The French company Acimex, specialized in vacuum handling technology, announced its supply of a segment erector system as well as a segment trolley to...
Tucked away on a small jobsite in a quiet neighbourhood bordering a busy interstate highway, a Robbins Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) machine underwent Onsite First Time Assembly (OFTA). On November 17, 2014 the 6.65 m (21.8 ft) TBM rumbled to life and began its journey south into the city of Seattle, Washington, USA. The machine, for contractor JCM North Link LLC (a joint venture of Jay Dee, Coluccio, and Michels) is excavating for the North Link Project, which is an extension of Seattle’s light rail system. The project requires twin 5.8 km (3.6 mi) tunnels through glacial till and sand.
The 27.3 km long New Semmering Base Tunnel (SBTn) is a major element of the new Austrian southern rail route. In spite of a four month long hold-up in construction lasting until June 2014 on account of objections by local residents and environmental organizations, the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) still intend completing the project as scheduled in 2025. The “Gloggnitz Tunnel” section is being produced from the portal construction site at Gloggnitz and an intermediate point of attack in Göstritz (municipality of Schottwien) by mining means using shotcrete. As the ongoing preliminary operations were concluded on October 10, 2014, the tunnel drive will probably start from Gloggnitz in spring 2015 providing that all required permits are available.
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.
In November 2014 the Deutsche Bahn commenced work on the Imberg Tunnel on the 60 km long new Wendlingen–Ulm rail route on the Alb Plateau. First of all construction pits were produced at both ends for the subsequent production of tunnel sections created by cut-and-cover. The tunnel will then be built by using the shotcrete method as from April 2015 onwards between the two cuttings produced by cut-and-cover.
Implenia is acquiring the Bilfinger Construction GmbH unit from Bilfinger SE. The unit, with production output of around 650 million euros and 1850 employees, offers extensive infrastructure construction services in German-speaking Europe and in Scandinavia. The German Federal Cartel Office has approved the completion of the transaction at the end of January. Closing is scheduled for the period between the start of February/start of March 2015.
The SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) awarded the main contract section for the four-track upgrading of the Olten–Aarau route in November 2014. The contract worth some 274 million Swiss francs was awarded to the Marti Eppenberg JV. It involves the roughwork for the Eppenberg Tunnel as well as its accesses in the Wöschnau and in Gretzenbach. The SBB embarked on the preliminary work for the tunnel and its access sections in early September 2014. The main operations are scheduled to start in spring 2015 and will last until late 2020. The upgrade to create a four-track route is being accomplished within the scope of the ZEB major rail infrastructure project.
In the Vienna Lainzer Tunnel scale deposits were a substantial problem in a section of the underground water drainage system. The application of hydro-mechanical cleaning methods was no longer feasible and it would have been complicated to rebuild the drainage system. This section was thus treated with a 10 % hydrochloric acid solution between November 2012 and April 2014. In this way, it was possible to remove the scale deposits to such an extent that the drainage system could be purged by conventional means. These tests were accompanied by extensive monitoring, camera inspections and water analyses. It was proved that the application of hydrochloric acid had no harmful effects on the runoff ditch.
The Jagdberg Tunnel on the A4 motorway near Jena was opened in November 2014. A compressed air foam extinguishing system was installed in the roughly...
In mid-December 2014, one of the world‘s largest tunnel boring machines started its second drive for the large-scale “Waterview Connection” project in Auckland, New Zealand. In the heart of the metropolis, the Herrenknecht EPB Shield S-764 is creating the shell for a road tunnel that will link two of the main State Highways together.
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.
Within the scope of the “InREAKT” research project (Integrated Assistance Chains of Reaction to increase Safety in Public Transportation), the STUVA...
The long-standing head of the STUVA Inc.’s group responsible for environmental protection, noise and vibration technology, Dr.-Ing. Friedrich Krüger,...
From December 1 to 3, 2015 it will again be time for the 2015 edition of the STUVA Conference, the international forum for tunnels and infrastructure. More than 1500 participants from over 20 countries will come together at this most important forum for underground construction for an intensive exchange of views on the present and future of the industry. In 2015 the STUVA Conference will broaden its range. For the first time a parallel series of events will deal with “Tunnel Operation” in addition to the series on “Tunnelling”.
Only a few days after bookings opened 100 exhibitors had already reserved 1900 m² of space at the accompanying STUVA-Expo.
