Exceptional transports continue for the Brenner Base Tunnel

Work continues for the South Tyrolean company GRUBER Logistics on the transport and assembly of Flavia and Virginia, the two tunnel boring machines that will be used for the excavation of the Brenner Base Tunnel connecting Austria and Italy.

This is a major project for the company, as the tunnel is destined to become the longest underground railway connection in the world, with significant benefits for mobility and logistics in the surrounding area.

The exceptional transport of the machine components already began in recent months and has required the joint effort of several branches and departments of the GRUBER Logistics group due to their massive weight and dimensions.

In fact, there are about 160 transports for each machine, for a total of 2,887 tons transported. For the heaviest packages, the journey began at the manufacturer’s plant in Schwanau (Baden-Württemberg), continuing with a first river leg from Kehl to Antwerp, a second by sea to Marghera, and finally reaching its destination at the Mules construction site by land.

Once arrived at the construction site in Mules, the transport of the various components into the tunnel for assembly began.

To date, GRUBER Logistics has carried out the transfer of around 20 components for each boring machine, and work will continue uninterrupted until the end of March.

The transfer inside the tunnel of the main bearing, the hydraulic component that will allow the cutterhead of the TBM to move and excavate the rock, was completed last week.

This component, measuring 7090x6850x2600 mm and weighing 146 tons, is so far the heaviest part transported. The transport and assembly of the identical bearing belonging to the second twin machine will be completed in the coming weeks.

Only when all the components have been transported into the tunnel and properly assembled will the TBMs be able to start excavating.