ANSYS Software Design Keeps Floodwaters at Bay

By DE Editors

Image courtesy of ANSYS, Inc.

ANSYS, Inc.’s software has been successfully used to build pumping station platforms in storm-prone New Orleans. Engineers charged with improving water drainage pumping capacity faced a number of design challenges. Because the platforms are partially submerged, all design problems had to be identified and addressed before any construction began. In addition, the project needed to be completed prior to the onset of hurricane season. Work was contracted after one of the costliest and deadliest hurricanes in the United States, Katrina, devastated the Gulf Coast. When Category 2 hurricane Gustav hit in 2008, the platforms and pumps successfully kept floodwaters in check.

When a hurricane or other major weather event hits,  high-power pumping units must work at full capacity to drain excess water out of sub-sea level New Orleans. The heavy equipment—turbine pumps, diesel engines, gearboxes, and associated piping—produce vibrations and other stresses that can cause the massive platforms supporting the equipment to fail. Design and analysis consultant Mechanical Solutions, Inc. (MSI), working for the platform design-build contractor Weston Solutions, Inc., used software from ANSYS to simulate these stresses in the pumping platform along the 17th Street Canal, ensuring that the system would perform optimally during storms.

“Our approach with every project is to bring value to the table by identifying and mitigating risk early on to reduce the potential for costly modifications after construction has been completed. By using software from ANSYS to simulate the vibrational response of the platform, we were confident that the pumping system would perform optimally, and it did,” said William J. Kelly, principal engineer, Mechanical Solutions, Inc. “In addition,  engineering simulation helped us meet a rigid deadline by identifying issues early in the design process so that the platform could be completed before hurricane season.”

For more information, visit ANSYS.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.