Applied Research Associates (ARA), Inc. Deploys Fourteen Energy-Efficient Shelters to Ali Al Salem AB, Kuwait
Panama City, FL (PRWEB) October 10, 2013 -- The Applied Research Associates (ARA) Energy Team’s 18 years of effort to develop energy-efficient shelters for use on Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) has finally come to fruition. Team members worked for 19 sweltering days in August under the 120 degree Fahrenheit Kuwaiti sun to set up and perform initial testing on eight Air Force and six Army shelters.
ARA will analyze and document data received from the new installations for both the Air Force and the Army. Initial ARA development and testing of the energy-efficient shelter at Ft. Irwin, Calif., demonstrated an impressive 49 percent reduction in fuel consumption compared to currently utilized shelters.
The reduction in fuel consumption is an important development for the Department of Defense (DOD). It will reduce the number of fuel convoys needed to run an FOB by half, saving both soldiers’ lives and lowering energy usage and fuel costs.
Funding from the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the U.S. Army Natick Soldier RD&E Center (NSRDEC) made the efforts of the team possible.
ARA is currently modeling shelter’s thermal performance using Army High Performance Computing capabilities in order to achieve even higher fuel savings. This effort, which is funded by the U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL), will result in the redesign of the shelter’s layers to achieve maximum fuel savings.
Neal Anderson, Applied Research Associates, Inc., http://www.ara.com, +1 (505) 214-8276, [email protected]
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