A sense of comfort, with scientific guarantee
Long journeys and situations that require a long attention span require, as a minimum, a state of comfort. Although science cannot guarantee driving safety or productivity at work, it can determine some parameters that make it easier to reach those goals.
These are assumptions upon which Ingenia led a project that originated in Idom, whose aim has been to define a model capable of quantifying the relationship between mechanical and physical parameters and the subjective perception of comfort of the individuals involved.
The final result is a chart that describes and analyzes how a person feels in an environment while experiencing a series of given olfactory, lighting, thermal, and ergonomic 1 & 2 Simulation of Air Velocity sensations.
Solar Telescope Enclosure Design Awarded
AEC Engineering has been awarded the engineering design of the enclosure for the National Solar Observatory's proposed Advanced Technology Solar Telescope (ATST), which is planned for construction on Haleakal, on the island of Maui in Hawaii. ATST will be the largest solar telescope in the world, with unprecedented abilities to view details of the Sun. Using adaptive optics technology, ATST will be able to provide the sharpest views ever taken of the solar surface. It is expected that the 4-meter telescope will have a significant impact on the study of stellar magnetic fields, plasma physics and astronomy, allowing scientists to learn even more about the Sun and solar-terrestrial interactions. The ATST project is funded by the National Science Foundation and operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), which includes NSO. The ATST enclosure is a complex structure designed to protect the telescope assembly. The enclosure structure includes a wide assembly of mechanical sub-systems which, in addition to protecting and servicing the telescope, allow the entire structure to move so it can point, track and slew with the telescope assembly. Solar telescopes differ significantly from nighttime viewing telescopes, in that the thermal loads from the Sun's radiation need to be counteracted such that the heat does not affect the ”seeing“ of the telescope. AEC Engineering is part of the IDOM group. The project will be led from the AEC-IDOM office in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Major transportation terminals
PORT OF LÁZARO CÁRDENAS (MEXICO)
The Port of Lázaro Cárdenas (Pacífic Coast) aspires to be one of the most important ports in Latin America. Idom has performed the economic study of the planning, pre-investment and technical, economic, ecologic and social feasibility for the installation of the second container terminal, which is an infrastructure necessary in order to achieve the port's goal.

PORT OF BARCELONA (pictured)
The operations carried out in major port terminals, such as the Port of Barcelona, require international security codes that monitor both operations and traffic. Idom has worked with the Barcelona Port Authority to define process indicators in order to establish a new port service guarantee program.

DELTA DEL LLOBREGAT
In Delta del Llobregat, there is a series of infrastructures (airport and port of Barcelona, railroad) that make up a logistics platform at a European level. Idom is undertaking the prognosis studies for the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce in order to transform the delta into a leading platform, which will take effect by 2050.

GUATEMALA, EGYPT, PAKISTAN
Idom also performed the preliminary studies for the expansion of the Port of Santo Tomás de Castilla in Guatemala and collaborated with the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (World Bank) in the development of logistics and transportation chains in countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Pakistan.
Heathrow, continually growing
Heathrow is the world's busiest international airport. Regarded as the hub of the aviation world, it is continually growing. Idom is working on several projects as part of this growth. MULTI-STOREY CAR PARK FOR THE NEW HEATHROW EAST TERMINAL T2A. DESIGN OPTIONS STAGE As an integral component of the future Terminal 2A, plans are under development for a new car park providing direct access to the new terminal. Various options and distribution strategies have been evaluated by Idom, to provide a building that will have a capacity of 2,000 car bays spread across 4 levels. The most significant element of the design concept is a new space located between the car park and the new terminal building, sheltered by the terminal's roof canopy. This space will have an area of approximately 7,500 m2 (24,606 ft2), and is currently planned as a landscaped zone of trees and planting, crossed at high level by bridges which provide access to the terminal. Idom is part of the HETCO Team (Ferrovial Agromán UK in joint venture with Laing O'Rourke), which has been appointed by BAA to carry out the Options Design Stage. Idom is taking on board the role of lead consultant, structural and environmental engineer and passenger / vehicle traffic specialist. The architectural concept has been developed in close collaboration with Grimshaw Architects. TERMINAL 3 INTEGRATED BAGGAGE FACILITY The new automated baggage processing system will handle up to 50,000 bags per day and will be connected to the new T5 through a purpose-built baggage tunnel. The main design challenge has been the integration of the baggage system, which occupies 40,000 m2 (131,234 ft2), with the new facility's structure & services, whilst maintaining conti­nuous 24 hour operation of the terminal across the complex network of airport services which include an existing underground tunnel below the building. 3D integration and design software is being utilized by Idom for this project. Idom is working alongside Pascall+Watson and Vanderlande as part of the Ferrovial Agromán UK Team. Idom is taking on board the role of lead consultant, structural and environmental engineer.
Solar Thermal Power Plants
The first solar thermal power plant to operate in the region of Extremadura, Spain is called Alvarado 1. It has a capacity of 50 MW, which is enough to supply electricity to 28,000 homes. Parabolic cylinder technology was used for this plant, which includes 184,320 mirrors arranged in rows along nearly 74 kilometers (46 miles) occupying an area of 130 hectares (321 acres).
This plant will prevent the annual emission of 98,000 tones of CO2 that would be generated by coal, while still producing the same amount of electricity. The advantage of using solar thermal power plants is that their maximum output is recorded during business hours and can meet the peak in urban demand caused by the use of air conditioning at that time.
Idom has carried out the Engineering, Procurement and Cosntruction of the Power Block and is currently working with Acciona in another power plant similar to Majadas del Tiétar (Extremadura).
Design and Innovation in SMEs
The new strategic model that the Government of Spain wants small and medium-sized companies to follow is to incorporate the culture of design and innovation into their business. The State Society for the Development of Design and Innovation (DDI) awarded Idom the assistance to implement this model in more than 120 companies from the regions of Andalusia, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura, and Galicia, in its journey towards the systematization of design and innovation processes. To carry out this project, the largest yet in design and innovation in Spain, Idom has put together a team of professionals trained in the best industrial design schools in the Netherlands, England, Italy, and Spain.
Midland Quarry Reclamation (United Kingdom)
Midland Quarry Project was ”highly commended“ in the ’UK Project Over £1M' category at the Ground Engineering Awards which was held in London on 6th February 2009. The former stone quarry of some 16 hectares is located approximately 1 km to the northwest of Nuneaton, Warwickshire - situated midway between the cities of Birmingham and Leicester in United Kingdom. Quarrying commenced about 1885 and ceased during the late 1990's, when the quarry had developed as two distinct voids - a large deep main void which had partly flooded and a smaller parabolic shaped shallow void - both were surrounded by stockpiles of quarry waste. The project involved the construction of a 38 m high Reinforced Earth Slope (RES) between the main and shallow voids to allow filling of the shallow void to provide a plateau for future housing development. The RES comprised 500 mm thick layers of engineered granular fill reinforced with composite high strength synthetic polymer geogrids, which had a wrap-around face with coarse stone infill for the lower section to be submerged below the main void lake, with the upper section faced with topsoil to be grassed. Construction was undertaken using site derived crushed rock, quarry waste and some imported waste foundry sand from a nearby site in Rugby, thereby maximising re-use of materials. Merebrook was responsible for the general concept and the construction management of the project.