The goal is to prevent damage from accidental ship impacts, both to the construction crews and the subsequent expanded East River roadway. A Stevens research assistant professor, Raju Datla, who is resident at Davidson Laboratory, is supervising the work. The tests were commissioned by the engineering consulting firm of Frederic R. Harris, Inc., of New York City. One of the large testing tanks at Davidson Lab is being used to simulate the collision of a ship with the Floating Fender system in the Hell Gate area off Manhattan.
Currents can sometimes achieve a surprisingly swift nine knots off Manhattan when conditions allow.
The area is the site of numerous runnings-aground and other waterway mishaps each year, due to those currents. When the changes to the FDR Drive are complete several years from now, portions of the roadway will be stilted out over the East River and therefore more exposed to river traffic. The Floating Fender system will serve as a deflection device and a buffer against collisions. The dolphins are then anchored to the riverbed via a series of water-resistant tethers. The whole system will lie 100 feet or so out from the roadway in the East River.