Stability Engineering worked with artist Amy Landesberg on a two-part art project, Tail Light Swarm and Side Mirror Hives, at the new San Diego Airport Rental Car Center. The Tail Light Swarm consisted of mounting approximately 800 rear tail lights to the wall in order to mimic an insect swarm. Stability Engineering consulted on the tail light mounting brackets, the attachment method to the wall, and the creation of a secondary safety attachment point. The Side Mirror Hive project consists of 4 hive formations created with structural stainless steel and chrome plated car mirrors. Stability Engineering provided extensive consultation and design for the steel support frame including 3D finite elements modeling, seismic analysis, and performance testing for the various elements of the steel framing. The steel structure consists of a central tube steel “spine” with steel hoops of varying length and shape, spaced uniformly along the spine. Connections to the base building structure were a critical design element to ensure proper support for the artwork and to allow the building wall to be fully finished before hanging the steel frame from the wall. It was an honor and a challenge to work on such a unique project.
