After the invasion was over, the brigade was supposed to support the operation with bridging and infrastructure support. During the planning for the invasion, the engineers of the brigade were told that reconstruction in Iraq would be conducted by Department of Defense contractors and Iraqi civilians. They were not originally prepared to conduct major reconstruction efforts. When V Corps became the commanding element for the task force to rebuild Iraq, much of the invasion force, including the 130th Engineer Brigade, was sent to do jobs they had not been originally planned for, as basic utilities and sanitation conditions in Iraq were far below what was expected. Throughout the rest of 2003 and 2004, the engineers engaged in a large number of initial reconstruction projects on basic utilities, including schools, water treatment plants, waste removal, and the nation's power grid. It was determined that the scale of these projects was much greater than what the US had expected or what had been encountered in previous contingencies. It was also decided that reconstruction was essential to the coalition since it would help win over the Iraqi people. By May 2003, the brigade had been completely repurposed. Though originally tasked with demolishing obstacles, building fortifications, and bridging operations, the brigade was tasked entirely with construction projects. This conversion was a difficult process, as the brigade did not have the equipment and specialist units designed to handle reconstruction on a national scale. As more US military reconstruction units arrived in Iraq, the brigade grew to eight battalions and three groups.