Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Ita Ym Breakthough Issue 2018
Ita Ym Breakthough Issue 2018
CONTRIBUTING TO
A SMART USE
OF SPACE
www.amberggroup.com
WE ARE AMBERG.
AMBERG ENGINEERING AMBERG LOGLAY AMBERG TECHNOLOGIES HAGERBACH TEST GALLERY
Breakthrough 49
Breakthrough 2018 Digital Edition Sponsor
CONTRIBUTING TO
A SMART USE
OF SPACE
www.amberggroup.com
WE ARE AMBERG.
AMBERG ENGINEERING AMBERG LOGLAY AMBERG TECHNOLOGIES HAGERBACH TEST GALLERY
Breakthrough 49
The ITA Young Members’ Magazine
Issue 4 2018
Photo Competition
Winner Revealed
Sponsored by
Breakthrough 1
Conquering
Connecting Norway by rail: 5 Herrenknecht
Hard Rock TBMs are on the move for 45 km
of new first-class rail tubes at the New
Toughest
Ulrikentunnel and Follo Line projects.
Hard Rock
Massive geologies call for experi-
enced partners. Herrenknecht
is making headway through hard
rock – for over 822 km.
Contractors:
Follo Line: Acciona Infraestructuras and Ghella ANS
Ulrikentunnel: Skanska Strabag Ulriken ANS
www.herrenknecht.com
2 Breakthrough
Digital Edition Sponsor
Welcome to ‘Breakthrough’
Dear Tunnellers,
On behalf of the ITAYM Steering Board it is a great pleasure to present the fourth edition
of Breakthrough magazine, the official magazine of the International Tunnelling &
Underground Space Association’s Young Members group (ITAYM). Breakthrough is made
by, and for, people who work or have an interest in underground construction and aims
to highlight the great future of the industry and the tremendous career opportunities
available to young people in this field. In addition, we hope the magazine will help
enthusiastic tunnellers around the world to tell their stories and explain why the they are
so dedicated to, and excited by, working in this industry.
Tunnels and underground solutions are great! They solve real challenges for our society,
but you never see them. Tunnels and underground solutions help solve issues relating to
transportation, water supply, utilities, wastewater treatment, parking and many others.
However, they solve these challenges so effectively that people don’t even think about
them. With the world’s cities growing so rapidly, the need for efficient transportation and
infrastructure is ever-growing and underground solutions need to be utilized even more
efficiently. This combined with new travel methods, stricter requirements on travel times,
complex weather conditions and less restrictions in technology, etc. means that the
challenges for future tunnellers will be greater than ever and require solutions that might
not even exist today. I believe that the exchange of experiences and solutions across cities
and national borders is an essential part of developing and utilizing such solutions!
This issue of the magazine marks the 5th anniversary of the ITAYM being formally approved
by the ITA General Assembly at the World Tunnel Congress (WTC) in Iguazu Falls, Brazil.
Since that time, the ITAYM movement has spread to tunnelling societies all over the
world and we currently have more than thirty member nations that host domestic and
regional events, which allow young tunnellers to gather in formal and informal settings,
while sharing their activities through social media and connecting to other member
nations. More importantly than the events themselves, these initiatives generate a
common engagement in the tunnelling industry globally. This is mirrored in the increasing
involvement by young people in the ITA’s activities and a steady increase in young
participants at the WTCs.
This issue of Breakthrough and the recent WTC in Dubai also marks the end of an era, with
the last of the initial members of the ITAYM steering committee closing out their terms of
engagement. Over the last years, I have had the great pleasure of working with Jurij, Petr,
Lasse and Nichole, as well as new committee members, through Skype meetings across
several time zones, only meeting face to face one or two times a year. Skype meetings
at 23:00 on a Friday evening, and the sense of achievement we have had, has forged
friendships and connections that will last a lifetime.
As this is my last editorial for Breakthrough, I would also like to thank the Tunnelling
Journal team for their continuous support and help in generating this great magazine. It
would never exist without the great efforts of Amanda, Dan, Kris, Gary and Tris. Thank you!
Even though the ITAYM has been very successful in setting up this organization and is
now well-established as a group and within the ITA, the feeling of reunion at every WTC
young members social event and the young engineers’ thrill at feeling welcome and
Front Cover engaged at their first WTC is the greatest achievement of the ITAYM! These friendships and
The winning entry of international networks is exactly what the global tunnelling industry needs to be able to
Breakthrough’s 2017-2018 Photo accomplish the great challenges of the future!
Competition (see p22), which is
sponsored by Bekaert Maccaferri Keep tunnelling!
Underground Solutions. The
photo by Paul Challinor, a Project
Manager with Joseph Gallagher,
is titled “Reflection” and depicts
Paul’s former boss, mentor and
friend Dickie Dexter at the end of a
particularly challenging project. Sindre Log
Chair ITAYM (for the last time)
Breakthrough 3
Contributing to Breakthrough
If you would like to get involved in Breakthrough magazine
by contributing an article, or suggesting potential content
for future editions, we would be delighted to hear from you!
Please feel free to contact Breakthrough’s editorial team or
the ITAYM Young Members Committee (details below).
Editor
Amanda Foley
amanda@tunnellingjournal.com
Tel: +44 (0) 7973 158 065
Contributing Editor
Kristina Smith
kristinasmith.editorial@gmail.com
Tel: + 44 (0) 7833 230 853
Sales Manager
Daniel Lee-Billinghurst
daniel@tunnellingjournal.com
Tel: +44 (0) 7818 422 712
Art Editor
Mike Hooker
Technical Illustrator
Pete Beach
ITA-AITES Secretariat
c/o EPFL GC D 1 402 (Bât. GC)
Station 18 CH - 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland TGS Media Ltd. The Old Library, Webster House
Dudley Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN1 1LE United Kingdom
Tel: + 33 69 587 13 85 Fax: + 41 21 693 41 53 Tel: +44 (0) 1892 522585 www.tunnellingjournal.com
E-mail: itaym@ita-aites.org Website: www.ita-aites.org
Breakthrough is endorsed by the ITA The publishers, authors, associations, and groups mentioned cannot accept
liability for errors or omissions. All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced in any form without prior permission of the copyright holder,
application for which should be made to the publisher, TGS Media Ltd. ISSN
Breakthrough (Print) ISSN 2059-1241, Breakthrough (Online) ISSN 2059-125X.
4 Breakthrough
Digital Edition Sponsor
Breakthrough 5
MSc Tunnelling and
Underground Space
Do you want to gain specialist knowledge
setting you apart from other civil engineers?
Expand your career opportunities in a booming
global industry where suitably trained engineers
are in high demand.
6 Breakthrough
Contents...
Digital Edition Sponsor
32 Vietnam Adventure
Students Ola Hobbelstad and Egil Johansen travelled to a
remote Vietnamese tunnel project for their Masters theses.
38 Working Together
The mission of the ITA’s Working Groups is to capture, define
and share best practice for the industry.
42 5 from Five
We spoke to five tunnellers who attended five institutions
that offer specialist degrees to find out where they are now.
Breakthrough 7
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
8 Breakthrough
ATSym active at ATS 2017 Conference
celebrations. Russell is a Slurry Shield Machines in Mixed
Singapore-based Project Ground”.
Engineer who has worked on The ATSym are also proud
several technically challenging to announce that David Suter
and complex tunnel projects (VIC) and Aaron Lippett (NSW)
for John Holland across will join the team of young
Australia and Singapore (see professionals heading up the
p43). In 2013, Russell was ATSym. David and Aaron will join
awarded the Hulme Prize ATSym Chair, Keith Bannerman,
Award from the Tunnelling and and also Simon Brinkmann
Underground Construction (NSW) and Monique Quirk (QLD).
Society of Singapore To learn more about the
(TUCSS) for a paper titled ATSym get in touch via ATS@
“Breakthrough and Burial of engineersaustralia.org.au with
Tunnellers young and old came interest from senior tunnelling TBMs on the Brisbane Airport ATSym in the subject title. To
together on Sydney Harbour figures to encourage initiatives Link Project”. His winning keep abreast of international
to share a few stories, a few such as this. Thanks again to paper for 2017 is titled “The young member activities, visit
drinks and a great view, during Major Sponsor MST Global, and Challenges of Tunnelling with the ITAym facebook page.
the ATS 2017 conference, supporting sponsors Normet
and Pheonix. Without their Russel receives the Award from ATS
last November. The event’s
President Ed Taylor and EA GM Greg Ewing
tag line of “tunnelling across support events such as these
generations” reflects a key are not possible.
goal of the ATSym’s, namely In 2004, the Australasian
to engage with experts to Tunnelling Society started
encourage and mentor the next the David Sugden Award, to
generation of underground encourage young engineers
professionals. The strong to develop the art of technical
turnout of over 300 reflects the writing. The Award was
current strength of the industry presented to Russell Connors
down-under and the genuine as part of the ATS 2017
Breakthrough 9
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
ACTOS-NGT Gets
Established
After several years of receiving network to discuss professional
e-mails and enquires from development and experiences,
young engineers expressing both in Colombia and in other Currently, ACTOS-NGT
their interest in becoming parts of the world. With the members are focused on The ITA’s ITACUS Committee
part of ACTOS (the Colombian support of ACTOS, and several organising events to exchange Chair, Han Admiraal, joins
Association of Tunnels and other important associations, knowledge, experience and ACTOS-NGT for a panel
Underground Works), the government departments and technology among young discussion
ACTOS Board decided to entities, this group of future professionals, students and
create a Young Members group Colombian tunnelling talent experts. New ideas and concepts of underground
in 2017. Paola Castillo and has quickly begun to formalize activities flourish during construction in an economic,
Diana Diaz (see p34), were agreements and work each monthly meeting, social, environmental and
appointed Chair and Vice-Chair strategies. always guided by the vision of international context, to boost
respectively, and took up the To date, technical events making ACTOS-NGT that new decision-making capabilities in
responsibility of setting up and have been held monthly, with generation of engineers that both the evaluation of projects
leading the group. topics of national relevance in Colombia needs. Engineers and in their implementation.
Named ACTOS-NGT (New the field of underground space capable of addressing the To find out more about
Generation of Tunnellers), being discussed and analyzed, challenges of this new century; ACTOS-NGT connect with the
the group’s main objective creating and strengthening setting criteria for design group via Facebook at www.
is to reach out to young relationships between and construction in order to facebook.com/ACTOSCO/,
professionals and students students, young professionals, guarantee the sustainability twitter: https://twitter.com/
with an interest in becoming companies and government of projects; developing the actostuneles or LinkedIn:
involved in underground authorities in order to build a ability to understand and www.linkedin.com/company/
engineering, providing a stronger future for the industry. communicate the fundamental actoscolombia/
10 Breakthrough
How to set-up a Young Members group
Contact your Member Visit www.ita-aites.org to
Nation and ask if a check if your country is a
Young Members Group Member Nation of the ITA
already exists
YES NO
Join up!
NO Send an email to
secretariat@ita-aites.org
to see how your country
Work with officials to see if could become an ITA
it is possible to set one up Member Nation
SETTING UP A YM GROUP
1. 2. 3.
6. 5. 4.
Breakthrough 11
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
Danish YM Group
importance of underground
space and an insight into
12 Breakthrough
Ramboll has contributed to approximately 60% of all the world’s immersed
tunnels including the 18km Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link, which is set to become
the world’s longest road and rail immersed tunnel. As lead consultant on
Fehmarnbelt since 2009, Ramboll is assisting with the tunnel’s concept design,
tender documents, approvals, and onshore works. The tunnel is a study in
innovative thinking, as it challenges existing tunnel building standards.
BREAKING
NEW GROUND
(IN TUNNEL
ENGINEERING)
WITH 13,000 ENGINEERS, DESIGNERS AND CONSULTANTS, WE CREATE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS WITHIN
BUILDINGS, TRANSPORT, PLANNING & URBAN DESIGN, WATER, ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH, ENERGY, OIL & GAS
AND MANAGEMENT CONSULTING.
Breakthrough 13
Tunnelling tomorrow:
Five trends
Change is coming fast to Mark Johnson, Global Practice Manager for Tunnel and Earth Engineering,
the tunnelling industry. Jacobs.
Having acquired CH2M in December 2017, Jacobs provides a full
That’s partly because the spectrum of services including scientific, technical, professional,
number of tunnels we are construction management and program management for business,
industrial, commercial, government and infrastructure sectors
building is increasing at
an unprecedented rate; Colin Lawrence, Global Tunnel Practice Leader, Mott MacDonald.
populations are migrating to Mott MacDonald is a large, global multi-disciplinary engineering,
infrastructure, management and international development consultant
cities and, somehow, we must with a tunnelling heritage that stretches back over 125 years.
find more space.
Tom Melbye, Senior Adviser, Normet, previously CEO for eight years.
There are other forces at work too. Lessons Describing itself as a ‘technology company’, Normet supplies chemicals
and information move faster through and equipment to the tunnelling and mining sectors.
social media and virtual networks. Digital
construction promises to streamline
processes and remove interfaces. Emerging Rob Muley, General Manager for Tunnelling, John Holland.
materials and technologies could allow Owned by China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), John
us to build more with less. We asked four Holland is one of Australia’s leading construction companies, operating
industry leaders what today’s technology in a wide variety of sectors in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.
could bring tomorrow. Here are a few of
their thoughts.
14 Breakthrough
2. Everyone pays
For Johnson, the biggest hurdle faced stations into its deals. stage or boycott it once opened.
by tomorrow’s tunnelling projects is Another way to share the cost of a Because PPP models mean that
affordability. “The biggest challenge is tunnel would be to share its uses, says designer and contractor work in parallel,
getting the money together in the first Lawrence, like the SMART tunnel in with input from the maintainers, the
place,” he says. “Projects and clients Kuala Lumpur which switches from theory is that they produce better
need to be as creative as possible in road tunnel to stormwater tunnel during pieces of infrastructure at a better cost.
finding sources of funding.” Monsoon season to avoid flooding in the However, they tend to be more expensive
Lawrence agrees: “There are many city’s central business district. Johnson – it always costs more for the private
contracts in the concept or design references the Great Istanbul Tunnel, sector to borrow when compared to the
stage that are just waiting for financing which crosses the Bosphorous strait with public sector.
to be built,” he says. “As populations its triple decks accommodating both road “The demands from society in terms
keep growing, the development of and rail. of what needs to be built need to be
infrastructure is critical but how much Public Private Partnership deals – balanced against what it costs to provide
financing can be provided realistically is shortened to PPP or 3P or P3, depending the infrastructure,” says Lawrence. “It
a real challenge.” where in the world you are – offer a good puts pressure on trying to make projects
Johnson cites the California Water Fix solution in some cases. Elizabeth River as cheap as possible and as useful as
programme, involving 40 miles (64km) of Tunnels in Virginia, a programme which possible.”
water tunnels, with an expected price tag included both new build and refurbished
of $15bn. “It has to be paid for by water tunnels, was delivered by this route,
rates and that involves pulling together a so too will be Melbourne Metro.
coalition of different agencies along the In a PPP, private sector funders,
route, which is a difficult job.” contractors and maintainers join
Look to London, says Johnson, where forces to finance and build a tunnel
authority Transport for London (TfL) and then operate it, taking tolls
is working with the private sector on from the users. One huge caveat is
over-station developments, factoring that there must be public support
improvements such as new entrances for this option to be viable – or they’ll
or step-free access for Underground de-rail the project at the planning
Breakthrough 15
4. Digital connection
Digital technology is already making big communication. Engineers can mine The next step is to get all the
improvements in underground design existing records such as surveys, borehole equipment to ‘talk’ to each other, says
and construction, although we are a long data and even Google maps to produce Melbye. “We could have the drilling
way from everything being seamlessly accurate pictures of the ground to be jumbos collecting data on the rock
connected. tunnelled through. Difficult details and as they drill, then passing that data
We can collect a huge amount of data, how they fit together can be rehearsed on the geology onto the spraying
everything from the pressure inside digitally before projects are on site. robot. Machines have to be able to
the cutting head of the machine to the Next steps will see BIM models calling communicate with each other. The
movement of the ground above it to the off deliveries automatically. Driven by the industry has to work together on this.
amount of metal that has been worn off need to reduce congestion and improve air If we pool our resources then the cost
a cutting tool. quality in city centres, deliveries will come burden is less. It will happen but we do
“We are getting better data out of the from specialist construction consolidation need to think differently.”
machine than ever before which allows centres sending products and materials to
us to analyse what is being done,” says site on electric vehicles.
Muley. “With live data coming off the Robots are already a tool for tunnelling.
machine, we can quickly analyse things Concrete spraying robots line tunnels
like the slowest point of a cycle, or we every day, drones record progress and
can spot signs that show a motor or take inspection footage. Contractor
bearing going. Data reduces failures.” Bouygues has a snake-like inspection
3D models, with information attached robot which looks at the cutter head; TBM
– sometimes called BIM (building manufacturers are working on robots that
information modelling) – are helping can change the tools on a cutter head so
with planning, visualisation and that humans don’t have to.
5. Elite teams
Increasing technological challenges, selling materials to a project. Instead it communication is missing,” says Melbye.
bigger and more complex projects, greater would take responsibility for the whole “We have to try to solve problems
risk, the need to engage new funders. All sprayed concrete lining, for instance, together, rather than waiting until the end
these aspects mean that we need the very perhaps charging on a cost per metre of a project to put in claims. When the
best people and companies to be working basis. lawyers get involved, you are not sure if
on our projects. One big question: are “Today I see too often the client on one the right people are winning.”
there enough great people to go round? side, the contractor on the other and Digital construction could play its part
Johnson thinks not. “Complex projects the consultant somewhere in between. here. Johnson remarks that current
require huge teams of people to do There are claims and problems because working and contractual practices don’t
preliminary engineering and produce fit well with BIM. A collaborative way of
tender documents. These go out to eight working, where those involved
or 10 contractors, who then go out to in supplying all the constituent
subcontractors and designers. Pretty parts of a tunnel feed into the
soon, we run out of firms who are capable design and model early would
of doing these very large projects.” work far better.
The answer, suggests Melbye, is to It is the next generation of
move away from the lowest-price-wins engineers coming up through
method of procurement. “Traditional the industry who will drive
procurement is very unlikely to be the this change. “The good news
cheapest and the best solution because about the increasing number
you are procuring on the wrong criteria: of tunnelling projects is that
how fast can you go from A to B. if you they are providing invaluable
have more performance-related criteria, experience to those working
then all parties take a part of the risk, and on them,” says Lawrence. “All
all parties have an interest in doing the that experience will come to
best job they can.” bear in the future. We have never
Melbye would like to see a situation seen that before on this scale
where a supplier like Normet wasn’t just around the world.”
16 Breakthrough
CONTRIBUTING TO
A SMART USE
OF SPACE
www.amberggroup.com
WE ARE AMBERG.
AMBERG ENGINEERING AMBERG LOGLAY AMBERG TECHNOLOGIES HAGERBACH TEST GALLERY
Breakthrough 17
Extreme Tunnelling
in the Himalayas
Missy Isaman, Project Engineer for The Robbins
Company, has traveled to Japan, China, Turkey,
and Germany through her work. But her most
intriguing travels have been to Nepal, where
an emerging economy is working to modernize
its infrastructure and heal from a massive
earthquake in 2015. Her work in Nepal for the
Bheri Babai Diversion Multipurpose Project
(BBDMP) represents the first-ever use of a TBM
in the country. A 5.06m diameter Robbins
Double Shield is boring the BBDMP--it is
currently 2.7km into its 12.2km bore.
18 Breakthrough
At the start of the Bheri Babai project, making process, project officials toured
back in 2016, I was lucky enough to be other jobsites around the world to get a
able to travel to the capitol city of Nepal, sense of what a tunneling project could
Kathmandu. Although the flight was very accomplish. These same officials made
long, getting to see a place like this is such the bold decision to choose a TBM despite
an amazing opportunity. My role in the widespread criticism in the government
project is to manage the design engineering over the decision.
portion of the project. This also involved While planning was underway, a final
attending project design meetings with the design review was held. In the end, in order
owner and the contractor (the Nepalese to best combat the extreme terrain, the
government being the owner). machine was equipped with a probe drill for
The Nepalese people couldn’t have been ground investigation and a stepped shield,
more welcoming. This project had been in to help navigate through possible squeezing
the planning stages for years. I could tell ground. For extra measures, we also added
that this was much more than just a job to ports in the forward shield for the possible
them. Being the first TBM in the country, addition of forepoling or hand drilling, and
this project was a major point of pride to radially spaced ports in the rear shield for
the team. The team hopes the success of lubricating the shield in squeezing ground.
this venture will prove to the public and the I could see in this meeting that they were
industry that TBMs are a very viable option The 5.06m diameter Robbins Double Shield excited about the progress and where this
over the drill and blast method. It will help would lead their country in the future.
to open the doors for the TBM industry in is to divert water from a larger river (Bheri This tunnel is a major way to revitalize the
Nepal. River) in one valley and divert some of economy.
The visit I took to Nepal was about a the flow to a starved river (Babai River) in I am so proud to be a part of a project
year after Nepal’s devastating earthquake, the next valley over. This will have a huge that will positively impact so many people.
measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale. impact on the agricultural production and A project of this magnitude has sparked the
There was a lot of trauma to the city even hydropower in this region. In order to do interest of the government, academics and
at this time. Many of the city’s historic this, the tunnel will have to go through a the public. The jobsite alone has already
monuments and architectural treasures mountain to bridge the valleys. This tunnel presented opportunities. Locals have set
were permanently damaged. Most of the design did not allow for additional adits or up tea and snack shops and restaurants to
city was in a state of repair. multiple excavation faces. A drill a blast accommodate the influx of workers in the
Because of the government’s recovering plan, for this project, would have taken an area. Tourism has also benefitted from this
economy, the project took much more time estimated 12 years to complete. venture. Since this jobsite is in a wildlife
and effort for the team to make happen. Our Robbins project team, including our preserve, it has become a stopping point
With their continued determination, the local office in Nepal and president Lok on tours through the area, giving everyone
planning, approval and procurement Home, had multiple meetings with the the opportunity to learn more about the
process ended up taking five years to reach Nepalese government, including the Project site and the great benefits that are being
fruition. The main reason that the owner Office to the Ministry of Water Resources, accomplished. I am lucky to be a part of a
and contractor opted for the TBM method the Ministry of Finance, and the Office of project that will change a region like this for
was the geology. The plan for this tunnel the Prime Minister. To help in the decision- the better.
Breakthrough 19
Moving Water to Aid Nepal’s Economy
is also seen as an opportunity
to prove the viability of the
method in the notoriously
The BBDMP is one of Nepal’s difficult Himalayan geology.
11 National Pride Projects-- The success of the BBDMP,
prioritized plans sanctioned a national pride project, is
by the Government of Nepal paramount for the country as
to further develop the mostly well as the TBM industry. It
rural country. This project is expected to help aide the
will irrigate 60,000 hectares food crisis in the mid-western
of land in the southern region region of Nepal by increasing
of Nepal, benefitting an agricultural yields and
estimated 30,000 households. invigorating socio-economic
It will divert 40 cubic meters Nepal Branch (COVEC Nepal requiring a TBM that can development in the region.
of water per second from Branch), represented by China withstand squeezing ground, Even though the project is only
Bheri River to Babai River Railway No.2 Engineering rock instability, possibly high about 20 percent complete
under a head of 150 m using Co., Ltd Chengtong Branch, is ingress of water and fault to date, the government is
a 15 m tall dam, providing responsible for the headrace zones. Maximum cover above planning more TBM projects.
year-round irrigation in the tunnel and prepared for the the tunnel is 820 m. More than 100 km of tunneling
surrounding Banke and Bardia challenges associated with The project owner, the planned are planned for Nepal
districts. The water will also tunneling in the tough geology Government of Nepal’s in the next five years, of which
be used for hydroelectricity, of the Siwalik Range, part Ministry of Irrigation (MOI), more than 50% is considered
with a generating capacity of of the Southern Himalayan has chosen a TBM over feasible for TBM excavation.
48 MW benefiting the country Mountains, with procurement the traditional method of Many projects that would
with NPR 2 billion (20 million of a custom-designed Double Drill &Blast due to the previously have recommended
USD) annually. Shield TBM. The Siwalik range faster mobilization and Drill & Blast only are now
Contractor China Overseas consists of mainly sandstone, rate of advance offered by considering TBMs as an
Engineering Group Co. Ltd. mudstone and conglomerate, mechanized mining. The TBM option.
20 Breakthrough
DSI Supplies Safety
Visit us at
WTC 2018
Dubai, UAE
www.dsi-tunneling.com
Breakthrough 21
NER
WIN
018
2
55
PHOTO COMPETITION
KOD E100SW
Breakthrough is delighted to announce the winner of its If you would like to take part in the 2018/19 Competition,
first annual photo competition! send us an eye-catching image that highlights tunnelling
or underground construction. If you’ve captured something
The prize went to Paul Challinor, a Project Manager with
inspiring, beautiful, fascinating, intriguing, amusing, or
UK specialist tunnelling subcontractor Joseph Gallagher
possibly all of these things, we want to see it! The winning
Limited, for his entry ‘Reflection’. “The man in the photo
photo will feature on the cover of the Spring 2019 edition,
is my former boss, mentor and friend Dickie Dexter,”
as well as Breakthrough’s Flickr site, social media and
said Paul. ‘The photo was taken when we handed over a
more – there will also be a prize from our sponsor Bekaert
completed tunnel. It was a hard project; the ground was
Maccaferri Underground Solutions.
bad, the price was tight and our relationship with the client
was occasionally strained. The project took a lot out of us The full list of entries are hosted on our Fickr page at:
and the picture shows a humbled man reflecting on all that www.flickr.com/people/breakthrough_magazine/
has gone on. We delivered the tunnel and were not beaten,
but we felt like we left a small part of ourselves behind.”
The judging panel loved both the photo and the story
54
22 Breakthrough
KOD E100SW
Teaching an old dog new tricks by George Stevens Grenland bridge and a sky full of stars by Anne-Line Ferstad
Breakthrough 23
KOD E100SW
55
24 Breakthrough
N orwegiaN T uNNelliNg S ocieTy
WG TUNNELP SEALING
. 27 ublicaTioN No
W. Giertsen Tunnel
18 AS Nygårdsviken 1, N-5165 Laksevåg-Bergen, Norway
www.giertsentunnel.no I tunnel@giertsen.no I +47 5594 3030
Breakthrough 25
A week in my life
Hannah Dix worked as a Cross Passage Saturday diversity sometimes offers
Tunnel Engineer on the Doha Metro Red communication challenges,
Saturday marks the beginning but with patience we have been
Line South Joint Venture (RSJV) project, of a new week on the Cross able to become better and have
with QDVC, in Qatar. She has experience Passage (CP) Excavation Team. all learned some new words.
working with traditional excavation This morning I woke up to my As the meeting continues it
routine 4:30am alarm, got appears that we have another
methods in cross-passages as well as final dressed in my site gear and busy day ahead of us.
lining. Hannah previously worked on the made my way to work, ready for I make sure to collect all the
the 6:00am hand over meeting. details about the excavation
Crossrail project, in London, UK; as well as These meetings are held at progress from the night shift as
an open-cut coal mine, in rural Australia. both 6am and 6pm with the day well as which Cross Passages
and night shift supervisors and (CPs) have shotcrete orders for
She is currently working on the West Gate engineers. These meetings are today. I then determine which
Tunnel Project in Melbourne, Australia, crucial for the smooth running CPs will require shotcrete for
with the CPBJH Joint Venture. of each shift as the handover tomorrow. As our meeting
team is updated about what progresses we are greeted by
activities have occurred over another bright pink sunrise
the previous shift, how much that forms a silhouette behind
progress was made and if we the site cranes, ready for
faced any challenges. another day.
We all prepare for the hand
over meeting by grabbing our
morning coffee and gathering Sunday
in the site office. As we all
listen to the updates from After the completion of this
the previous shift, I notice morning’s hand over meeting I
01
FUJI 5 how effective we have all write up the shotcrete requests
3 become at communicating. for tomorrow and send them
VP
FUJI R Between the 10 of us we through to the concrete
represent nationalities from batching plant. I then head
the Philippines, France, over to join this morning’s start
Spain, Chile, Romania, briefing with the site teams.
UK and Australia. Our Each morning we conduct a
safety meeting, followed by a
short informal fitness session,
FUJI RV
P
3
FUJI 50
1
3A
2A
Morning
2A
sunrise
Me inside
the tunnel.
2A
3A
26 Breakthrough
Construction site for
the new metro line
at Doha city centre.
Breakthrough 27
FUJI
RVP
FUJI
501
3A
3
P
I RV
FUJ
3A
3
2A
28 Breakthrough
Breakthrough 29
AWARDS 2018
November 5-7, 2018 | Chuzhou-Nanjing, China
30 Breakthrough
Dates Events
24-27 June 15-18 October
2018 North American Tunneling Conference Tunneling Fundamentals, Practice, and Innovations
Washington D.C., USA Annual Short Course
Event website: www.natconference.com/ Colorado School of Mines, Denver, USA
The UCA of SME’s NAT Conference is a premier biennial Event website: http://csmspace.com/events/
event. The four-day conference provides a programme tunneling/
focused on current tunnelling projects, challenges CSM’s annual short course for industry professionals
and successes in North America. A Young Members’ provides a comprehensive overview of tunnel planning,
networking event will take place in the evening on June 25. design and construction across all applications and all
types of geology.
13-14 September
29-31 October
Underground Excavation Symposium and Exhibition
Istanbul, Turkey 2018 Cutting Edge Conference
Event website: www.uyak.org.tr/ Atlanta, GA, USA
There are 11 metro projects currently ongoing in Istanbul Event website: http://ucaofsmecuttingedge.com/
alone. Organised by the Chamber of Mining Engineers of Organised by the UCA of SME and Tunnelling Journal,
Turkey and the Turkish Tunneling Society, this two-day Cutting Edge is an annual conference that hand picks
symposium will attract a large number of domestic and speakers to discuss the latest trends and developments
international attendees to discuss the growing demand for in tunnelling technology. The 2018 event also features a
underground infrastructure. dedicated young members session.
Breakthrough 31
Vietnam
Adventure
On February 17, two adventurous Ola Hobbelstad and Egil Johansen
Norwegian Civil Engineering students, Ola
and Egil, got a plane from Oslo to Vietnam
in order to conduct field surveys as a part of
their Masters theses. Arriving in the coastal A couple days later, we set our course
city of Da Nang, in central Vietnam, with towards the project site, which is located
temperatures in the mid-twenties, long six hours south-west of Da Nang, up in
beautiful beaches and cheap beer, was a the central highlands of Vietnam. The
stark contrast to the Norwegian mid-winter area itself is very beautiful, with its scenic input required for the models involved
with its freezing temperatures. Having nature and steep river-dug valleys and mapping completed sections of the tunnel,
travelled around the world to another hills all covered by vegetation. The tunnel in accordance with the rock fracture
country and continent, we had exploit the of interest was part of the Upper Kon Tum class system and the Q-Value, conducting
opportunity to check out the Da Nang area Hydroelectric Power Plant, which will have penetration tests with the TBM, and taking
for a couple of days before traveling out to 350MW of installed capacity and an annual core samples for Drilling Rate Index (DRI)
the project site. The ancient city of Hoi Ann, production of 1 TWh when completed. and Cutter Life Index (CLI) testing back
the Marble Caves and a massive statue About 10 kilometers of this tunnel is being at NTNU and at the SINTEF Foundation
of “Lady Buddha” were among the main excavated with a Tunnel Boring Machine for Scientific and Industrial Research,
attractions Da Nang had to offer, in addition (TBM), which was why the project was of which is also located in Trondheim. Ola’s
to relaxing on the beach. interest to us. The tunnelling is being done thesis focuses on rock support, mainly the
using a 4.5m diameter Main Beam TBM difference in rock support used between
from Robbins, who is also contracted to TBM bored and blasted tunnels – both when
operate the machine. it comes to measures to cope with unstable
The purpose of our stay in Vietnam was ground and the amount of rock support
to collect data for our Masters theses, needed to secure stability. Fieldwork
which have to be completed to graduate conducted for this purpose was geological
from the Norwegian University of Science mapping of a section of the TBM-excavated
and Technology (NTNU), which is located tunnel as well as mapping of the drill and
in Trondheim. Egil’s thesis is focused on blast excavated portal. While the theoretical
comparing actual TBM performance with framework for the thesis consists of both
estimations generated by the NTNU and the Q-System and the RMR-System of rock
the QTBM TBM prediction models. The mass classification.
32 Breakthrough
Working in a place like Vietnam is very Doing field studies as a student is highly building something, which is impossible
different to the highly regulated and safety- recommended if you get the opportunity. It to learn from a university course. As
focused construction industry in Norway. enlightens you to all the practical aspects tunneling is a highly practical form of work,
The project site itself has a permanent of construction, such as logistics, work you cannot get around spending extensive
population of chicken and hens, cattle, environment, communication, safety and periods of time in the field if you truly want
stray dogs and an occasional pig or two other issues that affect the process of to become an expert.
wandering around. The work inside the
tunnel is affected by the high temperature Further Reading
and humidity, giving us more of sauna
experiences in a week than an average n “Using the Q-System”, a handbook published by the Norwegian Geotechnical
Finnish person gets in a year! The work Institute (NGI), is available to download free at www.ngi.no
environment is also very different, with n A complete description of the RMR System is given in Bieniwaski’s book
workers coming from all over the world, “Engineering Rock Mass Classifications: A Complete Manual for Engineers and
and only a few able to speak fluent English Geologists in Mining, Civil and Petroleum Engineering”, published in 1989.
or communicate easily with one another. n One should also read the article “Use and Misuse of Rock Mass Classification
Another interesting sight was the large Systems with Particular Reference to the Q-System” by Palmstrøm and
number of locals engaged in shoveling the Broch, in Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, Volume 21, Issue 6,
tunnel floor of muck to allow the water to November 2006.
flow out.
Breakthrough 33
Extreme Tunnelling in
Colombia
La Linea tunnel Daza tunnel
Occidente Tunnel
The history of underground works in metamorphic rocks, in addition to the high Importance of tunnelling in Colombia
Colombia is older than one might imagine. rainfall rates that are observed. The 4th Generation Toll Road Concession
Tunnels for hydropower and irrigation, A great number of tunnelling projects Programme is one of the most ambitious
rail tunnels, urban drainage tunnels and are needed to successfully interconnect projects in the history of Colombia’s
road tunnels all currently exist. However, regions, to reduce the distance, time and infrastructure, consisting of 40 projects
when Colombia launched its ‘Infrastructure cost of transporting people and goods, as that will comprise 8,000km of toll
Master Plan 2015-2035’, in 2015, tunnel well as to reduce trade barriers. However, roads, including 159 tunnels with a total
engineering gained a much higher profile, due to the conditions mentioned above, investment of around US$18 billion.
due to the challenges that engineers will Colombian engineers, academics, national The 4G Program is expected to reduce
face to execute the plan. and international firms are facing tunnelling unemployment, creating more than 180,000
Following a decades-long gap in challenges, not only at the design phase but jobs. This is when young engineers must
infrastructure development, Colombia also during construction. The role of young enter the labour market, meeting the needs
will heavily invest in upgrading highway engineers will be crucial in the development of the country. Unfortunately, the number
infrastructure in a bid to develop the of such projects, which will contribute to a of tunnels in design and construction
country’s economy. Many reasons can brighter future for Colombia. phases is greater than the number of young
be listed for the infrastructure gap, but
regardless, it is important to note that in Longest Tunnels in Colombia
terms of geology and topographic formation
there is a predominant difference between Tunnel Name Function Year of Location Length (m)
the east and the west of the country. Completion
The former displays sparse mountainous Via Guateque Tunnel Road Tunnel 1966 Western ranges 1600
relief formed by ancient rock, while the
latter is characterized by imposing young El Boqueron Tunnel Road Tunnel 1999 Central range 2405
rocks of the Andean mountain ranges.
Buenavista Tunnel Road Tunnel 2002 Western ranges 4519
Colombia is the only country that hosts
three subdivisions of the Andes (western, Occidente Tunnel Road Tunnel 2005 Eastern ranges 4603
central and eastern), presenting great
Tunnel del Sumapaz Road Tunnel 2010 Eastern ranges 4200
differences between rock formations in
terms of age and petrographic type. This Toyo Tunnel Road Tunnel 2025 Expected Western ranges 9840
results in a varied and complex geology
La Linea Tunnel Road Tunnel 2019 Expected Central range 8600
encompassing igneous, sedimentary and
34 Breakthrough
ACTOS’s (the Colombian Association of Tunnels & Underground Space) New
Generation of Tunnellers (NGT) gather at one of their regular meetings
Helicoidal Tunnel
Breakthrough 35
Paola Castillo and Diana Diaz
transporters, represented by gasoline, sustainability during construction and
Cisneros-Loboguerrero Highway
equipment wear and time. operation, and in all stages of development
Unfortunately, the La Linea Tunnel and operation of tunnels.
Project has had contractual problems Again, ethics and good engineering
from the beginning in 2008. Since the last practices are of fundamental value and
contract, the project has been delayed should be promoted along with the
by two years and is currently expected sustainable development of tunnelling
to complete by the end of 2019. ACTOS- projects. Last, but not least, regarding
NGT Chair, Paola Castillo, supported the political situation of Colombia, poor
the arbitration of this project. The main management of resources is an evident
problems encountered are: contractor’s factor in inadequate development of
budget problems, unsuitable machinery civil infrastructure. The lack of political
or machinery in poor condition, and participation of civil engineers also
contractual disorganization. In addition to demonstrating good tunnelling knowledge, restrains our decision-making contributions
the geotechnical challenges encountered which integrates geotechnical, engineering both in evaluation of projects and during the
during construction such as rock bursts, geology, hydrogeology, tunnel design, implementation of them.
high overburden (over 830m), water structural design, traffic engineering, Governmental authorities need to clearly
ingress and rock squeezing, there ventilation, fire hazard control and other identify the benefits and risks of such
was also a problem in the rock mass disciplines relevant to the design and projects. They also need to put forward
classification, which led to cost overruns. construction of tunnels. regulations, policies and standards that
Notwithstanding, if the project cannot be In addition, the essential skills a good guarantee sustainable underground
completed, it will bring about 400 billion engineer must have includes teamwork, construction with very few environmental
COP of losses per year. and above all ethical behaviour both impacts.
personally and professionally. Therefore, This is the reason why the new
Prospects of Tunnelling in Colombia colleges and universities need to recognize generation of tunnellers need to strive to
The challenges faced by young civil the importance of identifying, developing, be able to achieve active participation in
engineers in Colombia consist of three main and providing opportunities that bring about political processes and it is supposed to be
pillars: i) sustainable construction, ii) QHSE adequate improvement in the competence the next challenge that must be approached
management, and iii) improve society’s of our engineering graduates. from different perspectives with key tools,
quality of life. The tunnel industry also plays an and this will contribute to the continuous
At this point, Colombia is calling for a important role in the future of Colombia. learning and the training of young civil
new generation of engineers capable of It is important to embrace concepts on engineers.
36 Breakthrough
TUNNELING Discover emerging innovations in tunneling
methods, materials and technology through
classroom instruction and hands-on labs
FUNDAMENTALS, and demonstrations. Learn key design and
construction principles applicable to all types
Colorado School of Mines has a long-standing tradition of hosting world-class short courses in
underground construction and tunneling. Upon successful completion of the course, 2.3 CEUs
may be earned through the Mines Office of Continuing Education.
Learn more and register online at underground.mines.edu.
Breakthrough 37
Working Together
From figuring out how to re-use muck from tunnel excavations to mapping out the
new technology skills engineers need today, the mission of the ITA’s Working Groups
is to capture, define and share best practice. Kristina Smith reports.
A video of the very first Alstom train on a Commitment Groups. One is for people to be proposed
trial run through the new Metro Line 1, in There are usually around 13 or 14 working by their country’s tunnelling association.
Chennai, India, posted on LinkedIn earlier groups active at any one time. The ITA’s Another is to turn up and volunteer,
this year received opposing responses. ruling body, the Executive Council, although Vion and Working Group leaders
Some people offered congratulations on oversees and approves the creation of new note that they need ongoing commitment,
the progress made while others criticised groups. A recent addition was Working rather than one-off appearances at a
the untidiness of the site. Group 22, chaired by former ITA Young meeting.”
The video is a reminder of how hugely Members’ Chair, Jurij Karlovsek, from the All the Working Group ‘Animateurs’ say
working practices on tunnelling University of Queensland, which that they would welcome more involvement
projects around the world will look at information in from young tunnellers. “Listen, put your
vary, and that can be for a tunnelling. hand up, get involved,” says Brian Fulcher,
whole variety of reasons. Every group meets Principal Tunnel Engineer at McMillen
Some countries have at least once a year at Jacobs Associates, who chairs WG14 on
years of tunnelling the World Tunnelling Mechanical Tunnelling. “If young people
practice behind them, Congress (WTC), this year show up, we take a very special interest in
others are just starting in Dubai. Many of them that and there is often more dialogue and
out. Skills and resources have a second face-to-face excitement. Young ITA members are quick
Olivier Vion meeting somewhere else to get involved and make a difference.”
vary, as do politics and legal
frameworks. part-way through the year. The Rohde says that his research has been
There isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ number of people in the groups boosted by contributions from students
approach. But it is possible to transfer has been growing steadily, says at the Warsaw University of
knowledge and experiences gained from Vion, so whereas they used to Technology, Poland, led by
projects in one region to others. And that be between 10 and 25-strong, the Working Group’s tutor,
is what the International Tunnelling & there can now be up to 40 Professor Anna Sieminska-
Underground Space Association (ITA- people. Lewandowska.
AITES) aims to do through its Working The outputs from the Fulcher acknowledges
Groups. working groups are that it is difficult for
“The aim of the Working Groups is guidance documents that are people to persuade their
to go into a topic in depth and provide published on the ITA-AITES Brian Fulcher companies that they should
information on what is state-of-the-art,” website and presented at the have the time and budget to
explains Olivier Vion, ITA-AITES’ Executive WTC each year. The findings from attend events such as the WTC,
Director. “We produce guidelines the Groups also help inform some of particularly if they work for a contractor.
rather than standards, but they the training courses offered and He himself attends in his vacation,
are recognised and respected approved by the ITA-AITES. alongside his wife who is a tunnel design
around the world. We see One of the problems faced engineer.
them used in tenders or by all the Working Groups He urges young people to make a case
to help inform dispute is that they are all made to their employers for attendance: propose
resolution.” up of volunteers, and de-briefing sessions with peers after the
Some of the subjects often volunteers with very event, emphasise the values of technology
currently being explored by busy day jobs. “Trying to and information exchange, networking and
Working Groups include what Jan Rohde collect all the information is learning social skills. “Large, complex,
skills tunnelling engineers a time-consuming process,” jobs need people with these types of
and others require to work in an says Jan Rohde, a Senior skills,” says Fulcher. “Companies are
age of digital technology; a new form of Advisor at Sweco Norge, who heads up WG looking to employ their A-Team on these
contract which could revolutionise the 15 Environment. “People are enthusiastic jobs. Young people should take every
way risk is shared on tunnelling projects; at the meetings, but once they get back to opportunity they can if they want to get
and how we could make better use of the their normal work situation, they have to onto that A-Team by developing essential
muck excavated from new tunnels (see focus on other things.” skills beyond a solid base of technical
opposite). There are two routes into the Working knowledge.”
38 Breakthrough
Here’s a taster of some of the
new guidance we can expect soon
from ITA’s many Working Groups:
WG3, Contractual Practices is producing the WG5 Health & Safety is updating important
world’s first tunnelling-specific contract, guidance it published in partnership with
working with the International Federation of the British Tunnelling Society (BTS) relating
Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) whose contracts to high-pressure compressed air working.
are recognised and used globally. Tunnelling Working under high pressures involves the use
contracts often overrun on time and cost of non-air breathing mixtures and occasionally
because owners try to transfer all the risk onto the use of saturation exposure techniques
the contractors. along with transfers under pressure.
“For the first time, employers, contractors, “High-Pressure Compressed Air (HPCA) work
designers and engineers will have a clear- is a high-risk tunnelling activity which has
cut definition of a balanced allocation of developed rapidly over the past 10 years,”
the risk related to the sub-surface says Dr Donald Lamont, leader of WG5 and
conditions at their fingertips,” says a world expert on the subject. “The
Matthias Neuenschwander, of ITA/British Tunnelling Society
Neuenschwander Consulting guidance has been the only
Engineers, who heads up Working Groups internationally available
the Working Group. “This guidance on the topic
Research and has already been
will lead to cheaper
Contractual Practices used as the basis for
projects, better cost
Health & Safety enforcement by one
stability and less need
Maintenance & Repair national regulator.”
for disputes.”
Seismic Effects
Immersed & Floating Tunnels
Use of Sprayed Concrete
Information Modelling in Tunnelling
WG14 Mechanised Mechanized Tunnelling WG15 Environment
Tunnelling has set Underground Works & Environment is compiling case
up four sub-groups Long Tunnels at Great Depth studies of projects that
tasked with finding out Conventional Tunnelling have been able to use
Urban Problems, Underground Solutions
the latest information Lifetime Cycle Asset Management
the excavated muck that
about tunnels, related comes out of tunnels for
equipment technology, other purposes – rather than
new materials and training for it being dumped somewhere and
operators, engineers and managers. landscaped.
It is also working on joint projects with a
Working Group 15 Animateur, Jan Rohde,
number of other Working Groups.
has many examples from his own company’s
The skills of a tunnel engineer are definitely tunnelling projects and is seeking further case
changing, says Fulcher. “Shaft engineers and histories from elsewhere. “We are looking
heading engineers tend to be quite general, around the world to find out how people are
but the role now is very techy. There is lots of dealing with the opportunities and challenges
instrumentation and data collection, but some of using tunnel muck as a construction
of them have little idea about the data that they material,” he says.
are collecting and the often-critical benefits
that come from that data.”
Breakthrough 39
WTC – NAPLES 2018 ITALY
40 Breakthrough
that will be the longest railway
underground connection in the
world.
Even the great social program
we are working on – we are
sure – will leave participants
astonished and will be an
opportunity to experience the
beauties of Naples and its
surroundings.
Breakthrough 41
Aspiring tunnellers can get a head start on their peers by studying one of the
specialist undergraduate or postgraduate tunnelling degrees around the world.
Breakthrough spoke to five young tunnellers to ask them why they chose the
course they did and where it has taken them. Kristina Smith reports...
University, Canada. Paraskevopoulou had
Aiming high to inspire met Mark Diederichs, an eminent rock
engineering professor at Queen’s, during
the next generation a field trip in Greece, shared between
Dr Chrysothemis Paraskevopoulou students from NTUA and Queen’s.
Paraskevopoulou’s PhD looked at
n Lecturer (assistant professor) at the time-dependency of rocks and the
University of Leeds implications associated with tunnelling,
n MEng in Mining and Metallurgical working on a project for Canada’s
Engineering and MSc in Design and Nuclear Waste Management Organisation
Construction of underground works, (NWMO). Two of the five years were spent
National Technical University of doing laboratory testing at ETH, the
Athens (NTUA), Greece; PhD, Queen’s Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, in
University, Kingston, Canada Zurich.
“I travelled a lot during my PhD,” she
In February 2017, at the age of 29, Dr recalls. “Professor Diederichs gave me
Chrysothemis Paraskevopoulou was the opportunity to participate in lots of
appointed lecturer (assistant professor) If you are an engineer, events. If you have good social skills, or
at the University of Leeds in the UK, you have to love what you you are willing to develop them, you can
teaching BSc and MSc level courses establish a good network in our industry.
do. This isn’t a nine-to-five
in rock mechanics and tunnelling I feel lucky to have met in person all
engineering. The competition was stiff; job. Every day you put the the ’big’ names, these legends whose
she was pitted against people with more theory and background work you have read, studied and applied,
experience and higher qualifications. that you have learned and (emeritus) professors like Evert Hoek,
“I knew the chances of getting the job Charles Fairhurst, Richard Goodman,
were limited due to the competition, but I
studied into practice. That’s Nick Barton, Paul Marinos, Mark
believed in myself and I aimed high,” says what excites me about Diederichs.”
Paraskevopoulou. Looking back on her engineering. PhD in hand, Dr. Paraskevopoulou’s
path to Leeds, aiming high is a common next move was to look for a position in
theme. NTUA, a five-year professional degree Europe, either in academia or industry as
Paraskevopoulou was inspired to (MEng), Paraskevopoulou decided to she had worked for the public and private
become an engineer by her parents, who continue her postgraduate studies at the sector while studying at NTUA. Hence her
were both civil engineers. “If you are same university attending a two-year application to Leeds.
an engineer, you have to love what you Masters in Design and Construction As well as teaching at MSc and BSc
do,” she says. “This isn’t a nine-to-five of Underground Works. Her NTUA level, her role at Leeds includes running
job. Every day you put the theory and professors, many of whom have been a research laboratory, collaborating
background that you have learned and actively involved in Greek’s infrastructure internationally with other universities
studied into practice. That’s what excites and internationally the last quarter of a and organisations and carrying
me about engineering.” century, helped grow her enthusiasm for out consultancy at a national and
Living in Athens in Greece, she wanted engineering: international level.
to go to the National Technical University “If I had not been taught by such great “I now teach the course that I was
of Athens (NTUA). Competition for places minds and inspiring professors, I am not inspired by as a student, and I am
is very strong and most people have sure I would have followed this path of consulting too, the best of both worlds,”
additional tutoring, but Paraskevopoulou tunnelling and geomechanics,” she says. she says. “As my professors were a
wanted to test herself, refusing tutoring Hard-working as ever, she decided to personal inspiration for my career path,
and working hard to win a place. complete the two-year MSc in one year, I hope to become an inspiration to my
Having studied Mining Engineering at so that could pursue a PhD at Queen’s students.”
42 Breakthrough
New horizons in
Singapore
Russell Connors
Breakthrough 43
Tunnel love
began at 17
Daniela Herzig
44 Breakthrough
The best thing about my
job is that you get challenged
every day. I have to take
care of the excavation of
the dam and the advance of
the tunnels. Right now, in a
moment there were 10 or 15
tunnels advancing at the same
time. You have to be involved
in everything and always be
prepared to resolve things. I
like that.
Breakthrough 45
What I like best about
Thinking beyond my job is the variety of
engineering to make tasks, being able to work on
metros do more different projects. With Egis
Nicolas Ziv I have done so many things:
developed tools, worked on
n PhD Candidate at Egis
n Bacherlor’s degree, Classes
projects, worked with R&D
Preparatoires aux Grandes teams and participated in
Ecoles, Janson de Sailly ; MSc civil conferences.
engineering, Ecole special des Travaux
publics, du Batiment et de l’Industrie; communication skills are vital too, he
Cycle in International Management, says, to break down invisible barriers:
Ecole des Ponts Business School; often different parts of the same
Masters in transportation/mobility organisation never communicate with
management, Ecole Nationale des each other
Ponts Chausses; PhD civil engineering “In my view, tunnelling projects will get
at Universite Paris-Est more and more complex, although not
necessarily bigger and bigger,” he says.
Tunnelling engineers are often accused “With environmental constraints and
of being too focussed on their tunnels. many different uses, it will become more
They think about how to build them complex to design new infrastructure.
faster, cheaper, but forget to look above “You cannot design a complex system
ground to see how tunnels interact with with existing methods and tools, you
the cities and communities they serve. need new materials, new methods and
Nicolas Ziv certainly can’t be accused new ways to manage projects.” Part
of that. His extensive studies have of Ziv’s PhD is a new tool and method:
included a Masters in transportation software to help organise and manage
and urban planning and a Cycle in complex projects.
International Management (CIM) which While working for Egis, Ziv has had the
encompassed politics, economics, chance to test his ideas and tools on live
business, human resources and projects including metro lines in Medina,
marketing. Saudi Arabia, Line 16 in Paris and a
“In my day-to-day job, I need a general planned metro in Lyon. Prior to working
understanding of civil engineering, but Ziv has been working for Egis Rail at Egis, his studies included stints
I don’t need to go very deep into the since 2015 on a training-through- in Cape Town looking at stakeholder
field,” says Ziv, who is 27. “But I do need research contract (CIFRE). He is in the issues on a Bus Rapid Transit project,
the bigger picture - economy, politics, final stages of a PhD which has seen four months tunnelling in Turin and a
finance, urban planning – which is very him explore how tunnels can be used for transportation project in the historic city
useful in helping me understand how to more than one purpose, how projects are of Korçë in Albania.
integrate innovative concepts for cities.” becoming more and more complex and “What I like best about my job is the
how that complexity can be managed. variety of tasks, being able to work on
During an initial six-month internship different projects,” he says. “With Egis
at Egis, set up through links between the I have done so many things: developed
company and his engineering school, tools, worked on projects, worked
Ziv was asked to research how metro with R&D teams and participated in
tunnels could be built more cheaply. conferences.”
That work led to another question: how Ziv’s advice to would-be tunnelling
can we share the cost of building new engineers is to arm themselves with
tunnels by using them for other services an understanding that goes beyond
such as communications, utilities and the underground. “Don’t just study
transportation of goods? tunnelling and structural engineering,
Involving more parties means more have a broader view of what is tunnelling
complexity, so Ziv has also developed is and why we build tunnels. Are there
new methods and software to help possibilities other than tunnels to deliver
manage these complexities on large, those functions? Why are we building
multi-stakeholder projects. People and these tunnels?”
46 Breakthrough
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Breakthrough 47
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48 Breakthrough
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Breakthrough 49
The ITA Young Members’ Magazine
Issue 4 2018
Photo Competition
Winner Revealed
Sponsored by
Breakthrough 1
Conquering
Connecting Norway by rail: 5 Herrenknecht
Hard Rock TBMs are on the move for 45 km
of new first-class rail tubes at the New
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Ulrikentunnel and Follo Line projects.
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2 Breakthrough
Digital Edition Sponsor
Welcome to ‘Breakthrough’
Dear Tunnellers,
On behalf of the ITAYM Steering Board it is a great pleasure to present the fourth edition
of Breakthrough magazine, the official magazine of the International Tunnelling &
Underground Space Association’s Young Members group (ITAYM). Breakthrough is made
by, and for, people who work or have an interest in underground construction and aims
to highlight the great future of the industry and the tremendous career opportunities
available to young people in this field. In addition, we hope the magazine will help
enthusiastic tunnellers around the world to tell their stories and explain why the they are
so dedicated to, and excited by, working in this industry.
Tunnels and underground solutions are great! They solve real challenges for our society,
but you never see them. Tunnels and underground solutions help solve issues relating to
transportation, water supply, utilities, wastewater treatment, parking and many others.
However, they solve these challenges so effectively that people don’t even think about
them. With the world’s cities growing so rapidly, the need for efficient transportation and
infrastructure is ever-growing and underground solutions need to be utilized even more
efficiently. This combined with new travel methods, stricter requirements on travel times,
complex weather conditions and less restrictions in technology, etc. means that the
challenges for future tunnellers will be greater than ever and require solutions that might
not even exist today. I believe that the exchange of experiences and solutions across cities
and national borders is an essential part of developing and utilizing such solutions!
This issue of the magazine marks the 5th anniversary of the ITAYM being formally approved
by the ITA General Assembly at the World Tunnel Congress (WTC) in Iguazu Falls, Brazil.
Since that time, the ITAYM movement has spread to tunnelling societies all over the
world and we currently have more than thirty member nations that host domestic and
regional events, which allow young tunnellers to gather in formal and informal settings,
while sharing their activities through social media and connecting to other member
nations. More importantly than the events themselves, these initiatives generate a
common engagement in the tunnelling industry globally. This is mirrored in the increasing
involvement by young people in the ITA’s activities and a steady increase in young
participants at the WTCs.
This issue of Breakthrough and the recent WTC in Dubai also marks the end of an era, with
the last of the initial members of the ITAYM steering committee closing out their terms of
engagement. Over the last years, I have had the great pleasure of working with Jurij, Petr,
Lasse and Nichole, as well as new committee members, through Skype meetings across
several time zones, only meeting face to face one or two times a year. Skype meetings
at 23:00 on a Friday evening, and the sense of achievement we have had, has forged
friendships and connections that will last a lifetime.
As this is my last editorial for Breakthrough, I would also like to thank the Tunnelling
Journal team for their continuous support and help in generating this great magazine. It
would never exist without the great efforts of Amanda, Dan, Kris, Gary and Tris. Thank you!
Even though the ITAYM has been very successful in setting up this organization and is
now well-established as a group and within the ITA, the feeling of reunion at every WTC
young members social event and the young engineers’ thrill at feeling welcome and
Front Cover engaged at their first WTC is the greatest achievement of the ITAYM! These friendships and
The winning entry of international networks is exactly what the global tunnelling industry needs to be able to
Breakthrough’s 2017-2018 Photo accomplish the great challenges of the future!
Competition (see p22), which is
sponsored by Bekaert Maccaferri Keep tunnelling!
Underground Solutions. The
photo by Paul Challinor, a Project
Manager with Joseph Gallagher,
is titled “Reflection” and depicts
Paul’s former boss, mentor and
friend Dickie Dexter at the end of a
particularly challenging project. Sindre Log
Chair ITAYM (for the last time)
Breakthrough 3
Contributing to Breakthrough
If you would like to get involved in Breakthrough magazine
by contributing an article, or suggesting potential content
for future editions, we would be delighted to hear from you!
Please feel free to contact Breakthrough’s editorial team or
the ITAYM Young Members Committee (details below).
Editor
Amanda Foley
amanda@tunnellingjournal.com
Tel: +44 (0) 7973 158 065
Contributing Editor
Kristina Smith
kristinasmith.editorial@gmail.com
Tel: + 44 (0) 7833 230 853
Sales Manager
Daniel Lee-Billinghurst
daniel@tunnellingjournal.com
Tel: +44 (0) 7818 422 712
Art Editor
Mike Hooker
Technical Illustrator
Pete Beach
ITA-AITES Secretariat
c/o EPFL GC D 1 402 (Bât. GC)
Station 18 CH - 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland TGS Media Ltd. The Old Library, Webster House
Dudley Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN1 1LE United Kingdom
Tel: + 33 69 587 13 85 Fax: + 41 21 693 41 53 Tel: +44 (0) 1892 522585 www.tunnellingjournal.com
E-mail: itaym@ita-aites.org Website: www.ita-aites.org
Breakthrough is endorsed by the ITA The publishers, authors, associations, and groups mentioned cannot accept
liability for errors or omissions. All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced in any form without prior permission of the copyright holder,
application for which should be made to the publisher, TGS Media Ltd. ISSN
Breakthrough (Print) ISSN 2059-1241, Breakthrough (Online) ISSN 2059-125X.
4 Breakthrough
Digital Edition Sponsor
Breakthrough 5
MSc Tunnelling and
Underground Space
Do you want to gain specialist knowledge
setting you apart from other civil engineers?
Expand your career opportunities in a booming
global industry where suitably trained engineers
are in high demand.
6 Breakthrough
Contents...
Digital Edition Sponsor
32 Vietnam Adventure
Students Ola Hobbelstad and Egil Johansen travelled to a
remote Vietnamese tunnel project for their Masters theses.
38 Working Together
The mission of the ITA’s Working Groups is to capture, define
and share best practice for the industry.
42 5 from Five
We spoke to five tunnellers who attended five institutions
that offer specialist degrees to find out where they are now.
Breakthrough 7
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
8 Breakthrough
ATSym active at ATS 2017 Conference
celebrations. Russell is a Slurry Shield Machines in Mixed
Singapore-based Project Ground”.
Engineer who has worked on The ATSym are also proud
several technically challenging to announce that David Suter
and complex tunnel projects (VIC) and Aaron Lippett (NSW)
for John Holland across will join the team of young
Australia and Singapore (see professionals heading up the
p43). In 2013, Russell was ATSym. David and Aaron will join
awarded the Hulme Prize ATSym Chair, Keith Bannerman,
Award from the Tunnelling and and also Simon Brinkmann
Underground Construction (NSW) and Monique Quirk (QLD).
Society of Singapore To learn more about the
(TUCSS) for a paper titled ATSym get in touch via ATS@
“Breakthrough and Burial of engineersaustralia.org.au with
Tunnellers young and old came interest from senior tunnelling TBMs on the Brisbane Airport ATSym in the subject title. To
together on Sydney Harbour figures to encourage initiatives Link Project”. His winning keep abreast of international
to share a few stories, a few such as this. Thanks again to paper for 2017 is titled “The young member activities, visit
drinks and a great view, during Major Sponsor MST Global, and Challenges of Tunnelling with the ITAym facebook page.
the ATS 2017 conference, supporting sponsors Normet
and Pheonix. Without their Russel receives the Award from ATS
last November. The event’s
President Ed Taylor and EA GM Greg Ewing
tag line of “tunnelling across support events such as these
generations” reflects a key are not possible.
goal of the ATSym’s, namely In 2004, the Australasian
to engage with experts to Tunnelling Society started
encourage and mentor the next the David Sugden Award, to
generation of underground encourage young engineers
professionals. The strong to develop the art of technical
turnout of over 300 reflects the writing. The Award was
current strength of the industry presented to Russell Connors
down-under and the genuine as part of the ATS 2017
Breakthrough 9
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
ACTOS-NGT Gets
Established
After several years of receiving network to discuss professional
e-mails and enquires from development and experiences,
young engineers expressing both in Colombia and in other Currently, ACTOS-NGT
their interest in becoming parts of the world. With the members are focused on The ITA’s ITACUS Committee
part of ACTOS (the Colombian support of ACTOS, and several organising events to exchange Chair, Han Admiraal, joins
Association of Tunnels and other important associations, knowledge, experience and ACTOS-NGT for a panel
Underground Works), the government departments and technology among young discussion
ACTOS Board decided to entities, this group of future professionals, students and
create a Young Members group Colombian tunnelling talent experts. New ideas and concepts of underground
in 2017. Paola Castillo and has quickly begun to formalize activities flourish during construction in an economic,
Diana Diaz (see p34), were agreements and work each monthly meeting, social, environmental and
appointed Chair and Vice-Chair strategies. always guided by the vision of international context, to boost
respectively, and took up the To date, technical events making ACTOS-NGT that new decision-making capabilities in
responsibility of setting up and have been held monthly, with generation of engineers that both the evaluation of projects
leading the group. topics of national relevance in Colombia needs. Engineers and in their implementation.
Named ACTOS-NGT (New the field of underground space capable of addressing the To find out more about
Generation of Tunnellers), being discussed and analyzed, challenges of this new century; ACTOS-NGT connect with the
the group’s main objective creating and strengthening setting criteria for design group via Facebook at www.
is to reach out to young relationships between and construction in order to facebook.com/ACTOSCO/,
professionals and students students, young professionals, guarantee the sustainability twitter: https://twitter.com/
with an interest in becoming companies and government of projects; developing the actostuneles or LinkedIn:
involved in underground authorities in order to build a ability to understand and www.linkedin.com/company/
engineering, providing a stronger future for the industry. communicate the fundamental actoscolombia/
10 Breakthrough
How to set-up a Young Members group
Contact your Member Visit www.ita-aites.org to
Nation and ask if a check if your country is a
Young Members Group Member Nation of the ITA
already exists
YES NO
Join up!
NO Send an email to
secretariat@ita-aites.org
to see how your country
Work with officials to see if could become an ITA
it is possible to set one up Member Nation
SETTING UP A YM GROUP
1. 2. 3.
6. 5. 4.
Breakthrough 11
YM MEMBER NATION NEWS
Danish YM Group
importance of underground
space and an insight into
12 Breakthrough
Ramboll has contributed to approximately 60% of all the world’s immersed
tunnels including the 18km Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link, which is set to become
the world’s longest road and rail immersed tunnel. As lead consultant on
Fehmarnbelt since 2009, Ramboll is assisting with the tunnel’s concept design,
tender documents, approvals, and onshore works. The tunnel is a study in
innovative thinking, as it challenges existing tunnel building standards.
BREAKING
NEW GROUND
(IN TUNNEL
ENGINEERING)
WITH 13,000 ENGINEERS, DESIGNERS AND CONSULTANTS, WE CREATE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS WITHIN
BUILDINGS, TRANSPORT, PLANNING & URBAN DESIGN, WATER, ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH, ENERGY, OIL & GAS
AND MANAGEMENT CONSULTING.
Breakthrough 13
Tunnelling tomorrow:
Five trends
Change is coming fast to Mark Johnson, Global Practice Manager for Tunnel and Earth Engineering,
the tunnelling industry. Jacobs.
Having acquired CH2M in December 2017, Jacobs provides a full
That’s partly because the spectrum of services including scientific, technical, professional,
number of tunnels we are construction management and program management for business,
industrial, commercial, government and infrastructure sectors
building is increasing at
an unprecedented rate; Colin Lawrence, Global Tunnel Practice Leader, Mott MacDonald.
populations are migrating to Mott MacDonald is a large, global multi-disciplinary engineering,
infrastructure, management and international development consultant
cities and, somehow, we must with a tunnelling heritage that stretches back over 125 years.
find more space.
Tom Melbye, Senior Adviser, Normet, previously CEO for eight years.
There are other forces at work too. Lessons Describing itself as a ‘technology company’, Normet supplies chemicals
and information move faster through and equipment to the tunnelling and mining sectors.
social media and virtual networks. Digital
construction promises to streamline
processes and remove interfaces. Emerging Rob Muley, General Manager for Tunnelling, John Holland.
materials and technologies could allow Owned by China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), John
us to build more with less. We asked four Holland is one of Australia’s leading construction companies, operating
industry leaders what today’s technology in a wide variety of sectors in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.
could bring tomorrow. Here are a few of
their thoughts.
14 Breakthrough
2. Everyone pays
For Johnson, the biggest hurdle faced stations into its deals. stage or boycott it once opened.
by tomorrow’s tunnelling projects is Another way to share the cost of a Because PPP models mean that
affordability. “The biggest challenge is tunnel would be to share its uses, says designer and contractor work in parallel,
getting the money together in the first Lawrence, like the SMART tunnel in with input from the maintainers, the
place,” he says. “Projects and clients Kuala Lumpur which switches from theory is that they produce better
need to be as creative as possible in road tunnel to stormwater tunnel during pieces of infrastructure at a better cost.
finding sources of funding.” Monsoon season to avoid flooding in the However, they tend to be more expensive
Lawrence agrees: “There are many city’s central business district. Johnson – it always costs more for the private
contracts in the concept or design references the Great Istanbul Tunnel, sector to borrow when compared to the
stage that are just waiting for financing which crosses the Bosphorous strait with public sector.
to be built,” he says. “As populations its triple decks accommodating both road “The demands from society in terms
keep growing, the development of and rail. of what needs to be built need to be
infrastructure is critical but how much Public Private Partnership deals – balanced against what it costs to provide
financing can be provided realistically is shortened to PPP or 3P or P3, depending the infrastructure,” says Lawrence. “It
a real challenge.” where in the world you are – offer a good puts pressure on trying to make projects
Johnson cites the California Water Fix solution in some cases. Elizabeth River as cheap as possible and as useful as
programme, involving 40 miles (64km) of Tunnels in Virginia, a programme which possible.”
water tunnels, with an expected price tag included both new build and refurbished
of $15bn. “It has to be paid for by water tunnels, was delivered by this route,
rates and that involves pulling together a so too will be Melbourne Metro.
coalition of different agencies along the In a PPP, private sector funders,
route, which is a difficult job.” contractors and maintainers join
Look to London, says Johnson, where forces to finance and build a tunnel
authority Transport for London (TfL) and then operate it, taking tolls
is working with the private sector on from the users. One huge caveat is
over-station developments, factoring that there must be public support
improvements such as new entrances for this option to be viable – or they’ll
or step-free access for Underground de-rail the project at the planning
Breakthrough 15
4. Digital connection
Digital technology is already making big communication. Engineers can mine The next step is to get all the
improvements in underground design existing records such as surveys, borehole equipment to ‘talk’ to each other, says
and construction, although we are a long data and even Google maps to produce Melbye. “We could have the drilling
way from everything being seamlessly accurate pictures of the ground to be jumbos collecting data on the rock
connected. tunnelled through. Difficult details and as they drill, then passing that data
We can collect a huge amount of data, how they fit together can be rehearsed on the geology onto the spraying
everything from the pressure inside digitally before projects are on site. robot. Machines have to be able to
the cutting head of the machine to the Next steps will see BIM models calling communicate with each other. The
movement of the ground above it to the off deliveries automatically. Driven by the industry has to work together on this.
amount of metal that has been worn off need to reduce congestion and improve air If we pool our resources then the cost
a cutting tool. quality in city centres, deliveries will come burden is less. It will happen but we do
“We are getting better data out of the from specialist construction consolidation need to think differently.”
machine than ever before which allows centres sending products and materials to
us to analyse what is being done,” says site on electric vehicles.
Muley. “With live data coming off the Robots are already a tool for tunnelling.
machine, we can quickly analyse things Concrete spraying robots line tunnels
like the slowest point of a cycle, or we every day, drones record progress and
can spot signs that show a motor or take inspection footage. Contractor
bearing going. Data reduces failures.” Bouygues has a snake-like inspection
3D models, with information attached robot which looks at the cutter head; TBM
– sometimes called BIM (building manufacturers are working on robots that
information modelling) – are helping can change the tools on a cutter head so
with planning, visualisation and that humans don’t have to.
5. Elite teams
Increasing technological challenges, selling materials to a project. Instead it communication is missing,” says Melbye.
bigger and more complex projects, greater would take responsibility for the whole “We have to try to solve problems
risk, the need to engage new funders. All sprayed concrete lining, for instance, together, rather than waiting until the end
these aspects mean that we need the very perhaps charging on a cost per metre of a project to put in claims. When the
best people and companies to be working basis. lawyers get involved, you are not sure if
on our projects. One big question: are “Today I see too often the client on one the right people are winning.”
there enough great people to go round? side, the contractor on the other and Digital construction could play its part
Johnson thinks not. “Complex projects the consultant somewhere in between. here. Johnson remarks that current
require huge teams of people to do There are claims and problems because working and contractual practices don’t
preliminary engineering and produce fit well with BIM. A collaborative way of
tender documents. These go out to eight working, where those involved
or 10 contractors, who then go out to in supplying all the constituent
subcontractors and designers. Pretty parts of a tunnel feed into the
soon, we run out of firms who are capable design and model early would
of doing these very large projects.” work far better.
The answer, suggests Melbye, is to It is the next generation of
move away from the lowest-price-wins engineers coming up through
method of procurement. “Traditional the industry who will drive
procurement is very unlikely to be the this change. “The good news
cheapest and the best solution because about the increasing number
you are procuring on the wrong criteria: of tunnelling projects is that
how fast can you go from A to B. if you they are providing invaluable
have more performance-related criteria, experience to those working
then all parties take a part of the risk, and on them,” says Lawrence. “All
all parties have an interest in doing the that experience will come to
best job they can.” bear in the future. We have never
Melbye would like to see a situation seen that before on this scale
where a supplier like Normet wasn’t just around the world.”
16 Breakthrough
CONTRIBUTING TO
A SMART USE
OF SPACE
www.amberggroup.com
WE ARE AMBERG.
AMBERG ENGINEERING AMBERG LOGLAY AMBERG TECHNOLOGIES HAGERBACH TEST GALLERY
Breakthrough 17
Extreme Tunnelling
in the Himalayas
Missy Isaman, Project Engineer for The Robbins
Company, has traveled to Japan, China, Turkey,
and Germany through her work. But her most
intriguing travels have been to Nepal, where
an emerging economy is working to modernize
its infrastructure and heal from a massive
earthquake in 2015. Her work in Nepal for the
Bheri Babai Diversion Multipurpose Project
(BBDMP) represents the first-ever use of a TBM
in the country. A 5.06m diameter Robbins
Double Shield is boring the BBDMP--it is
currently 2.7km into its 12.2km bore.
18 Breakthrough
At the start of the Bheri Babai project, making process, project officials toured
back in 2016, I was lucky enough to be other jobsites around the world to get a
able to travel to the capitol city of Nepal, sense of what a tunneling project could
Kathmandu. Although the flight was very accomplish. These same officials made
long, getting to see a place like this is such the bold decision to choose a TBM despite
an amazing opportunity. My role in the widespread criticism in the government
project is to manage the design engineering over the decision.
portion of the project. This also involved While planning was underway, a final
attending project design meetings with the design review was held. In the end, in order
owner and the contractor (the Nepalese to best combat the extreme terrain, the
government being the owner). machine was equipped with a probe drill for
The Nepalese people couldn’t have been ground investigation and a stepped shield,
more welcoming. This project had been in to help navigate through possible squeezing
the planning stages for years. I could tell ground. For extra measures, we also added
that this was much more than just a job to ports in the forward shield for the possible
them. Being the first TBM in the country, addition of forepoling or hand drilling, and
this project was a major point of pride to radially spaced ports in the rear shield for
the team. The team hopes the success of lubricating the shield in squeezing ground.
this venture will prove to the public and the I could see in this meeting that they were
industry that TBMs are a very viable option The 5.06m diameter Robbins Double Shield excited about the progress and where this
over the drill and blast method. It will help would lead their country in the future.
to open the doors for the TBM industry in is to divert water from a larger river (Bheri This tunnel is a major way to revitalize the
Nepal. River) in one valley and divert some of economy.
The visit I took to Nepal was about a the flow to a starved river (Babai River) in I am so proud to be a part of a project
year after Nepal’s devastating earthquake, the next valley over. This will have a huge that will positively impact so many people.
measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale. impact on the agricultural production and A project of this magnitude has sparked the
There was a lot of trauma to the city even hydropower in this region. In order to do interest of the government, academics and
at this time. Many of the city’s historic this, the tunnel will have to go through a the public. The jobsite alone has already
monuments and architectural treasures mountain to bridge the valleys. This tunnel presented opportunities. Locals have set
were permanently damaged. Most of the design did not allow for additional adits or up tea and snack shops and restaurants to
city was in a state of repair. multiple excavation faces. A drill a blast accommodate the influx of workers in the
Because of the government’s recovering plan, for this project, would have taken an area. Tourism has also benefitted from this
economy, the project took much more time estimated 12 years to complete. venture. Since this jobsite is in a wildlife
and effort for the team to make happen. Our Robbins project team, including our preserve, it has become a stopping point
With their continued determination, the local office in Nepal and president Lok on tours through the area, giving everyone
planning, approval and procurement Home, had multiple meetings with the the opportunity to learn more about the
process ended up taking five years to reach Nepalese government, including the Project site and the great benefits that are being
fruition. The main reason that the owner Office to the Ministry of Water Resources, accomplished. I am lucky to be a part of a
and contractor opted for the TBM method the Ministry of Finance, and the Office of project that will change a region like this for
was the geology. The plan for this tunnel the Prime Minister. To help in the decision- the better.
Breakthrough 19
Moving Water to Aid Nepal’s Economy
is also seen as an opportunity
to prove the viability of the
method in the notoriously
The BBDMP is one of Nepal’s difficult Himalayan geology.
11 National Pride Projects-- The success of the BBDMP,
prioritized plans sanctioned a national pride project, is
by the Government of Nepal paramount for the country as
to further develop the mostly well as the TBM industry. It
rural country. This project is expected to help aide the
will irrigate 60,000 hectares food crisis in the mid-western
of land in the southern region region of Nepal by increasing
of Nepal, benefitting an agricultural yields and
estimated 30,000 households. invigorating socio-economic
It will divert 40 cubic meters Nepal Branch (COVEC Nepal requiring a TBM that can development in the region.
of water per second from Branch), represented by China withstand squeezing ground, Even though the project is only
Bheri River to Babai River Railway No.2 Engineering rock instability, possibly high about 20 percent complete
under a head of 150 m using Co., Ltd Chengtong Branch, is ingress of water and fault to date, the government is
a 15 m tall dam, providing responsible for the headrace zones. Maximum cover above planning more TBM projects.
year-round irrigation in the tunnel and prepared for the the tunnel is 820 m. More than 100 km of tunneling
surrounding Banke and Bardia challenges associated with The project owner, the planned are planned for Nepal
districts. The water will also tunneling in the tough geology Government of Nepal’s in the next five years, of which
be used for hydroelectricity, of the Siwalik Range, part Ministry of Irrigation (MOI), more than 50% is considered
with a generating capacity of of the Southern Himalayan has chosen a TBM over feasible for TBM excavation.
48 MW benefiting the country Mountains, with procurement the traditional method of Many projects that would
with NPR 2 billion (20 million of a custom-designed Double Drill &Blast due to the previously have recommended
USD) annually. Shield TBM. The Siwalik range faster mobilization and Drill & Blast only are now
Contractor China Overseas consists of mainly sandstone, rate of advance offered by considering TBMs as an
Engineering Group Co. Ltd. mudstone and conglomerate, mechanized mining. The TBM option.
20 Breakthrough
DSI Supplies Safety
Visit us at
WTC 2018
Dubai, UAE
www.dsi-tunneling.com
Breakthrough 21
NER
WIN
018
2
55
PHOTO COMPETITION
KOD E100SW
Breakthrough is delighted to announce the winner of its If you would like to take part in the 2018/19 Competition,
first annual photo competition! send us an eye-catching image that highlights tunnelling
or underground construction. If you’ve captured something
The prize went to Paul Challinor, a Project Manager with
inspiring, beautiful, fascinating, intriguing, amusing, or
UK specialist tunnelling subcontractor Joseph Gallagher
possibly all of these things, we want to see it! The winning
Limited, for his entry ‘Reflection’. “The man in the photo
photo will feature on the cover of the Spring 2019 edition,
is my former boss, mentor and friend Dickie Dexter,”
as well as Breakthrough’s Flickr site, social media and
said Paul. ‘The photo was taken when we handed over a
more – there will also be a prize from our sponsor Bekaert
completed tunnel. It was a hard project; the ground was
Maccaferri Underground Solutions.
bad, the price was tight and our relationship with the client
was occasionally strained. The project took a lot out of us The full list of entries are hosted on our Fickr page at:
and the picture shows a humbled man reflecting on all that www.flickr.com/people/breakthrough_magazine/
has gone on. We delivered the tunnel and were not beaten,
but we felt like we left a small part of ourselves behind.”
The judging panel loved both the photo and the story
54
22 Breakthrough
KOD E100SW
Teaching an old dog new tricks by George Stevens Grenland bridge and a sky full of stars by Anne-Line Ferstad
Breakthrough 23
KOD E100SW
55
24 Breakthrough
N orwegiaN T uNNelliNg S ocieTy
WG TUNNELP SEALING
. 27 ublicaTioN No
W. Giertsen Tunnel
18 AS Nygårdsviken 1, N-5165 Laksevåg-Bergen, Norway
www.giertsentunnel.no I tunnel@giertsen.no I +47 5594 3030
Breakthrough 25
A week in my life
Hannah Dix worked as a Cross Passage Saturday diversity sometimes offers
Tunnel Engineer on the Doha Metro Red communication challenges,
Saturday marks the beginning but with patience we have been
Line South Joint Venture (RSJV) project, of a new week on the Cross able to become better and have
with QDVC, in Qatar. She has experience Passage (CP) Excavation Team. all learned some new words.
working with traditional excavation This morning I woke up to my As the meeting continues it
routine 4:30am alarm, got appears that we have another
methods in cross-passages as well as final dressed in my site gear and busy day ahead of us.
lining. Hannah previously worked on the made my way to work, ready for I make sure to collect all the
the 6:00am hand over meeting. details about the excavation
Crossrail project, in London, UK; as well as These meetings are held at progress from the night shift as
an open-cut coal mine, in rural Australia. both 6am and 6pm with the day well as which Cross Passages
and night shift supervisors and (CPs) have shotcrete orders for
She is currently working on the West Gate engineers. These meetings are today. I then determine which
Tunnel Project in Melbourne, Australia, crucial for the smooth running CPs will require shotcrete for
with the CPBJH Joint Venture. of each shift as the handover tomorrow. As our meeting
team is updated about what progresses we are greeted by
activities have occurred over another bright pink sunrise
the previous shift, how much that forms a silhouette behind
progress was made and if we the site cranes, ready for
faced any challenges. another day.
We all prepare for the hand
over meeting by grabbing our
morning coffee and gathering Sunday
in the site office. As we all
listen to the updates from After the completion of this
the previous shift, I notice morning’s hand over meeting I
01
FUJI 5 how effective we have all write up the shotcrete requests
3 become at communicating. for tomorrow and send them
VP
FUJI R Between the 10 of us we through to the concrete
represent nationalities from batching plant. I then head
the Philippines, France, over to join this morning’s start
Spain, Chile, Romania, briefing with the site teams.
UK and Australia. Our Each morning we conduct a
safety meeting, followed by a
short informal fitness session,
FUJI RV
P
3
FUJI 50
1
3A
2A
Morning
2A
sunrise
Me inside
the tunnel.
2A
3A
26 Breakthrough
Construction site for
the new metro line
at Doha city centre.
Breakthrough 27
FUJI
RVP
FUJI
501
3A
3
P
I RV
FUJ
3A
3
2A
28 Breakthrough
Breakthrough 29
AWARDS 2018
November 5-7, 2018 | Chuzhou-Nanjing, China
30 Breakthrough
Dates Events
24-27 June 15-18 October
2018 North American Tunneling Conference Tunneling Fundamentals, Practice, and Innovations
Washington D.C., USA Annual Short Course
Event website: www.natconference.com/ Colorado School of Mines, Denver, USA
The UCA of SME’s NAT Conference is a premier biennial Event website: http://csmspace.com/events/
event. The four-day conference provides a programme tunneling/
focused on current tunnelling projects, challenges CSM’s annual short course for industry professionals
and successes in North America. A Young Members’ provides a comprehensive overview of tunnel planning,
networking event will take place in the evening on June 25. design and construction across all applications and all
types of geology.
13-14 September
29-31 October
Underground Excavation Symposium and Exhibition
Istanbul, Turkey 2018 Cutting Edge Conference
Event website: www.uyak.org.tr/ Atlanta, GA, USA
There are 11 metro projects currently ongoing in Istanbul Event website: http://ucaofsmecuttingedge.com/
alone. Organised by the Chamber of Mining Engineers of Organised by the UCA of SME and Tunnelling Journal,
Turkey and the Turkish Tunneling Society, this two-day Cutting Edge is an annual conference that hand picks
symposium will attract a large number of domestic and speakers to discuss the latest trends and developments
international attendees to discuss the growing demand for in tunnelling technology. The 2018 event also features a
underground infrastructure. dedicated young members session.
Breakthrough 31
Vietnam
Adventure
On February 17, two adventurous Ola Hobbelstad and Egil Johansen
Norwegian Civil Engineering students, Ola
and Egil, got a plane from Oslo to Vietnam
in order to conduct field surveys as a part of
their Masters theses. Arriving in the coastal A couple days later, we set our course
city of Da Nang, in central Vietnam, with towards the project site, which is located
temperatures in the mid-twenties, long six hours south-west of Da Nang, up in
beautiful beaches and cheap beer, was a the central highlands of Vietnam. The
stark contrast to the Norwegian mid-winter area itself is very beautiful, with its scenic input required for the models involved
with its freezing temperatures. Having nature and steep river-dug valleys and mapping completed sections of the tunnel,
travelled around the world to another hills all covered by vegetation. The tunnel in accordance with the rock fracture
country and continent, we had exploit the of interest was part of the Upper Kon Tum class system and the Q-Value, conducting
opportunity to check out the Da Nang area Hydroelectric Power Plant, which will have penetration tests with the TBM, and taking
for a couple of days before traveling out to 350MW of installed capacity and an annual core samples for Drilling Rate Index (DRI)
the project site. The ancient city of Hoi Ann, production of 1 TWh when completed. and Cutter Life Index (CLI) testing back
the Marble Caves and a massive statue About 10 kilometers of this tunnel is being at NTNU and at the SINTEF Foundation
of “Lady Buddha” were among the main excavated with a Tunnel Boring Machine for Scientific and Industrial Research,
attractions Da Nang had to offer, in addition (TBM), which was why the project was of which is also located in Trondheim. Ola’s
to relaxing on the beach. interest to us. The tunnelling is being done thesis focuses on rock support, mainly the
using a 4.5m diameter Main Beam TBM difference in rock support used between
from Robbins, who is also contracted to TBM bored and blasted tunnels – both when
operate the machine. it comes to measures to cope with unstable
The purpose of our stay in Vietnam was ground and the amount of rock support
to collect data for our Masters theses, needed to secure stability. Fieldwork
which have to be completed to graduate conducted for this purpose was geological
from the Norwegian University of Science mapping of a section of the TBM-excavated
and Technology (NTNU), which is located tunnel as well as mapping of the drill and
in Trondheim. Egil’s thesis is focused on blast excavated portal. While the theoretical
comparing actual TBM performance with framework for the thesis consists of both
estimations generated by the NTNU and the Q-System and the RMR-System of rock
the QTBM TBM prediction models. The mass classification.
32 Breakthrough
Working in a place like Vietnam is very Doing field studies as a student is highly building something, which is impossible
different to the highly regulated and safety- recommended if you get the opportunity. It to learn from a university course. As
focused construction industry in Norway. enlightens you to all the practical aspects tunneling is a highly practical form of work,
The project site itself has a permanent of construction, such as logistics, work you cannot get around spending extensive
population of chicken and hens, cattle, environment, communication, safety and periods of time in the field if you truly want
stray dogs and an occasional pig or two other issues that affect the process of to become an expert.
wandering around. The work inside the
tunnel is affected by the high temperature Further Reading
and humidity, giving us more of sauna
experiences in a week than an average n “Using the Q-System”, a handbook published by the Norwegian Geotechnical
Finnish person gets in a year! The work Institute (NGI), is available to download free at www.ngi.no
environment is also very different, with n A complete description of the RMR System is given in Bieniwaski’s book
workers coming from all over the world, “Engineering Rock Mass Classifications: A Complete Manual for Engineers and
and only a few able to speak fluent English Geologists in Mining, Civil and Petroleum Engineering”, published in 1989.
or communicate easily with one another. n One should also read the article “Use and Misuse of Rock Mass Classification
Another interesting sight was the large Systems with Particular Reference to the Q-System” by Palmstrøm and
number of locals engaged in shoveling the Broch, in Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, Volume 21, Issue 6,
tunnel floor of muck to allow the water to November 2006.
flow out.
Breakthrough 33
Extreme Tunnelling in
Colombia
La Linea tunnel Daza tunnel
Occidente Tunnel
The history of underground works in metamorphic rocks, in addition to the high Importance of tunnelling in Colombia
Colombia is older than one might imagine. rainfall rates that are observed. The 4th Generation Toll Road Concession
Tunnels for hydropower and irrigation, A great number of tunnelling projects Programme is one of the most ambitious
rail tunnels, urban drainage tunnels and are needed to successfully interconnect projects in the history of Colombia’s
road tunnels all currently exist. However, regions, to reduce the distance, time and infrastructure, consisting of 40 projects
when Colombia launched its ‘Infrastructure cost of transporting people and goods, as that will comprise 8,000km of toll
Master Plan 2015-2035’, in 2015, tunnel well as to reduce trade barriers. However, roads, including 159 tunnels with a total
engineering gained a much higher profile, due to the conditions mentioned above, investment of around US$18 billion.
due to the challenges that engineers will Colombian engineers, academics, national The 4G Program is expected to reduce
face to execute the plan. and international firms are facing tunnelling unemployment, creating more than 180,000
Following a decades-long gap in challenges, not only at the design phase but jobs. This is when young engineers must
infrastructure development, Colombia also during construction. The role of young enter the labour market, meeting the needs
will heavily invest in upgrading highway engineers will be crucial in the development of the country. Unfortunately, the number
infrastructure in a bid to develop the of such projects, which will contribute to a of tunnels in design and construction
country’s economy. Many reasons can brighter future for Colombia. phases is greater than the number of young
be listed for the infrastructure gap, but
regardless, it is important to note that in Longest Tunnels in Colombia
terms of geology and topographic formation
there is a predominant difference between Tunnel Name Function Year of Location Length (m)
the east and the west of the country. Completion
The former displays sparse mountainous Via Guateque Tunnel Road Tunnel 1966 Western ranges 1600
relief formed by ancient rock, while the
latter is characterized by imposing young El Boqueron Tunnel Road Tunnel 1999 Central range 2405
rocks of the Andean mountain ranges.
Buenavista Tunnel Road Tunnel 2002 Western ranges 4519
Colombia is the only country that hosts
three subdivisions of the Andes (western, Occidente Tunnel Road Tunnel 2005 Eastern ranges 4603
central and eastern), presenting great
Tunnel del Sumapaz Road Tunnel 2010 Eastern ranges 4200
differences between rock formations in
terms of age and petrographic type. This Toyo Tunnel Road Tunnel 2025 Expected Western ranges 9840
results in a varied and complex geology
La Linea Tunnel Road Tunnel 2019 Expected Central range 8600
encompassing igneous, sedimentary and
34 Breakthrough
ACTOS’s (the Colombian Association of Tunnels & Underground Space) New
Generation of Tunnellers (NGT) gather at one of their regular meetings
Helicoidal Tunnel
Breakthrough 35
Paola Castillo and Diana Diaz
transporters, represented by gasoline, sustainability during construction and
Cisneros-Loboguerrero Highway
equipment wear and time. operation, and in all stages of development
Unfortunately, the La Linea Tunnel and operation of tunnels.
Project has had contractual problems Again, ethics and good engineering
from the beginning in 2008. Since the last practices are of fundamental value and
contract, the project has been delayed should be promoted along with the
by two years and is currently expected sustainable development of tunnelling
to complete by the end of 2019. ACTOS- projects. Last, but not least, regarding
NGT Chair, Paola Castillo, supported the political situation of Colombia, poor
the arbitration of this project. The main management of resources is an evident
problems encountered are: contractor’s factor in inadequate development of
budget problems, unsuitable machinery civil infrastructure. The lack of political
or machinery in poor condition, and participation of civil engineers also
contractual disorganization. In addition to demonstrating good tunnelling knowledge, restrains our decision-making contributions
the geotechnical challenges encountered which integrates geotechnical, engineering both in evaluation of projects and during the
during construction such as rock bursts, geology, hydrogeology, tunnel design, implementation of them.
high overburden (over 830m), water structural design, traffic engineering, Governmental authorities need to clearly
ingress and rock squeezing, there ventilation, fire hazard control and other identify the benefits and risks of such
was also a problem in the rock mass disciplines relevant to the design and projects. They also need to put forward
classification, which led to cost overruns. construction of tunnels. regulations, policies and standards that
Notwithstanding, if the project cannot be In addition, the essential skills a good guarantee sustainable underground
completed, it will bring about 400 billion engineer must have includes teamwork, construction with very few environmental
COP of losses per year. and above all ethical behaviour both impacts.
personally and professionally. Therefore, This is the reason why the new
Prospects of Tunnelling in Colombia colleges and universities need to recognize generation of tunnellers need to strive to
The challenges faced by young civil the importance of identifying, developing, be able to achieve active participation in
engineers in Colombia consist of three main and providing opportunities that bring about political processes and it is supposed to be
pillars: i) sustainable construction, ii) QHSE adequate improvement in the competence the next challenge that must be approached
management, and iii) improve society’s of our engineering graduates. from different perspectives with key tools,
quality of life. The tunnel industry also plays an and this will contribute to the continuous
At this point, Colombia is calling for a important role in the future of Colombia. learning and the training of young civil
new generation of engineers capable of It is important to embrace concepts on engineers.
36 Breakthrough
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classroom instruction and hands-on labs
FUNDAMENTALS, and demonstrations. Learn key design and
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underground construction and tunneling. Upon successful completion of the course, 2.3 CEUs
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Breakthrough 37
Working Together
From figuring out how to re-use muck from tunnel excavations to mapping out the
new technology skills engineers need today, the mission of the ITA’s Working Groups
is to capture, define and share best practice. Kristina Smith reports.
A video of the very first Alstom train on a Commitment Groups. One is for people to be proposed
trial run through the new Metro Line 1, in There are usually around 13 or 14 working by their country’s tunnelling association.
Chennai, India, posted on LinkedIn earlier groups active at any one time. The ITA’s Another is to turn up and volunteer,
this year received opposing responses. ruling body, the Executive Council, although Vion and Working Group leaders
Some people offered congratulations on oversees and approves the creation of new note that they need ongoing commitment,
the progress made while others criticised groups. A recent addition was Working rather than one-off appearances at a
the untidiness of the site. Group 22, chaired by former ITA Young meeting.”
The video is a reminder of how hugely Members’ Chair, Jurij Karlovsek, from the All the Working Group ‘Animateurs’ say
working practices on tunnelling University of Queensland, which that they would welcome more involvement
projects around the world will look at information in from young tunnellers. “Listen, put your
vary, and that can be for a tunnelling. hand up, get involved,” says Brian Fulcher,
whole variety of reasons. Every group meets Principal Tunnel Engineer at McMillen
Some countries have at least once a year at Jacobs Associates, who chairs WG14 on
years of tunnelling the World Tunnelling Mechanical Tunnelling. “If young people
practice behind them, Congress (WTC), this year show up, we take a very special interest in
others are just starting in Dubai. Many of them that and there is often more dialogue and
out. Skills and resources have a second face-to-face excitement. Young ITA members are quick
Olivier Vion meeting somewhere else to get involved and make a difference.”
vary, as do politics and legal
frameworks. part-way through the year. The Rohde says that his research has been
There isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ number of people in the groups boosted by contributions from students
approach. But it is possible to transfer has been growing steadily, says at the Warsaw University of
knowledge and experiences gained from Vion, so whereas they used to Technology, Poland, led by
projects in one region to others. And that be between 10 and 25-strong, the Working Group’s tutor,
is what the International Tunnelling & there can now be up to 40 Professor Anna Sieminska-
Underground Space Association (ITA- people. Lewandowska.
AITES) aims to do through its Working The outputs from the Fulcher acknowledges
Groups. working groups are that it is difficult for
“The aim of the Working Groups is guidance documents that are people to persuade their
to go into a topic in depth and provide published on the ITA-AITES Brian Fulcher companies that they should
information on what is state-of-the-art,” website and presented at the have the time and budget to
explains Olivier Vion, ITA-AITES’ Executive WTC each year. The findings from attend events such as the WTC,
Director. “We produce guidelines the Groups also help inform some of particularly if they work for a contractor.
rather than standards, but they the training courses offered and He himself attends in his vacation,
are recognised and respected approved by the ITA-AITES. alongside his wife who is a tunnel design
around the world. We see One of the problems faced engineer.
them used in tenders or by all the Working Groups He urges young people to make a case
to help inform dispute is that they are all made to their employers for attendance: propose
resolution.” up of volunteers, and de-briefing sessions with peers after the
Some of the subjects often volunteers with very event, emphasise the values of technology
currently being explored by busy day jobs. “Trying to and information exchange, networking and
Working Groups include what Jan Rohde collect all the information is learning social skills. “Large, complex,
skills tunnelling engineers a time-consuming process,” jobs need people with these types of
and others require to work in an says Jan Rohde, a Senior skills,” says Fulcher. “Companies are
age of digital technology; a new form of Advisor at Sweco Norge, who heads up WG looking to employ their A-Team on these
contract which could revolutionise the 15 Environment. “People are enthusiastic jobs. Young people should take every
way risk is shared on tunnelling projects; at the meetings, but once they get back to opportunity they can if they want to get
and how we could make better use of the their normal work situation, they have to onto that A-Team by developing essential
muck excavated from new tunnels (see focus on other things.” skills beyond a solid base of technical
opposite). There are two routes into the Working knowledge.”
38 Breakthrough
Here’s a taster of some of the
new guidance we can expect soon
from ITA’s many Working Groups:
WG3, Contractual Practices is producing the WG5 Health & Safety is updating important
world’s first tunnelling-specific contract, guidance it published in partnership with
working with the International Federation of the British Tunnelling Society (BTS) relating
Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) whose contracts to high-pressure compressed air working.
are recognised and used globally. Tunnelling Working under high pressures involves the use
contracts often overrun on time and cost of non-air breathing mixtures and occasionally
because owners try to transfer all the risk onto the use of saturation exposure techniques
the contractors. along with transfers under pressure.
“For the first time, employers, contractors, “High-Pressure Compressed Air (HPCA) work
designers and engineers will have a clear- is a high-risk tunnelling activity which has
cut definition of a balanced allocation of developed rapidly over the past 10 years,”
the risk related to the sub-surface says Dr Donald Lamont, leader of WG5 and
conditions at their fingertips,” says a world expert on the subject. “The
Matthias Neuenschwander, of ITA/British Tunnelling Society
Neuenschwander Consulting guidance has been the only
Engineers, who heads up Working Groups internationally available
the Working Group. “This guidance on the topic
Research and has already been
will lead to cheaper
Contractual Practices used as the basis for
projects, better cost
Health & Safety enforcement by one
stability and less need
Maintenance & Repair national regulator.”
for disputes.”
Seismic Effects
Immersed & Floating Tunnels
Use of Sprayed Concrete
Information Modelling in Tunnelling
WG14 Mechanised Mechanized Tunnelling WG15 Environment
Tunnelling has set Underground Works & Environment is compiling case
up four sub-groups Long Tunnels at Great Depth studies of projects that
tasked with finding out Conventional Tunnelling have been able to use
Urban Problems, Underground Solutions
the latest information Lifetime Cycle Asset Management
the excavated muck that
about tunnels, related comes out of tunnels for
equipment technology, other purposes – rather than
new materials and training for it being dumped somewhere and
operators, engineers and managers. landscaped.
It is also working on joint projects with a
Working Group 15 Animateur, Jan Rohde,
number of other Working Groups.
has many examples from his own company’s
The skills of a tunnel engineer are definitely tunnelling projects and is seeking further case
changing, says Fulcher. “Shaft engineers and histories from elsewhere. “We are looking
heading engineers tend to be quite general, around the world to find out how people are
but the role now is very techy. There is lots of dealing with the opportunities and challenges
instrumentation and data collection, but some of using tunnel muck as a construction
of them have little idea about the data that they material,” he says.
are collecting and the often-critical benefits
that come from that data.”
Breakthrough 39
WTC – NAPLES 2018 ITALY
40 Breakthrough
that will be the longest railway
underground connection in the
world.
Even the great social program
we are working on – we are
sure – will leave participants
astonished and will be an
opportunity to experience the
beauties of Naples and its
surroundings.
Breakthrough 41
Aspiring tunnellers can get a head start on their peers by studying one of the
specialist undergraduate or postgraduate tunnelling degrees around the world.
Breakthrough spoke to five young tunnellers to ask them why they chose the
course they did and where it has taken them. Kristina Smith reports...
University, Canada. Paraskevopoulou had
Aiming high to inspire met Mark Diederichs, an eminent rock
engineering professor at Queen’s, during
the next generation a field trip in Greece, shared between
Dr Chrysothemis Paraskevopoulou students from NTUA and Queen’s.
Paraskevopoulou’s PhD looked at
n Lecturer (assistant professor) at the time-dependency of rocks and the
University of Leeds implications associated with tunnelling,
n MEng in Mining and Metallurgical working on a project for Canada’s
Engineering and MSc in Design and Nuclear Waste Management Organisation
Construction of underground works, (NWMO). Two of the five years were spent
National Technical University of doing laboratory testing at ETH, the
Athens (NTUA), Greece; PhD, Queen’s Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, in
University, Kingston, Canada Zurich.
“I travelled a lot during my PhD,” she
In February 2017, at the age of 29, Dr recalls. “Professor Diederichs gave me
Chrysothemis Paraskevopoulou was the opportunity to participate in lots of
appointed lecturer (assistant professor) If you are an engineer, events. If you have good social skills, or
at the University of Leeds in the UK, you have to love what you you are willing to develop them, you can
teaching BSc and MSc level courses establish a good network in our industry.
do. This isn’t a nine-to-five
in rock mechanics and tunnelling I feel lucky to have met in person all
engineering. The competition was stiff; job. Every day you put the the ’big’ names, these legends whose
she was pitted against people with more theory and background work you have read, studied and applied,
experience and higher qualifications. that you have learned and (emeritus) professors like Evert Hoek,
“I knew the chances of getting the job Charles Fairhurst, Richard Goodman,
were limited due to the competition, but I
studied into practice. That’s Nick Barton, Paul Marinos, Mark
believed in myself and I aimed high,” says what excites me about Diederichs.”
Paraskevopoulou. Looking back on her engineering. PhD in hand, Dr. Paraskevopoulou’s
path to Leeds, aiming high is a common next move was to look for a position in
theme. NTUA, a five-year professional degree Europe, either in academia or industry as
Paraskevopoulou was inspired to (MEng), Paraskevopoulou decided to she had worked for the public and private
become an engineer by her parents, who continue her postgraduate studies at the sector while studying at NTUA. Hence her
were both civil engineers. “If you are same university attending a two-year application to Leeds.
an engineer, you have to love what you Masters in Design and Construction As well as teaching at MSc and BSc
do,” she says. “This isn’t a nine-to-five of Underground Works. Her NTUA level, her role at Leeds includes running
job. Every day you put the theory and professors, many of whom have been a research laboratory, collaborating
background that you have learned and actively involved in Greek’s infrastructure internationally with other universities
studied into practice. That’s what excites and internationally the last quarter of a and organisations and carrying
me about engineering.” century, helped grow her enthusiasm for out consultancy at a national and
Living in Athens in Greece, she wanted engineering: international level.
to go to the National Technical University “If I had not been taught by such great “I now teach the course that I was
of Athens (NTUA). Competition for places minds and inspiring professors, I am not inspired by as a student, and I am
is very strong and most people have sure I would have followed this path of consulting too, the best of both worlds,”
additional tutoring, but Paraskevopoulou tunnelling and geomechanics,” she says. she says. “As my professors were a
wanted to test herself, refusing tutoring Hard-working as ever, she decided to personal inspiration for my career path,
and working hard to win a place. complete the two-year MSc in one year, I hope to become an inspiration to my
Having studied Mining Engineering at so that could pursue a PhD at Queen’s students.”
42 Breakthrough
New horizons in
Singapore
Russell Connors
Breakthrough 43
Tunnel love
began at 17
Daniela Herzig
44 Breakthrough
The best thing about my
job is that you get challenged
every day. I have to take
care of the excavation of
the dam and the advance of
the tunnels. Right now, in a
moment there were 10 or 15
tunnels advancing at the same
time. You have to be involved
in everything and always be
prepared to resolve things. I
like that.
Breakthrough 45
What I like best about
Thinking beyond my job is the variety of
engineering to make tasks, being able to work on
metros do more different projects. With Egis
Nicolas Ziv I have done so many things:
developed tools, worked on
n PhD Candidate at Egis
n Bacherlor’s degree, Classes
projects, worked with R&D
Preparatoires aux Grandes teams and participated in
Ecoles, Janson de Sailly ; MSc civil conferences.
engineering, Ecole special des Travaux
publics, du Batiment et de l’Industrie; communication skills are vital too, he
Cycle in International Management, says, to break down invisible barriers:
Ecole des Ponts Business School; often different parts of the same
Masters in transportation/mobility organisation never communicate with
management, Ecole Nationale des each other
Ponts Chausses; PhD civil engineering “In my view, tunnelling projects will get
at Universite Paris-Est more and more complex, although not
necessarily bigger and bigger,” he says.
Tunnelling engineers are often accused “With environmental constraints and
of being too focussed on their tunnels. many different uses, it will become more
They think about how to build them complex to design new infrastructure.
faster, cheaper, but forget to look above “You cannot design a complex system
ground to see how tunnels interact with with existing methods and tools, you
the cities and communities they serve. need new materials, new methods and
Nicolas Ziv certainly can’t be accused new ways to manage projects.” Part
of that. His extensive studies have of Ziv’s PhD is a new tool and method:
included a Masters in transportation software to help organise and manage
and urban planning and a Cycle in complex projects.
International Management (CIM) which While working for Egis, Ziv has had the
encompassed politics, economics, chance to test his ideas and tools on live
business, human resources and projects including metro lines in Medina,
marketing. Saudi Arabia, Line 16 in Paris and a
“In my day-to-day job, I need a general planned metro in Lyon. Prior to working
understanding of civil engineering, but Ziv has been working for Egis Rail at Egis, his studies included stints
I don’t need to go very deep into the since 2015 on a training-through- in Cape Town looking at stakeholder
field,” says Ziv, who is 27. “But I do need research contract (CIFRE). He is in the issues on a Bus Rapid Transit project,
the bigger picture - economy, politics, final stages of a PhD which has seen four months tunnelling in Turin and a
finance, urban planning – which is very him explore how tunnels can be used for transportation project in the historic city
useful in helping me understand how to more than one purpose, how projects are of Korçë in Albania.
integrate innovative concepts for cities.” becoming more and more complex and “What I like best about my job is the
how that complexity can be managed. variety of tasks, being able to work on
During an initial six-month internship different projects,” he says. “With Egis
at Egis, set up through links between the I have done so many things: developed
company and his engineering school, tools, worked on projects, worked
Ziv was asked to research how metro with R&D teams and participated in
tunnels could be built more cheaply. conferences.”
That work led to another question: how Ziv’s advice to would-be tunnelling
can we share the cost of building new engineers is to arm themselves with
tunnels by using them for other services an understanding that goes beyond
such as communications, utilities and the underground. “Don’t just study
transportation of goods? tunnelling and structural engineering,
Involving more parties means more have a broader view of what is tunnelling
complexity, so Ziv has also developed is and why we build tunnels. Are there
new methods and software to help possibilities other than tunnels to deliver
manage these complexities on large, those functions? Why are we building
multi-stakeholder projects. People and these tunnels?”
46 Breakthrough
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Breakthrough 47
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48 Breakthrough