Future ENEL is a new multi-disciplinary initiative at MIT aimed at researching futuristic sensor technologies applied to the construction and operation life cycle management of energy plants that will contribute to shaping the vision of energy management in the 21st century.
"FUTURE ENEL" aims to ensure an optimum level of safety, efficiency and reliability in work areas, yard sites and power plants, through the introduction of advanced technologies, new processes and rules to enable an effective and shared change.
Leveraging real-world case studies provided by the energy giant ENEL, Future ENEL will focus on development of technologies and techniques for the real-time sensing, modeling and advanced visualization of stationary and moving objects within power plants and related construction sites.
RESEARCH AREAS
. Development of ideas and strategies for real-time monitoring, sensing and visualization of the construction of a power plant - in particular how tracking technologies could facilitate the development of top safety standards.
. Imagining a virtual control room for the construction sites of nuclear power plants, aimed at real time monitoring of people and materials "on the move," to include feedback loops for worker safety.
. Developing ideas and concepts for the senseable plant so as to enable a nervous system and self-healing capabilities for the plant using new sensors, tangible interfaces and visualization methods.
ABOUT THE PROJECT
The project involves several groups at MIT:
. Senseable City Laboratory (SCL) , Department of Urban Studies and Planning
. Responsive Environments Group (REG), Media Lab
. Tangible Media Group (TMG), MIT Media Lab
. Humans and Automation Laboratory (HAL), Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics
. MIT Italy Program
Sponsored by: ENEL 
Future Enel Project Manager: Andrea Riberti
The research initiative has a life span of 3 years with first year focus on safety of the construction site and is coordinated by the MIT Senseable City Lab.
For more information and other inquiries, please contact: or steve miles (team lead)
PEOPLE
Senseable City Laboratory / Carlo Ratti (Director), Assaf Biderman (Associate Director), Stephen Miles (Team Leader, First Phase), Filippo Dal Fiore (Head of Partners Relations), German W Aparicio Jr., Avid Boustani, Rex Britter, Xiaoji Chen, Carnaven Chiu, Luigi Farrauto, E Roon Kang, Jan Kokol, Claudio Martani, Vincenzo Manzoni, Sebastian Palacios
Tangible Media Group / Hiroshi Ishi, Daniel Leithinger, Jinha Lee
Responsive Environments Group / Joseph A Paradiso, Gershon Dublon
Humans and Automation Laboratory / Mary "Missy" Cummings,
MIT Italy Program / Serenella Sferza
It is duly credited as a project by the MIT Senseable City Lab. PDF copy of the publication is sent to senseable-press@mit.edu
For more information, senseable-contacts@mit.edu