Pennsylvania State University, in the US, and the University of Innsbruck, in Austria, have joined together to research the training and skill sets of TBM operators. The study involves a survey of TBM operators, contractors, and manufacturers.
TBM performance data is commonly used for interpretation of ground conditions and behavior. This data is highly influenced by the actions of the machine operator. However, interpretation of TBM performance data is made in retrospect using little/no information about the decisions made by machine operators.
The joint study aims to look at information about the machine operator’s decisions (including reasoning) and the impact of this information on the interpretation of machine performance data. This information will be used to facilitate a better understanding of actual machine performance in various ground conditions.
Questionnaire
Machine manufacturers, contractors, and machine operators are invited to take part in the five-minute survey, which relates to skill, expertise and responsibilities.
In order to reach an objective evaluation, three different questionnaires have been prepared, one for TBM machine operators, one for contractors, and one for TBM manufacturers.
The survey can be taken online or can be downloaded as a word file to fill out and return by email:
i'll do it!