Oman convention and exhibition centre

Perhaps the most impressive architectural design in Oman today is the new Convention Centre in Muscat. This special location was one of the first in Oman to be built in accordance with the US Green Building Council's strict LEED certification guidelines. The functional and flexible design provides a wide range of meeting and exhibition spaces with state-of-the-art communication and audiovisual technology that meet the needs of the most demanding global event organisers.

In the entrance hall of the impressive Convention Centre in Oman, OC Waterloo has supplied 110 adjustable swirl diffusers with a connection diameter of 800 mm. The air is collected using special square plenum boxes of one square metre and blown evenly throughout the building via the diffusers.

The challenge was in the fact that air was blown in from a height of twelve metres. Due to the extremely high temperatures in Oman and the large surface area of glass in the entrance hall, a large amount of air was blown in at extremely low temperatures, 3200 m3/h per swirl diffuser. The requirement was to reach a maximum air flow of 0.15 m/s in the occupied area.

For this purpose, OC Waterloo conducted several theoretical calculations and CFD models to determine the optimal positioning of the swirl diffusers. In the end, OC Waterloo decided to test out the theoretical calculations using practical tests in its own laboratory in Holten and to conduct additional research at an external research centre that housed a 12 metre high testing room.

Once theory and practice were perfectly aligned, the detailed test reports were approved by the customer and investor.

The next step was obtaining aesthetic approval for the samples from the architect and investor. Afterwards, OC Waterloo produced the diffusers and plenum boxes and then sent the complete shipment to Oman in 4 sea containers.

Another challenging assignment, exactly as we like it!