Indonesian Army Corps Of Engineers

The Indonesian Army Corps of Engineers (Indonesian: ''Pusat Zeni Angkatan Darat''), abbreviated Pusziad, or simply ''Zeni'' is an Indonesian Army Central Executive Agency made up of some 15,000 civilian and military personnel, making it one of Southeast Asia's and the ASEAN's, largest public engineering, design, and construction management agencies. The Corps is involved in a wide range of disaster relief and public works projects within the republic, as well as in combat support operations. The Indonesian term for military engineers, ''Zeni'', is derived from the Dutch , meaning sapper.

Their most visible missions include:

* Public works construction (especially in villages, under the wider ''Tentara Manunggal Membangun Desa'' /TMMD program (previously known as ''ABRI Masuk Desa''/ AMD program), flood control, beach nourishment, and dredging for waterway navigation.
* Design and construction of flood protection systems through various national mandates.
* Design and construction management of military facilities for the Army, Air Force, and other Defence and national agencies.
* Environmental regulation and ecosystem restoration in coordination with the national government and the private sector.
* Providing the Army with an active EOD detection and nuclear, biological and chemical defence capability.

Brief history of the Pusziad

Founded on October 15, 1945, the Indonesian Army Corps of Engineers was raised as one of the oldest major support commands of the Army in the onset of the military operations of the Indonesian National Revolution, its baptism of fire. Army Engineers were present in all major battles of the National Revolution until 1949, when the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ceased to exist and the independence of the republic was recognized. Army combat engineers were part of the military operations during the Liberal democracy period in Indonesia, in Operation Trikora , the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation, the Indonesian invasion of East Timor and rebel counter-insurgency operations from the 1980s until today.

First Lieutenant Pierre Tendean (later promoted posthumously to captain), who perished in the events of the 30 September Movement of 1965, was one of the more famous Army combat engineers, having joined the Corps while serving as a cadet in the Military Technical Academy and was officially commissioned a second lieutenant upon graduation. Before being made adjutant to General Abdul Haris Nasution, his first assignment was as a platoon commander with the Corps of Engineers in Kodam I/Bukit Barisan. Other well known Army Engineers include former Vice President Try Sutrisno and retired Generals GPH Djatikoesoemo and Budiman, both of whom, alongside Try, served as Chief of Staff of the Army.

Army Engineers have also been active as part of the Garuda Contingent overseas and in public works and civil disaster relief operations through the years.

Trades

All military personnel of the Pusziad are trained combat engineers and all privates and non-commissioned officers also have another trade. These trades include: air conditioning fitter, electrician, general fitter, plant operator mechanic, plumber, bricklayer, plasterer / painter, carpenter & joiner, fabricator, building materials technician, design draughtsman, electrical & mechanical draughtsman, geographic support technician, survey engineer, armoured engineer, driver, engineer IT, engineer logistics specialist, amphibious engineer, bomb disposal specialist, diver or search specialist. Civil personnel of the Corps come from engineering graduates and civil service workers.

Organizational structure

Headquarters and Training School

The Director General and Chief of Engineers, who is an Army officer holding the rank of major general, and the Deputy Director General Corps of Engineers, who is an army brigadier general, are both appointed by and report directly to the Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Army. The Corps of Engineers headquarters is located in East Jakarta. The headquarters staff is responsible for Corps of Engineers policy and plans the future direction of all other Pusziad organizations.

The Corps of Engineers Training School (''Pusat Pendidikan Zeni (Pusdikzi)'') was established in Bandung in 1946 to train future Army engineers regardless of rank. Today, the Pusdikzi is based in Bogor

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