerosene, aviation gas and diesel fuel furnish additional distribution problems.
The three gas pumps at 28th Inf Div Hq in Goeppingen normally dispense about 30,000 gallons of gas per month.
SUBSISTENCE
In garrison, trucks travel 275 miles a day, three times a week, drawing rations for the division -- in post operations, each unit draws from a district supply point.
In the event of an alert, the 28th QM Co would draw rations for the entire division.
Food for an infantry division costs $22,000 a day. When C-rations, 5-in-1 rations, or the individual assault packet is used, the cost rises accordingly.
WATER
Water for drinking, cooking and shaving is furnished by the 12-man water supply section of the division engineer battalion. Normally the four water units in this section produce about 10,000 gallons a day. (A water unit is assigned to each regimental combat team.)
One unit, however, with three 3,000-gallon tanks, four pumps and a filter is capable of supplying a maximum of 30,000 gallons of purified water each 24 hours from a contaminated stream.
Another water-supply point is operated separate from the engineer point by the 28th QM Co for its laundry and bath units.
The bath units can pump 50 gallons a minute to showers for the troops and the laundry can wash 150-180 pounds of clothing in an hour.
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