Asia - Page 1
Stay up to date with the latest Asia updates from the global tunnels industryLatest Asia Update
Chennai challenge Can India’s coastal city get its subway on track to deal with ageing infrastructure and a rapidly expanding population Robbins technical writer Desiree Willis investigates.
Tale of two tunnels Engineers from Ayesa take a look at the detailed design for construction of NATM tunnels on the Ovulavaripalle to Venkatachalam railway line in Andhra Pradesh, India.
Tread softly In the wake of devastating floods in northern India last June, environmentalists have accused hydropower infrasturcture of causing a man-made disaster. Mahendra Bisaria, of Gammon Infrastructure, defends the use of hydropower by exploring the region’s geology and the development process for such projects.
India Inventory Janssen Pharmaceutical has announced that rapid initiation with its HIV drug Symtuza led to undetectable viral load in a high proportion of subjects in the Phase III DIAMOND clinical trial.
Opportunity rocks Hong Kong develops into the main base of operations for the Asia Pacific, while Singapore strives to become to hottest destination for professionals, and both scrap for skilled labour. Alex Conacher speaks to three expats
Fifty shades of brown Slurry handling on Singapore’s Downtown Line Two contract 916 has been cited as an example of ‘slurry done right’. This paper by Gwyn Jones, deputy construction manager and tunnel manager for McConnell Dowell discusses the principles of managing slurry during tunnelling operation with particular reference to tunnelling in mixed face
Robust ground improvement Innovations on Singapore’s Marina Coastal Expressway have enabled faster, more cost-effective construction while meeting the state’s famously tough safety requirements. Andrew Mylius, technical writer for Mott MacDonald, released this report
High pressure sea crossing A slurry TBM is cutting through the sands deep under Zhanjiang Bay, China, to provide a crucial water link to and island steelworks. A tight schedule and a 42m head of water are upping the pressure on the project. Tunnels editor Jon Young visits the site
Traditional shields Japan-based Hitachi Zosen has been manufacturing TBMs since 1967. Yasuharu Hanaoka of the manufacturer’s industrial machinery business unit notes the decline in the open, semi mechanized shields that the company did brisk business within previous decades, as closed EPBMs and slurry machines have come to prominence. He explores the technology, and gives a recent example of a ‘traditional method’ shield in operation
Two worlds of tunnelling The Middle East stays strong on tunnelling for its new dream cities, while a belt of hydropower projects buoys the African market. Alex Conacher reports
Delhi digs With a metropolitan population of over 16 million, a failed foray into privatised bus services and cars choking up one of the densest road networks in India, need for a metro has never been more pronounced. Alex Conacher interviews designer Mohan Gupta and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation spokesman Anuj Dayal to get the jewel of India’s infrastructure crown into perspective
Finishing India’s longest Following tunnel excavation breakthrough last September, and the final blast in April this year, work is continuing on the long and notoriously difficult Panjal railway tunnel in India to complete support lining including some necessary ground reinforcement work. Maurice Jones reports on the latest progress
From point A to point B One of the most significant challenges of some projects starts long before the first bucket of earth has been shovelled. Hauling hundreds of tonnes of TBM components to a remote jobsite can make or break a project. Robbins technical writer Desiree Willis reports
Uncovering India The enormity of tunnelling work planned and under way throughout India is incredible. This rapidly developing nation is drawing on the resources of the international tunnelling comminity to build the infrastructure needed to sustain growth. Alex Conacher gives this snap shot of just some of the works
India faces metro challenge With a metro project in every major city, save Hyderabad, for now, India’s furious investment in infrastructure is just the beginning as its still largely rural population urbanises. However, difficulty securing construction permits is not the only damper on Indian tunnelling. Alex Conacher reports
Many ideas make light work cheaply The lighting industry as a whole, including small specialist sectors such as tunnels, has been undergoing great changes in the last decade. Changes in light source technology, more product suppliers, low energy and maintenance requirements, and even the design of longer and wider tunnels are the leading factors in a sometimes confusing array of procurement considerations. Maurice Jones tries to unravel some of the major trends
Rock cavern design on the West Island Line In 2011 two new underground stations on the West Island Line were under construction beneath dense urban areas. Only one MTR station rock cavern, Taikoo, had been constructed before, and in a much less challenging area. This paper by Eric Chui and Paul Lee of Atkins China, and Robert Mackean of Geo-Design Consulting Engineers, presents in outline the design concepts for Sai Ying Pun and Hong Kong University station caverns with site constraints, ground conditions and concept selection
Precast in practice Water shortages, rogue quarries and supply constraints are tackled at the Peenya precast plant in India. Alex Conacher speaks with Yogini Vimalanathan of Mott MacDonald and Russell Brown of CEC
Basic tunnelling still a viable method Al Tenbusch of small-bore tunnelling equipment manufacturer and supplier Tenbusch of Lewisville, Texas, describes the two main methods of hand mining and essential considerations
