BabEng

Stickiness is the beginning of the end of the cutterhead! Too many cutterheads have already been damaged by sticking and the resulting wear. For this reason, the possibility of counteracting clogging by adding additives should be investigated, especially for slurry drives. Therefore last week, clogging tests were started for the ElbX project!
The 5.2 km long slurry drive with a diameter of 5 m will pass through Lauenburger Layers with Lauenburger Ton (clay) over a length of approx. 1,300 m. Due to the fine-grained nature of the clay, there is a higher clogging potential in this area. The term ‘clogging’ is used when the excavated soil adheres to the cutterhead, resulting in both a reduction in tunnelling performance and an increase in wear. In order to be able to assess the interaction of the cutterhead with this soil and the influence of various additives on the tendency to clog, modified slake durability tests were carried out on the construction site last week. 

Happy International Women's Day! Today, we celebrate the achievements and contributions of women worldwide. It's also a perfect moment to recognise the incredible women making a difference in the tunneling industry and within our teams! At BabEng and Tunnelsoft, we are proud to have a strong team of talented women in our company. However, we don't only talk the talk, we also walk it. 61% of our tunnel engineers are women and together, we're constructing a future in which the skills and passions of each individual are valued and encouraged.

First cutterhead intervention: Check!   Last week, we posted that the 5m diameter TBM “ELSA” had started her drive from the Schleswig-Holstein side for the TenneT TSO SuedLink project. This week we have had the first cutterhead inspection since starting the drive. Intention of this early cutterhead inspection is to ensure tunnelling with free openings the soil to flow through. Therefore PORR Deutschland and Wayss & Freytag Ingenieurbau AG JV cleaned the cutterhead just after leaving the start shaft.   The inspection was conducted under 2.4 bar hyperbaric pressure - an operation that always presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities. In the images below, you can see Tim Babendererde inspecting the cutterhead how it looks in the cutterhead and see a view from the working chamber. The Construction Management Team is always joining the hyperbaric interventions to have a clear impression of the soil and TBM behavior.

Excavation Start: Check! In the beginning of February, the 5m diameter TBM "ELSA" started successfully its drive from the Schleswig-Holstein side for the TenneT TSO SuedLink project. A milestone that marks the beginning of a 5200 meter long journey towards Lower Saxony! ELSA will navigate through changeable soil conditions at varying depths, touching up to 40 meters below the ground level, showcasing engineering excellence and literally “groundbreaking” achievements. Driven by PORR Deutschland and Wayss & Freytag Ingenieurbau AG, this visionary project is bringing added value to infrastructure and sustainable energy solutions. With our planning consortium partner WTM Engineers GmbH, BabEng is looking forward to sharing the exciting progress along the journey!

We are proud of our two colleagues, Christiane K. and Frieda Lange, for sharing their experiences and career paths at the first "BreakING" fireside evening of 2025! At BabEng, we are committed to supporting and empowering women in the tunneling industry. It’s inspiring to see knowledge, experience, and passion being passed on!

This one is a special one! Join us in welcoming Jan Babendererde as our new Mechanized Tunneling Specialist at BabEng! It's rare to find someone with Jan's extensive experience in the tunneling industry! This includes being Design Engineer and Field Service Manager at The James Robbins Company LLC, Senior Tunnel Engineer with Impregilo Healy, Aftermarket Manager with Herrenknecht AG USA, Tunnel Superintendent with Bilfinger Berger Civil and recently as a Tunnel Specialist with BASF. Jan brings a wealth of expertise that will undoubtedly contribute to the company. Welcome to the team, Jan!

Join us in welcoming Laura Escobar as our newest team member in our engineering team at BabEng! Laura is joining us as a site supervisor and will be located at the ElbX project in Glückstadt, where she will be helping with the supervision on site. Her skills and experience align perfectly with the demands of the role and we can't wait to see the difference she'll make!    Welcome to the team, Laura!

We celebrate 5 years of TPC Water Resources – a cooperation with HOFOR! If you are a water supplier managing the water resources for whole regions like HOFOR in Copenhagen, this is just the tool for you to deep dive into data from hundreds of manual and automated wells over many years – while keeping an overview. Next to some of our all-time favorites like the alarm, reporting and dashboard functions, we are proud to introduce an extensive tool set for the management of groundwater resources from the last historical well to the newest automated data logger. Collect, correct and process raw data into quality controlled water levels, organize your next measurement round and stay in touch with your precious resources. Who says good solutions cannot be easy?

2024 has been eventful and exciting for all of us. Thank you all for the good cooperations, experiences and new colleagues we got to welcome to BabEng & Tunnelsoft! We wish you, your family and all fellow tunnelers a happy and relaxing holiday season and a Happy New Year. Merry Christmas! See you all in 2025!

Another milestone achieved: 4.6 m EPB TBM, segmental lining, support pressures up to 3.7 bar, and 1180 m of tunneling completed under challenging conditions. The team has successfully reached the northern side of the Elbe! Thanks for the successful collaboration between Hamburger Energiewerke GmbH, WTM Engineers GmbH, ZETCON Ingenieure GmbH and Implenia. Also a special thank you to Julia Busch and Christiane K. from BabEng, who were in charge of the commendable planning and tunnel construction consultancy. Key lessons learned from this project: - Exceptional performance of EPB TBMs in Hamburg soil: Achievements of 20 m/day or 339 m/month were possible, and effective soil conditioning minimized wear and tear. - The team makes the difference: Success was only possible thanks to a forward-thinking client, a skilled TBM team, and outstanding construction supervision. Clear communication and consistent progress were the cornerstones of this achievement. - Planning is key: Effective planning and permitting need to be adaptable to changes without compromising standards, laying the groundwork for success. - Embracing technical innovations: Unfamiliar machine manufacturers or modified procedures can deliver results when approached with open, honest, and goal-oriented communication—even if some adjustments are needed along the way. At BabEng, we live by our motto: Tunneling solves every problem.