Today’s Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM) are often required to bore longer tunnels in harder rock at a faster pace – a trio of challenges that can be daunting for any contractor. With the proper design, operation, and maintenance, however, modern TBMs are very capable of reaching their 10 000-hour design life or more. TBMs in the industry today have already accomplished the feats of boring upwards of 50 km on multiple tunnels over decades, and of completing single TBM drives totaling 27 km. With new capabilities, even greater feats may be possible.
The objective of the AKE Abwasserkanal Emscher infrastructure project is to transfer sewage by underground means in the future in appropriately dimensioned conduits through the German Ruhr District to the clarification plants, and to revitalize the river Emscher. The pipeline networks in the neighbouring towns and cities have to be adapted to link up with the roughly 50 km long main interceptor. In Gelsenkirchen, tunnels belonging to the urban transit system are also affected by the sewage construction. The tunnels were planned and built during the 1970s, taking expected influences resulting from mining into consideration. These influences led to special designs for the tunnels, which represent particular general conditions for their strengthening.
The Waterview Connection Project represents one of the largest infrastructure developments in New Zealand. The project comprises twin-tube road tunnels that are built using a very large diameter tunnel boring machine (TBM). The tunnels impact a large number of existing buildings and utilities as they pass beneath residential property and public reserve. The tunnels also cross beneath the North Auckland Railway branch. Accordingly, exercising ground control to minimize settlements and adverse impacts to the community are of paramount importance. The tunnel project is built under high safety standards in an urban area and with shallow cover. The report addresses the TBM design and tunnelling aspects with experiences in large diameter TBM operation for the first of the twin-tube bores from the perspective of the machine manufacturer.
Within the scope of the first Forum on Injection Technology in Düsseldorf in late November 2014, the third edition of the “Sealing of Buildings through Grouting” Leaflet (ABI-Merkblatt), which had been revised in many key sectors, was presented. This new edition of the ABI Leaflet, which is published in German language, describes the latest state of the art in the field of subsequently remedying damage affecting the sealing of structural parts in contact with the earth. The materials and means of application described in this leaflet frequently represent the sole effective and economic possibility for remedying damage. For a whole series of materials and methods applied in this connection no application standards or technical regulations exist.
In October 2014, the Autostrada del Brennero S.p.A. carried out a full scale emergency exercise in the more than 40 years old Virgolo tunnel near Bolzano. Fogtec’s fixed firefighting system (FFFS)...
The Hirschhagen Tunnel, which was commissioned by Hessen Mobil – Straßen- und Verkehrsmanagement, is a construction section of the A44 federal motorway between Kassel and Herleshausen. It will run...
The Jagdberg Tunnel is part of the German Unity No. 15 Transport Project, which involves the upgrading of the A4 between Eisenach and Görlitz. The 130 km route which has been widened for six lanes...
Since the new timetable came into force at the end of 2014 the Port of Antwerp possesses a direct rail link from the right to the left bank of the Schelde. The route through the Liefkenshoek rail...
From Jan 1, 2015, ISV Industrie-Steck-Vorrichtungen GmbH has been renamed Marechal GmbH. This change only concerns the naming and the logo. The well-known sales, technical consulting and production...
The Swiss Federal Roads Office (FEDRO/ASTRA) intends increasing safety in the 3.2 km long Belchen Tunnel on the A2 motorway. Towards this end it has invested 128 million Swiss francs since 2008. The ongoing activities to enhance tunnel safety at the Belchen actually represent only the beginning of a major refurbishing programme: 500 million Swiss francs are earmarked for building an additional Belchen Tunnel (STB) for the A2 between Hagendorf in the Canton of Solothurn and Eptingen in the Basle-Land Canton in the period from 2015 to 2022. This will enable the two directionally-separate, twin-lane tunnels dating back to 1970 to be renovated one after the other without traffic being restricted.
