Advanced numerical modeling and analysis to solve problems in science, engineering, commerce and public policy.

Services for Coastal Engineering and Construction

Coastal infrastructure and commercial facilities in the coastal zone must be able to withstand the harsh coastal  environment. Hydro-meteorological hazards prevalent in the coastal zone pose a unique challenge to sound engineering design.

Historical site records are useful in understanding potential hazard impacts. However, past impacts may not fully capture the current hazard potential, due to evolving land use/land cover changes, dredging of channels or changes to the site resulting from the propose project.

Kinetic Analysis Corporation (KAC) can inform the design process by providing statistical estimates for wind speed, wave height and storm surge elevation for return periods ranging from 10 to 250 years. In addition, prediction limits are provided for all estimates to allow engineers to set design standards that correspond to an acceptable level of risk for the intended development.

The information produced by KAC is particularly useful for locations in the Caribbean and Pacific where estimates of tropical cyclone hazards may be scarce. In addition, KAC provides engineers with input waves and surge values at any specified location, to support localized wave modeling analyses.

Strengths of KAC's approach

• Quantifiable prediction limits for hazard estimates allow accurate selection of safety factors in design, which helps avoid over- or under-design related to coastal hazards.

•  KAC's TAOS modeling platform is built on a GIS base, enabling the use of current (or as-built) bathymetry, topography and land cover information in storm hazard modeling.

• TAOS accurately models coastal and storm hazards, using a coupled hazard modeling approach that reflects the actual interaction of these hazards within a storm system.

Coastal Hazard Products and Services

KAC uses numerical modeling to simulate the entire historical data base of Atlantic hurricanes (1851–2005), and applies advanced statistical and simulation techniques to estimate the impact of storms on areas of interest. Storm simulations and statistical estimates can be produced at various resolutions, depending on the needs of the client.

KAC offers two primary storm hazard assessment products to meet coastal engineers’ needs for conceptual and detailed design.

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Last modified: 10/17/07