TBM supplier Aker Wirth has signed a deal with contractor STRABAG for the supply of two 9.93m diameter telescopic shield machines, to be used from October 2012 on the 20km long, US$788M lot KAT 2 of Austria’s 32.5km long Koralm Tunnel.
Christoph Kleuters, the CEO of Aker Wirth, said, “Winning this major European project has filled us with pride. We have continually strengthened our technological leadership, in particular in hard rock. Whenever high technology is required, we deliver the tunnel boring machine – something we have been doing for the last 40 years. We convince our customers not only with our approach to machine design but also with our comprehensive and professional consulting and on-site service.”
“Aker Wirth, in cooperation with Rowa Tunnelling Logistics AG, ultimately emerged victorious as the best candidate from a tender procedure carried out by us,” explained Wolfgang Lehner, General Manager at STRABAG AG. “The technical solution to the task along with expertise in hard rock TBMs convinced us, as well as the cost-effectiveness of the tender. We are confident that we have found the right partner to meet the challenges of this exceptional project.”
The two telescopic shield TBMs feature Aker Wirth’s gripping system in the rear sections of the shield. The shields, with their wing-type grippers, are optimally supported in the bored tunnel by means of secure three-point bearing. The cutter head is driven by electric motors with an overall power rating of 4,800kW and the maximum cutting torque is 30,000kNm. The back-up will be delivered and constructed by the long-standing cooperation partner Rowa Tunnelling Logistics AG from Switzerland. The entire tunnelling system is approximately 160m long and weighs in excess of 1,800t.
The manufacture of each TBM will take around a year and the first machine will start boring in October 2012
The Koralm tunnel, being constructed for client, the ÖBB (Austrian railway system) is part of a new high-speed train route between Graz and Klagenfurt and will reduce travel times between the two by half. This 130km long key link is part of the Baltic-Adriatic Axis from Eastern Europe to Northern Italy via Austria. The Koralm tunnel, with two parallel single-track tunnel tubes and a length of more than 30km, is the core of this railway line and will be one of the longest traffic tunnels in the world.
Photo Caption: From left: Jost Wenk (Project Director Rowa Tunnelling Logistics AG), Werner Baumann (Managing director Investmanagement BMTI), Christoph Kleuters (CEO Aker Wirth), Wolfgang Lehner (General Manager STRABAG AG), Hans Greve (Vice President Mining & Construction Aker Wirth) and Detlef Jordan (Product sales manager tunnel boring machines Aker Wirth) signed the contract
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