open house
Brian Spurr welcoming RWDI Anemos to BedfordshireOn Thursday 29th September 2005, just one year after RWDI Anemos came into being as the result of a merger, the company was delighted to welcome clients and colleagues to their brand new wind tunnel test facility for its official opening. The two Executive Directors—Paul Freathy (MD) and Nicholas Cook—were joined by their Canadian colleagues—Peter Irwin (Chm), Anton Davies and Colin Williams—for the event. Chairman of South Bedfordshire District Council, Brian Spurr, welcomed RWDI Anemos to Bedfordshire and expressed great pleasure in formally starting the wind tunnel. Guests were entertained by a 4-piece jazz group and had the opportunity to tour the facility and see demonstrations of what the company does.
The new wind tunnel has a number of unusual design features to maximise its usefulness to the construction industry. It has been folded into T-shape so as to maximize the development length in the space available and two
2m-diameter axial fans blow air into the side arms of the "T". 
Wayne Pearce demonstrating wind flowsEach 90° turn from the fans to the flow development section is made using a "cascade" of corner-vanes, the first of which also contracts the flow from 1.8m square to 1.8m (6ft) high by 1.2m (4ft) wide. Two innovative features of the working section around the turntable are that it is open, without walls or roof, and the turntable diameter is wider than the tunnel. The open working area allows good views of the model under test. The larger turntable allows more of the detailed surrounding buildings to be modelled upwind of the study building. Putting the turntable on a wheeled trolley allows areas around the edge of the model to be moved into the centre of the flow.
RWDI Anemos Managing Director, Paul Freathy, said: "The official opening of this new test facility, probably the first to be built for more than twenty years, will increase our ability to serve clients quickly and efficiently. Being a purpose-designed wind tunnel, we don't have to compromise on quality or accuracy to give clients the advice they need."
Peter Irwin"Despite advances in computational methods, wind tunnels remain the only reliable way to get high quality design data on buildings", said Nicholas Cook, RWDI Anemos Technical Director. "This is especially true in situations dominated by turbulence, such as in urban areas. So, we are proud to have designed and built this wind tunnel." Peter Irwin, RWDI Anemos Chairman and President of RWDI, added: "The whole of RWDI are very excited about this new facility. It greatly strengthens our ability to service our worldwide client base and will help us to meet the unprecedented current demand for wind engineering services."
