Idom (Spain)

In this article, we address the dearth of research on urban cases of large-scale and long-term reduction of resource consumption. We focus on mobility in Santiago de Cuba, a city where geopolitical embargo has caused material scarcity, severely reducing access to fuel, vehicles, and spare parts. Consequently, mobility is both restrained and decoupled from individual motorized transport, and largely depends on collective transport. We explore how the local state and society address scarcity by developing governance models and social practices that follow a dual strategy of collectivization and privatization of transport. Questioning the usual vectors of knowledge transfer in geography, we argue that Santiago’s response to scarcity provides valuable lessons for other urban contexts, and informs the debates about sustainability, transport efficiency, commoning mobility, and urbanizing degrowth. Consequently, it showcases the importance of maximizing the benefits obtained from available mobility resources, restricting individual vehicle ownership, positioning the state as central actor in provision and regulation of transport, and enabling self-managed practices among workers and passengers. Taken together, these dynamics raise a question about the extent to which transport sustainability is achievable in capitalist societies—a transition that might instead require aligning mobility with socialist principles that consider mobility not as question of individual behavior, but collective need and labor.

A man of great ideals, during the first part of his life Rafael Escolá had to contain his powerful inner drive in the face of a series of adversities. He wanted to study engineering, but important events forced him to postpone his studies. When he wanted to become a researcher, his father stood in his way... Finally, in 1957, with the creation of IDOM, he was able to bring to fruition all his ambitions. He introduced the concept of free professional, breaking down the hierarchy of numerous bosses. He created a unique ownership structure, with the employees becoming the owners of the company. He saw the employees of the company as persons and considered himself just another one more. IDOM is now a prestigious company operating in 125 countries with 45 offices around the world. If Rafael were among us, he would say that he only planted the first seed because, during his lifetime, he did nothing else but attribute most of IDOM's success to the work and good deeds of his collaborators. But without that seed we would not have this tree. In IDOM, Escolá created a unique style of providing professional services. And the resonance of his work grows stronger and stronger with the passage of time.

The need to adapt the Levante UD Stadium to the new regulatory requirements of La Liga and UEFA, along with the objective of improving the spectator comfort experience has been the premise for the new roof for the existing stadium. For this propose, a lightweight membrane cable roof with spans up to 40 m has been chosen, in order to minimize the overall weight of the structure. The roof design is derived from the bicycle wheel principle, with two inner tension rings and an outer compression ring. The ability to support the new cantilevered roof independently from the existing structure and with minimal intervention have been the key factors in choosing a roof of this type.

This final technical report summarizes the work performed by IDOM under DE-FOA-0002080 on the development of a Wave Energy Converter to specifically designed to fit PacWave-South test site conditions.

The Prefocal Stations (PFS-A and PFS-B) of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) are the last component in the telescope’s light path, right before the light is delivered to the science instruments at the telescope focus. Following the Final Design Review passed in 2020 the efforts were focused on the preparation of the manufacturing documentation and on launching the manufacturing of the Prefocal Stations. The fabrication of the equipment was divided into seven main manufacturing lots based on the nature of the parts with the main aim of minimizing the project risk and optimize the schedule. The ESO's approval of each manufacturing documentation package was obtained by means of individual Manufacturing Readiness Reviews (MRR). The manufacturing of the parts and procurement of the long lead time COTS was launched in 2021 and is coming to an end. The Assembly, Integration and Verification (AIV) activities begin with the end of the manufacturing. The AIV strategy follows the well-established “V-model” methodology. The initial phases are focused on subsystem level and progressively evolves until the work is concluded with the fully assembled, integrated and verified Prefocal Stations in the ELT (Chile). Throughout this process, the fully integrated Prefocal Stations will be completely tested in the factory acceptance test (FAT) campaign in Europe. This paper summarizes the manufacturing status and describes the way Prefocal Stations AIV is planned to be carried out.

Abstract The Capacity Development Programme (CDP) is an agreement between the Government of Mozambique and the Nordic Development Fund, to tackle climate variability by planning and the sustainable operations and maintenance of sanitation and drainage infrastructure. The Mozambican Administration of Water and Sanitation Infrastructure (AIAS) is the agency responsible for this project. The international consortium in charge of developing the CDP provided consultancy services to AIAS and the vulnerable cities of Beira and Matola. The assignment included not only capacity building but also institutional strengthening activities, as well as specific studies, mainly based on climate modelling (dynamic downscaling) and mapping exercises. Important results and conclusions were achieved, and further adaptation strategies to increase the resilience of the Mozambican urban water, sanitation, and drainage sector were proposed.

The FastCam instrument, jointly developed by the IAC and the UPCT, allows, in real-time, acquisition, selection and storage of images with a resolution that reaches the diffraction limit of medium-sized telescopes. FastCam incorporates a specially designed software package to analyze series of tens of thousands of images in parallel with the data acquisition at the telescope. This instrument, well tested and used, has lead to another instrument with slightly different characteristics: Wide FastCam. Although it uses the same software for data acquisition, this time the objective does not look for lucky imaging but fast observations (some frames per second) in a much larger field of view. Wide FastCam consists of a 1k x 1k EMCCD detector and different optics offering a ~8 arcmin FOV. IDOM collaborated with IAC in the design of a high stability optical bench for the implementation of FastCam at the Telescopio Carlos Sánchez (TCS) and is currently collaborating in the implementation of Wide FastCam at the same telescope.

The Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) has been recently received two Folded Cassegrain Sets (FC-Sets) composed of an instrument rotator and the corresponding Acquisition and Guiding (AG) optomechanics. IDOM has been the responsible for the design, manufacturing, assembly and commissioning of the two units of FC-Sets. The design combines a compact layout of the mechanical system, enhanced by an innovative cable wrap design, resulting in a smooth and precise movement, whilst guaranteeing good access to important components and maximizing the maintainability. The custom design of the cable wrap as an evolution of the rolling loop type eliminates the need for a cable chain static housing, minimizing weight and impact on the telescope tube. The AG Mechanics provides the required pointing and focusing capabilities in a compact configuration. In January 2010, IDOM is awarded the design and procurement of the two FC-Sets. The final design is approved by GRANTECAN and the fabrication process starts in Nov 2011. The assembly and commissioning of both units are completed in April 2011. Once the Factory Acceptance Tests finishes in Dec 2011, all the elements are delivered to the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos (ORM). The Site Acceptance Tests are completed in Feb 2012.