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Search our list of case studies to get background information on past and present projects.
Search our list of case studies to get background information on past and present projects.
Shanxi Province, China
The Pinglu Tunnel, part of the Yellow River Water Diversion Project, was undertaken in 2006 by Joint Venture Sino-Austria Hydraulic Engineering Co. Ltd (SAHEC), led by Alpine Bau GmbH. At 24.5 km (15.8 mi), the Pinglu Tunnel marks one of the world’s longest single-drive TBM tunnels ever excavated.
Pahang and Selangor States, Malaysia
The Pahang Selangor Raw Water Tunnel, for the Malaysian Ministry of Energy, Green Technology, and Water, will convey raw water from the Semantan River in Pahang to the South Klang Valley area of Selangor state. The three tunnels, totaling 44.6 km (27.7 mi), will address projected water shortages due to the area’s rapidly growing population.
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Spanning 20 years and using over 30 TBMs, Chicago’s massive Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP) has been possibly the largest clean water project of the twentieth century. The TARP was created in 1975 to combat increased flooding and drainage problems that plagued Chicago and surrounding areas. After heavy rains, combined sewage overflows (CSOs) would seep into residential basements, nearby streams and rivers, as well as Lake Michigan – Chicago’s main source for drinking water. TARP was originally divided into two phases but now refers solely to Phase I.
Shanxi Province, China
The Yellow River Water Diversion Project is an ambitious network of tunnels that brings water to chronically dry areas of Shanxi Province. The water system consists of multiple tunnels totaling over 100 km (62 mi) in length, and using Double Shield TBMs to bore some of the longest tunnels excavated by a single TBM. Multiple world records achieved on the project still stand.
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
The Chattahoochee Sewer Tunnel is part of a project that meets increasing wastewater capacity needs in East Cobb County. Robbins provided one new and one rebuilt TBM for the tunnels, which ran through Atlanta's hard granitic rock.
Lesotho and South Africa
Phase 1A began construction in 1991, which involved building the 180 m high Katse Dam, as well as approximately 82 km of TBM-driven tunnels to provide water to South Africa's arid Gaucheng Province.
Chicago, Illinois, USA
The Little Calumet Leg Tunnel was the final element in Phase 1 of Chicago's long-running Tunnel and Reservoir Project (TARP). The project involved storm water storage, reservoirs, and feeder tunnels that have greatly improved water quality in Chicago-area Rivers. The Robbins Main Beam TBM broke multiple world records and achieved the best cutter wear for any Robbins project.
Sydney, Australia
The Sydney Urban Train System was extended with the addition of The Epping to Chatswood Rail Link. In 2002, two 7.2 m (23.6 ft) diameter Main Beam TBMs were built to bore parallel tunnels that curved through sandstone rock. Using an innovative conveyor and back-up system, the TBM achieved world records and lined the tunnel with a concrete invert.
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
The Boston Harbor Project included one of the largest wastewater treatment plants in the United States. The project required two undersea tunnels to carry wastewater to and from the new treatment plant.
English Channel (between England and France)
The Channel Tunnel, one of the world's most famous tunnels, is a 50 km (31 mi) tunnel under the English Channel linking Great Britain to France. This link consists of three parallel tunnels running for 39 km (24.2 mi) under the sea.
Fljótsdalur Valley, Iceland
The Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Project will create the Kárahnjúkar Power Plant to provide 4600 GWh of electricity annually to a nearby aluminum smelting plant. Three Robbins Main Beam TBMs endured bitter cold, water inflows and exceedingly hard rock to achieve multiple world records.
Lake Manapouri, New Zealand
The Manapouri Hydropower Station is the largest hydropower station in the country and supplies 5100 GWh of electricity annually. In 1997, the project owners, Electricity Corporation of New Zealand (ECNZ), proposed an expansion of the hydropower station from its then output of 585 MW.
Eastern Liaoning Province, China
The Dahuofang Water Tunnel is a large reservoir diversion project that will transport water from high rainfall areas to the dry, heavily industrialized Shenyang region of China. The total length of the tunnel is 85.3 km (53 mi) with over 60 km (37 mi) being driven by tunnel boring machines (TBM) -- one of the world's longest TBM-driven tunnels.
Mexico City, Mexico
The Mexico City Metro is one of the world’s largest, with over 200 km (125 mi) of rail and nearly 4 million daily passengers. The 25.4 km (15.8 mi) long route passes through 22 new stations between Tlahuac and Mixcoac neighborhoods. The 10.2 m (33.5 ft) EPB TBM used to bore the line was the largest to ever bore in Mexico.
Featured Projects | Queenston, Ontario, Canada
The Niagara Tunnel Project is an ambitious project to tunnel 10.4 km (6.5 mi) from the Sir Adam Beck Generating Complex to above Niagara Falls. A 14.4 m (47.5 ft) diameter Main Beam TBM, the largest hard rock TBM in the world, was assembled at the jobsite using Onsite First Time Assembly (OFTA) in less than 12 months.
New York City, New York, USA
New York City’s East Side Access Project involved construction of a new subway line needed to relieve heavy traffic congestion between the boroughs of Queens and Manhattan. The line will serve approximately 160,000 commuters daily between Grand Central and Sunnyside rail stations.
Olmos, Peru
The Olmos Trans-Andean tunnel has been more than 100 years in the making, with several attempts made in the 1950’s using drill and blast techniques. The tunnel, more than 20 km (12 mi) long in total, will transfer water from the Huancabamba River on the Eastern side of the Andes to drought-ridden areas on the Pacific Ocean Watershed via a tunnel bored through the continental divide.
Featured Projects | Queensland, Australia
The Grosvenor Mine, a greenfield coal operation, was the first to utilize TBM technology for mining tunnels in Queensland. Owner Anglo American opted for an 8 m (26 ft) diameter Robbins Dual Mode “Crossover” TBM.
Featured Projects | Ankara Province, Turkey
Driven through a mountainside with 600 m (1,968 ft) of cover in Central Turkey, the Kargi Kizilirmak Hydroelectric Project is one of the most challenging tunneling projects ever completed in the region. The extremely challenging ground conditions of this project made it necessary for the machine to be modified in-tunnel. The results of which largely contributed to the creation of the Crossover machines used today.
Featured Projects | Mexico City, Mexico
A Robbins Crossover (XRE) TBM was chosen to bore a 5.8 km (3.6 mi) tunnel as part of Mexico City’s wastewater management efforts, making it the first Crossover machine to bore in North America. The machine achieved two national records for TBM advance—one for excavating 57 m (187 ft) in one day and another for boring 702.2 m (2,303.8 ft) in one month.
Mumbai, India
The tunnel provides the city’s approximately 20.5 million residents with a reliable water supply, even during the seasonal monsoons that regularly contaminate Mumbai’s water resources. A Robbins Main Beam machine reached high rates of 870 m (2,855 ft) per month and 58 m (188 ft) per day, both records for TBM tunneling in India.
Featured Projects | Nepal
The Bheri Babai Diversion Multipurpose Project (BBDMP) is one of Nepal’s 11 National Pride Projects. These projects are prioritized plans sanctioned by the Government of Nepal to further develop the mostly rural country. The tunnel irrigates and provides hydroelectricity benefitting at least 30,000 households.
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