The SMART LAB line presents multiple elements of innovation and originality:
- possibility of carrying out unique experimental tests in the national context, referring for example to the characterization of the thermo-mechanical behavior of building materials for SEI, subject to thermal conditioning, under load, both static and cyclic at high frequencies and to the study of soils partially saturated. Among the research equipment acquired, some are present only in a few specialized laboratories in the national and European context;
- BIM can bring Stereotomy back to the contemporary construction context, the ancient art of creating large surfaces from the assembly of small elements which, applied to infrastructures, favors the protection of the environment with the creation of individual modules that can be recycled and/or or reused for other purposes;
- Autonomous driving systems constitute an absolute peculiarity in relation to the aims of the research, as experimental Smart Mobility structures are rare in the national panorama;
the strengthening of a maritime canal (LWF – Large Wave Flume) located in the Voltabarozzo area, among the 10 largest in Europe (150m long, 2.0m wide and 2.5m high), will allow the development of floating wind turbine technology, strategic for the renewables sector; - new data acquisition equipment for distributed acoustic monitoring and an interrogator for FBG will complement and enhance the current systems for electrical and optical strain gauging. Furthermore, a calibration chamber for optical sensors will be set up, unique in the national context;
- the structured presence in ICEA of transversal sectors such as Mathematics, Statistics, Estimation and Economics, together with disciplines of Civil, Building-Architectural and Environmental Engineering, ensures an integrated and multidisciplinary approach to research in the SEI sector, as well as specific skills for the creation of an advanced Data Engineering and Data Analytics environment.
