Collett & Sons and Fracht UK Projects have transported a disassembled tunnel boring machine (TBM) from Immingham docks to Goxhill in the UK.
The machine was manufactured in Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany and will be used to excavate a 5 km tunnel under the River Humber for National Grid's GBP100 million (USD140.37 million) replacement gas pipeline project.
Fracht was also responsible for the transport of the machine, which consisted of four components, from Germany to Immingham. The 30-tonne cutter head measured 4.8 m x 4.5 m x 4.5 m; the 70-tonne shield measured 4.5 m x 4.4 m x 4.5 m; the 95-tonne machine can measured 9.6 m x 4.4 m x 4.5 m; and the 20-tonne tail shield measured 3.8 m x 4.5 m x 4.6 m.
On the arrival of the vessel at the DFDS Immingham Terminal each of the four components was surveyed and inspected by Fracht UK before being loaded on to Collett's trailers for the 27 mile (43.5 km) journey to the project Site in Goxhill, north Lincolnshire.
Collett completed route surveys and several swept path analysis reports, using Ordnance Survey MasterMap data, which identified obstacles along the route, including required modifications to street furniture and bridge crossings, as well as sections where manual steering would be required to overcome numerous tight turns.
According to Collett, the final approach to the delivery site also required extensive modifications to allow the loaded vehicles to pass. Temporary road signs had been removed in preparation, any loose items had been cleared from the site, five separate areas of grass verge had been resurfaced, and the entrance to the site was widened.
Over three days all four cargoes were unloaded from the vessel and delivered to the project site.
