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Press Release
HERRENKNECHT
Variable Density Technology:
Game Changer for Kuala Lumpur
August 13, 2015
Kuala Lumpur / Schwanau
Kuala Lumpur's karst soil riddled with fissures and crevices is a real challenge
for tunnel builders. Herrenknecht, the global market leader in mechanized
tunnelling technology, developed for Klang Valley MRT Project in Malaysia´s
capital in collaboration with MMC-Gamuda Joint Venture a new type of
machine. The Variable Density tunnel boring machine can be operated in four
different tunnelling modes and thus perfectly adapted to the different
conditions. After nearly two years of tunnelling, in mid-April 11.4 kilometers of
tunnel were completed and the new technology had proven itself. A major
breakthrough for Kuala Lumpur’s Metro and for mechanized tunnelling in
difficult soft ground.
_________________ The seven million inhabitant metropolis of Kuala Lumpur has a
huge traffic problem. At peak hours citizens and visitors in the Malaysian capital
stand in traffic jams for hours. To provide relief, the public transport system is being
expanded. Under the name of Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Project three
new metro lines are planned with sections above and below ground.
Construction of the metro began with the 51 kilometer long Sungai Buloh-Kajang
Line. It extends from Sungai Buloh in the north to Kajang in the south of Kuala
Lumpur. While the majority of the route is above ground, the city center is crossed
under with a tunnel of 9.5 kilometers in the form of two single-track tunnels.
A special challenge in their construction is the very heterogeneous geology, in
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particular a karst limestone formation with caverns connected by a network of
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crevices and fissures. For tunnelling, in combination with a high level of groundwater 77963 Schwanau
it forms a highly diverse subsoil. The liquid support medium used ahead of the
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machine in heterogeneous ground is easily lost through the cracks. Subsidences can Tel. +49 7824 302-5400
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occur as a result.
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For the construction of the section, Herrenknecht with engineers from MMC-Gamuda
Joint Venture therefore developed a new type of machine in Schwanau, the Variable
Density tunnel boring machine (TBM). It is a further development of the multi-mode
TBM, which combines the advantages of the earth pressure balance (EPB) and
slurry-supported (Mixshield) modes. To prevent the loss or leaking of bentonite the
density of the support medium can be increased. The machine thus offers four
different tunnelling modes (see Machine data for an overview) - a world first in
mechanized tunnelling.
Herrenknecht supplied a total of six Variable Density TBMs and two EPB TBMs for
the project. The innovation claimed international fame when it was awarded
Technical Innovation of the Year Award in 2014 by International Tunneling and
Underground Space Awards in London.
A world first creates facts
On April 21 the client Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp)
celebrated the completion of tunnelling for the first line. Star of the event was the
Herrenknecht tunnel boring machine S-774 (Ø 6.62 m). The world's first Variable
Density TBM was launched in May 2013 in the presence of Malaysian Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Ahead of her lay a one kilometer long section through
extremely karstified Kuala Lumpur limestone.
The machine started the advance in the usual slurry mode, and then switched to the
new mode with a denser support fluid after the first 100 meters. In this mode it
mastered the planned tunnel section from the launch shaft at Cochrane to the Pasar
Rakyat station with flying colors. Because of difficulties sinking the shaft the Variable
Density TBM planned for the following section could not be used. Instead S-774
continued on past its target station and took over the next section. Over the course
of the longest partial section, more than three kilometers in length, the machine
moved out of the limestone area and into the Kenny Hill Formation. From here it
bored its way through the Bukit Bintang station to the Pudu shaft in EPB mode.
There it continued tunnelling instead of the planned EPB machine, crossed through
the Merdeka station and finally reached the Pasar Seni station on April 11.
In total the machine drove 4.4 kilometers of tunnel through greatly varying geologies.
With the four available tunnelling modes, optimal adaptation to the prevailing
conditions was possible at all times. Herrenknecht AG
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77963 Schwanau
"This is truly a milestone for the MRT project, our engineers have completed the
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tunnelling work successfully and smoothly. At the same time the use of a new
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technology has proved itself – the Variable Density tunnel boring machine," said [email protected]
MRT Corp Chief Executive Officer Dato´ Sri Shahril Mokhtar.
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Universal solution for soft ground tunnelling of all kinds
There are three types of ground conditions in Kuala Lumpur, hard granite rock, a
softer mixed geology known as Kenny Hill Formation, and limestone areas. The new
metro line runs through the last two.
The business partners Herrenknecht and MMC Gamuda KVMRT already had
extensive experience of the ground conditions from their cooperation for the SMART
tunnel. The combination of stormwater and road tunnel was excavated from 2004 to
2007 with two large Herrenknecht Mixshields. The drive was very successful, but the
geology revealed its pitfalls. 90% of the SMART tunnel route ran through karstified
Kuala Lumpur limestone with a high level of groundwater. Fissures and crevices
sometimes resulted in suspension leaks on the surface and losses into the ground.
What had been acceptable on that particular route had to be avoided this time in the
densely built-up inner city. To solve the dilemma the idea of a denser supporting
suspension was developed, whose reduced penetration depth and capillary rise in
comparison to the previous suspensions could prevent uncontrolled losses.
Together with the joint venture building contractor MMC Gamuda KVMRT,
Herrenknecht developed a game changer for soft ground for the project. Depending
on the ground conditions, the new Variable Density TBM can be operated in either
slurry-supported (Mixshield method) or earth pressure balance-supported (EPB)
mode. The change from one mode to the other takes place smoothly while fully
maintaining secure face support control, major modifications are not needed during
the switch.
In all modes the excavated material is removed from the pressurized excavation
chamber by a screw conveyor. In EPB mode the screw conveyor speed and the
advance rate control the face support pressure. The screw conveyor drops the
excavated material onto a belt conveyor. In slurry mode the face support pressure is
automatically controlled by an air cushion. Communicating pipes connect the front
part of the excavation chamber, the pressure chamber, with the rear part, the
working chamber. For the hydraulic slurry circuit a slurryfier box is used at the end of
the screw conveyor.
In addition, in slurry mode it is possible to vary the density of the support medium in Herrenknecht AG
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the excavation chamber. In cooperation with the Ruhr University Bochum,
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Herrenknecht AG developed a mixture thickened with limestone dust. The choice
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between the more fluid LDSM (Low Density Support Medium) and the denser HDSM
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(High Density Support Medium) considerably increases the areas where variable [email protected]
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HERRENKNECHT . Press Release Page 4/8
density can be used. The high density mode closes the gap between Mixshield and
earth pressure balance operation.
"With the experience from KVMRT and with Herrenknecht's expertise, with the new
Variable Density technology we have opened a door that will allow us to tackle even
more difficult geologies. The Variable Density TBM concept can be used not only in
extreme karst, but also in other soils where only a few years ago mechanized
tunnelling was still unthinkable," Dr. Ing. E. h. Martin Herrenknecht, founder and
Chairman of the Board of Management of Herrenknecht AG, is certain.
Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Project
With the breakthrough of the Herrenknecht tunnel boring machine S-774 the
tunnelling work is completed and an important milestone for the project has been
reached. At the same time a world first in mechanized tunnelling has proven itself.
Altogether Herrenknecht AG has supplied six Variable Density and two EPB
machines for the KVMRT project. Herrenknecht Formwork supplied 160 moulds to
produce a total of 100,000 concrete segments. Herrenknecht Group companies also
supplied belt conveyor machines (H+E), navigation systems (VMT) as well as Multi
Service Vehicles (TechniMetal).
The "Blue Line" Sungai Buloh-Kajang is the first of three planned lines of the Klang
Valley Mass Rapid Transit (KVMRT) project in Kuala Lumpur. It connects 31 stations
over 51 kilometers. In February 2015 the government decided to build the second
line, MRT Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya. In July the MMC-Gamuda KVMRT joint
venture has been assigned to carry out the project. The variable density technology
has provided its own best recommendation and will be used again.
You can get a deeper insight in our jobsite feature
in the first edition of the All Around Online magazine
› http://allaround.herrenknecht.com/en/issue-1.html
Herrenknecht AG
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77963 Schwanau
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[email protected]
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Breakthrough for Kuala Lumpur – game changer for difficult soft ground
MACHINE DATA
Machine type: 6 x Variable Density Multi-Mode (VDMM) TBMs
› Diameter: 6,620 mm
› Cutterhead power: 1,280 kW
› Torque: 4,239 kNm
› 4 tunnelling modes:
Mode 1: EPB closed
Mode 2: EPB closed with additional bentonite support
Mode 3: Mixshield mode with LDSM (Low Density Support Medium)
Mode 4: Mixshield mode with HDSM (High Density Support Medium)
Machine type: 2 x Earth Pressure Balance Shields (EPB)
› Diameter: 6,620 mm
› Cutterhead power: 1,280 kW
› Torque: 4,239 kNm
PROJECT DATA
Application: Metro
Tunnelling length: 11,400 m
Geology: Kenny Hill Formation & Kuala Lumpur karstified limestone
Client: Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp)
Customer: MMC Gamuda KVMRT Sdn Bhd
THE HERRENKNECHT MACHINES IN DETAIL
S-774: VDMM, Cochrane Station – Pasar Seni Station, with a change from Mixshield to EPB mode
S-775: VDMM, Inai Shaft – Pudu Shaft, with a change from Mixshield to EPB mode
S-776: VDMM, Cochrane Station – Pasar Rakyat Station in Mixshield mode (LDSM – HDSM)
S-777: VDMM, intermediate storage
S-778: VDMM, Cochrane Station – South Portal Maluri, Mixshield mode (LDSM – HDSM)
S-779: VDMM, Cochrane Station – South Portal Maluri, Mixshield mode (LDSM – HDSM)
S-796: EPB, Pudu Shaft – Pasar Seni Station
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S-797: EPB, intermediate storage Schlehenweg 2
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Breakthrough for Kuala Lumpur – game changer for difficult soft ground
Photo 1: Plant assembly of the world's first
Variable Density tunnel boring machines (TBMs)
at Herrenknecht in Schwanau. They can be
operated as an earth pressure balance shield and
as a Mixshield. The variation of the density and
hence the viscosity of the bentonite provides
additional adaptability to tunnel face conditions.
Photo 2: The Herrenknecht TBM S-774 during
assembly in the Cochrane launch shaft. From
here it excavated a total of 4.4 km of tunnel right
through the center of Kuala Lumpur. Half of that
through karstified limestone as a Mixshield with
variable adaptation of the suspension density.
For the second part through the softer mixed
geology of the Kenny Hill Formation the machine
was switched to EPB mode.
Photo 3: Breakthrough of the Herrenknecht TBM
S-776 into the Passar Rakyat station on January
9, 2014. The sister machine S-774 continued
through the station and excavated a second and
third section. On their way the machines crossed
under the SMART tunnel built by two
Herrenknecht Mixshields nearly ten years
previously. The experience gained at that time
was incorporated into the development of the
Variable Density TBM.
Photo 4: An innovation celebrates its
breakthrough: with the arrival of the Herrenknecht
Variable Density S-774 on April 11, 2015 all
tunnelling work for Kuala Lumpur's first metro has
been completed. At the same time an innovative
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technology has created facts and demonstrated
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new possibilities in mechanized tunnelling. 77963 Schwanau
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HERRENKNECHT . Press Release Page 7/8
Tunnelling modes chart
The new Variable Density TBM combines the
advantages of EPB and Mixshields. In addition,
the density of the support medium can be varied.
Four different tunnelling modes provide maximum
adaptability to the prevailing conditions in difficult
soft ground.
Machine employment chart
The world's first Variable Density TBM, S-774,
drove In total 4.4 kilometers of tunnel through
greatly varying geologies. With the four available
tunnelling modes, optimal adaptation to the
prevailing conditions was possible at all times.
You can get a deeper insight in our jobsite feature
in the first edition of the All Around Online magazine
› http://allaround.herrenknecht.com/en/issue-1.html
Herrenknecht AG
Schlehenweg 2
77963 Schwanau
Corporate Communications
Tel. +49 7824 302-5400
[email protected]
www.herrenknecht.com
HERRENKNECHT . Press Release Page 8/8
For further information:
Please contact us.
Herrenknecht AG
Herrenknecht is the only company worldwide to deliver tunnel boring machines for all
geologies and in all diameters – ranging from 0.10 to 19 meters. The product range
comprises tailor-made machines for traffic, supply and disposal tunnels as well as
additional equipment and service packages. Herrenknecht also manufactures drilling
rigs for vertical and inclined shafts as well as deep drilling rigs.
In 2014 the Herrenknecht Group achieved total revenue of 1.082 billion euros. The
Herrenknecht Group employs around 5,000 people worldwide, including nearly 200
trainees (as of March 2015). With 80 domestic and overseas subsidiaries and
associated companies working in related fields, Herrenknecht provides
comprehensive services close to each project and customer.
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Your contact:
Achim Kühn
Head of Corporate Communications, Branding and Public Affairs
Phone +49 (0)7824 302 -5400
Fax +49 (0)7824 302-4730
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Herrenknecht AG
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77963 Schwanau
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