New tunnelling company formed
2 September 2020Lyon-based BMS along with Peninsula Capital Management have announced the creation of NFM Engineering, a company which will specialise in tunnel engineering and related services.
NFM Engineering (NFME) is partly linked to the former TBM manufacturer NFM Technologies in that it includes numerous former NFM engineers. However, NFME did not acquire the former factory which would have enabled the manufacture of TBMs.
The NFM Engineering team will be organised into three areas of tunnelling expertise: engineering studies and onsite technical assistance; service and spare parts; and the supply of cutting tools.
Areas in which the team will advise clients in France and overseas include:
- TBM specification and feasibility studies?
- Refurbishment of second-hand TBMs and technical adaptations to new projects
- Compliance of equipment with codes and standards?
- Commercial interfacing in France and abroad?
- Providing assistance from experienced engineers and technicians onsite, from TBM assembly to dismantling, including site technical assistance and maintenance during TBM operation
- Spare parts and cutting tools?
- Site training?
- Project management
Partnered with two other France-based companies, BMS claims it can offer the full range of technical solutions for special foundations and underground works, including tunnelling, drilling, concrete pumping, spraying and injection.
BMS president Jean de Saint Julien said recently that he anticipates significant growth in new activity driven by projects such as Grands Paris Express, the Lyon-Turin Tunnel and the extensions to the Lyon and Toulouse metros.
