Chowdhury and Puleo take NICHE to Washington
Published on January 14, 2026
Natural hazards researcher and Florida International University wind engineer Arindam Chowdhury joined colleague and coastal engineer Jack Puleo at the November 2025 Smart Cities Connect Conference and Expo in Washington DC.
Chowdhury and Puleo spoke on panels and shared with policymakers the national importance of the proposed NICHE experimental facility, formally known as the “National Full-Scale Testing Facility for Community Hardening in Extreme Wind, Surge, and Wave Events.”
The U.S. National Science Foundation has funded the initial design of the NICHE facility. If enabled by federal funding, the completed NICHE wind-wave laboratory will become the world’s largest hurricane simulation facility – capable of producing 200 MPH winds, alongside integrated storm surge up to 5 meters and wave action up to 5 meters – all to advance resilient construction and infrastructure design nationwide.
Arindam Chowdhury, PI for NSF NICHE and the NSF NHERI Wall of Wind experimental facility.
During their visit to Washington, the two briefed members of the Florida Congressional Delegation, House Appropriations Committee staff, and White House officials about the impact NICHE will make to mitigate hurricane and storm surge damage in vulnerable coastal regions of the United States.
Chowdhury also is principal investigator of the Wall of Wind facility, part of the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) based at Florida International University.
Jack Puleo and Arindam Chowdhury in Washington DC, November 2025.
