ABSTRACT

The company Herrenknecht GmbH has been designing, building and carrying out research and development programmes for tunnelling machines since 1977. The first machines were excavators and road-headers and these were followed by microtunnelling machines, Mixshields and TBM’s which are now being used all over the world.

The presentation will focus on the latest developments in the field of mechanised tunnelling. Mention will be made of surveying and guidance systems in the field of microtunnelling, vacuum erector, stone crusher, injection through the tailskin, seal, drive unit, semi-automatic operation for Mixshields, etc. Since the success on the jobsite Grauholz in Switzerland, the demand for data-recording systems has greatly increased for man-sized tunnels, too.

The future belongs to the semi- or fully automatic tunnelling machines. However, economical aspects will always have to be considered. In any case development will make work more humane.