Filder Tunnel

 

Precisely planned disassembly right inside the tunnel

The task 

For the twin-tube 9.5-kilometer Filder Tunnel from Stuttgart’s new Central Station to the Filder Plain and the airport, Herrenknecht is supplying a convertible multi-mode TBM with a shield diameter of 10.82 meters. Owing to the changing geological conditions, the project is broken down into 4 tunnel sections to be driven mechanically. The machine must therefore be fully disassembled in the tunnel after completion of the first section and then retracted to the launch portal for the second drive in the parallel tube.

The Herrenknecht service solution

In order to realize the complex construction process swiftly and safely, close cooperation by everyone involved in the project was necessary from the word go. With a shield diameter of 10.82 meters and an interior tunnel diameter of 9.6 meters, complex disassembly inside the bored tunnel and transport back to the launch portal is only possible within the specified period because all of the technical machine and logistical requirements are planned precisely in advance before being implemented on site. This includes, for example, the development and manufacture of a special heavy-load train for transporting the main drive weighing almost 200 tons and with a height of 6 meters in one piece.

The disassembly is by no means a world premier but still demands minute advance planning as well as exact implementation on site. Accordingly, prior to project start, a contract was agreed whereby Herrenknecht service experts would take charge of carrying out initial assembly of the TBM, disassembly in the tunnel and reassembly at the Filder portal – supported by the customer’s crew. Then the planning engineers in Schwanau developed solutions for the entire process which were fine-tuned and finalized in close cooperation with the customer. Despite some minor unexpected deviations on site – as is often the case – disassembly was completed to the customer's satisfaction thanks to the service expertise displayed by our engineers.

Furthermore, our service experts also provide the customer with significant support over the course of the project which entails driving the TBM through a geological transition zone, a 180° rotation of the machine under Stuttgart railway station and regular tunnelling.

Project advantages

• This special solution permitted the disassembly and retraction of a machine directly inside the tunnel despite an environment marked by confined spaces, restricted lifting possibilities and heavy weights.

• Known challenges can be optimally prepared for by means of early planning and clever service engineering even prior to project start.

• Early service engineering enables construction companies to estimate the requisite cost and time budgets associated with tunnelling in a timely and precise manner.

„Such complex projects can only be handled with a strong partner you can rely on.“

Norbert Hörlein, Construction Management Filder Tunnel ARGE ATCOST21