Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been
authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
The Distinctive Unit Insignia of the 478th Engineer Battalion was originally approved on 16 April 1958, but it was amended to change the spelling of the motto on 17 June 1971. The Battalion’s status as a Corp of Engineers organization is made clear by the exclusive use of scarlet and white for the insignia’s color palette.
A divided and counterchanged shield reflects the fact Engineers have a dual function as an arm and as a service, with the pickaxe referencing the Battalion’s construction and demolition missions and the unit’s World War II battle honors from the European and Pacific Theaters alluded to by the fleur-de-lis and the stone war head. NUMQUAM DEORSUM, the unit motto, is Latin for “Never Down Or Never Downwards.”
Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia."
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The 478th Engineer Battalion was originally constituted on 22 February 1944 in the Army of the United States as the 1284th Engineer Combat Battalion and activated on 3 April 1944 at Camp Swift, Texas. After serving in both the European and Pacific Theaters (see above), the unit was inactivated on 5 February 1946 in the Philippines.
In April 1947, the Battalion was allotted to the Organized Reserves (later called the Organized Reserve Corps before becoming the Army Reserve in 1952) and was activated on 24 April 1947. The Battalion was redesignated as the 478th Engineer Combat Battalion from June 1948 until July 1953 when it was given its current designation. Its Headquarters was relocated from Cincinnati, Ohio to its current home at Fort Thomas, Kentucky in November 1963.
The Battalion was first called into active service after being allotted to the Army Reserve on 7 February 2003 and was released and reverted to Reserve status on 15 January 2004. Its outstanding performance during this deployment was recognized by the U.S. Navy with a Presidential Unit Citation issued in April 2008.
Its Lettered Companies were inactivated and its Support Company concurrently constituted and activated in in May 2007 just before it was ordered into active military service on 22 May 2007; it was released from service on 24 June 2008. Five years later, the courageous service of the Battalion’s HQ and HQ Company and its recently formed Support Company in the face of an armed enemy was acknowledged with a Valorous Unit Award (Army General Order 2013-09).
As of Spring 2022, the 478th Engineer Battalion remains an Army Reserve unit. When not called to active service, it is assigned to the 411th Engineer Brigade, 412th Theater Expeditionary Command with its HQ and HQ Company still located at Fort Thomas, Kentucky.