Engineering Designs Inspired by Nature
kastorworks was formed to provide, promote, and progress professional engineering consulting services that embrace the many processes at work in our environment. By fostering a comprehensive and collective understanding of interacting processes - especially those in rivers and catchments - it is the intention at kastorworks to produce and help integrate high quality and lasting engineering solutions that fit into, and work with, our natural world.
Understand
Your Environment...
Design to Last
Consider this... have you ever walked along the beach and noticed the sand appears to dry around your feet, even though it's saturated and wet? If you squeeze a sponge full of water, the sponge expels water rather than appears to dry in your hand. You might expect that same result from the sand; however, when your foot presses down on the wet sand all of the tiny angular grains shift in their placement causing miniscule and many void spaces. The combined effect of these void spaces draws water in, thus making the sand appear to dry around your feet. A simple example... yes... but a simple one that exemplifies processes that can be counterintuitive and yet determine the actual physical behavior of our environment.
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Only through the experience of qualified investigation can we truly understand the cause-and-effect of the many processes at work in our environment. By first seeking thorough understanding, confident design inputs can then be quantified to ensure lasting engineering solutions that work with, and not counter to, our natural world.
So what's in a name anyway?
You may be familiar with the Greek myth of the twin half-brothers Kastor (latin spelling 'Castor') and Pollux, also known as the Dioscuri - protectors from danger and forever remembered as the twins that make up the constellation of Gemini. Castor being one of the brightest stars in the constellation. Since kastorworks had its start-up at the time of the Gemini belt, one might ask, "Is that why the company is called kastorworks?". The answer to that question would very much be, "Ahh... no!".
The company is founded on the principles of science and engineering, measurement and proof, so although the mythology is very interesting and holds the origin of the name 'kastor', it does not hold the origin of the company's name 'kastorworks'.
Statues of Castor & Pollux at Piazza del Campidoglio
So why 'kastorworks'?
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One of the views at kastorworks is that our communities ought to assimilate with the natural world, and in order to live well with our surroundings, especially rivers and catchments, we must strive to fully understand and be in-tune with all of the normal and extreme extents interacting in these highly variable environments.
Attempting to align our understanding with the many interacting processes - be it hydrology, hydraulic, ecology, geotech, social, industry, or others - enables us to know when risks are low and the easy and practical decisions can be made, or when we can step in and carefully investigate, design, and implement measures to mitigate effects while minimising our impact, or finally when it's time for the harder decisions to step back and give these systems room to move.
There is an animal in nature, particularly in rivers and catchments, that is very much aligned with its surroundings. Through its living it can be argued that it has a positive impact on its surroundings; improving ecological habitat, moderating hydraulics, and protecting its community. That animal is colloquially known as 'nature's engineer' and is scientifically known as castor canadensis (North America) or castor fiber (Eurasia)... a beaver, or simply a 'kastor'.
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In summary, 'kastorworks' can be defined as the performance of tasks in the environment that are inherent with experience and knowledge of surrounding processes and have an overall positive impact on both the developed and natural world.
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Renewable
Compute
A number of tasks performed at kastorworks require long durations of compute time resulting in the consumption of a reasonable amount of cumulative energy. That's why it is part of the ethos at kastorworks to think renewable. Compute power is harvested using kastorworks onsite solar plant, ensuring your engineering solution is generated with a low carbon footprint.
