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2001

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T H Y S S E N S C H A C H T B A U G R O U P

Report 2001

CONTENT

I M P R I N T

IMPR

INTPublisher:

Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH,Ruhrstraße 145468 Mülheim an der RuhrTel. +49 (0) 2 08 30 02-0Fax +49 (0) 2 08 30 02-327email:[email protected]

Editor:Redaktions-Service Benk,Manfred König

Assistance:Eva Löwe

Translation:KeyCom KonferenzdolmetschenChrista GzilKarin Bettin

Layout:Iris Huber, www.denkbetrieb.deLithos:SRT, Holzwickede

Photos:Karsten BootmannA. DertnigDSK AGHaslam GreenAndreas KühnReiner LorenzEddy MaplesWolfgang NiesenKlaus SannemannStudio SchauerSkycam Aerial PhotographySTARKE Druck- & Werbeerzeugnisse

L.WeissMitarbeiter Thyssen SchachtbauArchiv TSArchive TS-Beteiligungsges.

Production:color-offset-wälter GmbH & Co. KG, Dortmundwww.color-offset-waelter.de

All rights are reserved.Copyright by Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH

MINING GERMANY

1 Situation update

TS Mining4 Roadheader drivage with the

combi-support system

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling7 With fresh ventilation into the future

10 New shaft extension reaches depth of 1,700 metres

TS Mining13 20,000 metres of drivage to develop

new coal reserves

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling18 A Hole with high Significance

TS Mining22 New coal panel is a turn-key project26 Review of TS operations at Lohberg colliery

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling28 130 years of shaft construction –

with more than 180,000 metres of shaft sunk

TS Mining30 Job done! A new colliery is created

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling32 End of an era – shaft infilling at

Westfalen colliery

Central Services · Work Safety36 Work safety in operation

Our actions reflect our responsibilities

MINING INTERNATIONAL

TMCC38 TMCC provides oil well solution Imperial Oil Ltd.:

Well abandonment project, Cold Lake, Alberta

Byrnecut Mining42 Under African Skies

TMCC 45 McARTHUR RIVER MINE – SHAFT #3 UPDATE

Sinking towards the world richest uranium deposits

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling48 Gold in Tanzania

TMCC 52 Thyssen Mining – contract ore production

mining at the Stillwater project Nye,Montana /USA

CONSTRUCTION GERMANY

TS Bau 57 New concert hall is a masterpiece of acoustics:

Hewn from crystal salt 700 metres below ground level

61 Local bypass for the B 169 trunk road

DIG 63 DIG uses diverted daylight to brighten up

Deutsche Bahn’s control centre in Munich

TS Bau 66 It’s all change at Duisburg-Schwelgern docks

Travelling cranes go walk-about69 Plauen town centre gets face-lift

Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau 71 New Company Joins TS Group:

Östu Stettin Tunnelbau GmbH, Mülheim72 Emergency exit shafts are fitted with

inner linings

CONSTRUCTION INTERNATIONAL

Östu-Stettin75 Clarification plant gets Technology 2000 re-fit78 New seismic system for strata exploration

in the Blisadona tunnel

Stettin Hungaria82 New World Trade Centre constructed in

Raab, Hungary

Östu-Stettin 84 Office Block Sets New Standards

TGB86 JUNCTION 33 Rotherham 88 New Offices and Factory in Humberside Area90 Effective partnering makes design a reality

PRODUCTION

Emscher Aufbereitung92 New drier-crusher contract to 2011 means

increase in plant capacity

TS Technology + Service 93 TS Technology + Service is launched95 Ladle car for Thyssen Krupp Stahl AG

SITUATIONUPDATE

the latest issue of the Thyssen Schacht-bau Report seeks to present an overallview of our current range of Groupservices which continue to be broad-based and built on high-quality techno-logy.As is customary, our report begins witha review of the year 2000 and a lookahead to 2001, together with a fewwords on our current position and onthe future of the Thyssen SchachtbauGroup.

2000:Turnover stable, operat-ing result satisfactory.Unexpected set-back inAustralia.Reorganisation onschedule.

The economic turnaround whichbegan the previous year was success-fully maintained in almost everybusiness sector in the year 2000. Withoverall performance slightly up atDM 1,27 billion, the Group made (ona basis comparable to that of theprevious year) an operative profit of DM 28,1 million. After taking intoaccount high extraordinary chargesassociated with phasing-out ofactivities (mainly the necessaryclosure of the coal mining project inAustralia, which started in 1998,and the deconsolidation of thesubsidiary concerned), the Group’sconsolidated performance showed anegative result. Employee numbers

continued to decline, due to markettrends and Group reorganisation, withthe total workforce now standing at4,997 (as at 31 December).The strategic reorientation and re-organisation of Thyssen SchachtbauGroup operations has been vigorouslypursued.This has been achieved againstthe backdrop of a market whichcontinues to be difficult due to theprogramme of reorganisation underway in the German coal industry, theongoing slackness in the constructionsector, and an environment of inheritedliabilities from various overseas com-panies as a result of project closures.

2000/2001:Success in all businesssectorsProfit responsibilitystrengthened

In the Mining Germany sector thediminishing returns obtained from shaftsinking operations, due to the comple-

tion of the Gorleben project, wereextensively compensated for by anunscheduled showing in the miningsector as a result of additional con-tracts from the DSK, Deutsche Stein-kohle AG.The Group was successful inachieving a number of objectives, in-cluding establishing the managementsuccession structure for the TS Miningand TS Shaft Sinking and Drillingdivisions, reorganizing the technicaldepartments (Purchasing, Logistics andEngineering) and achieving a substantialreduction in Company overheads.These two divisions have now beengiven much greater responsibility fortheir own organisation and accountswithin the Thyssen Schachtbau Group,and this will make it easier for them toincrease their involvement in (Groupinternal and Group external) con-sortium projects and collaborativeventures.In the Mining International sector thegood rates of return recorded in theCanadian and Australian ore miningsector were offset by high additionalexpenses incurred in other areas.These costs resulted from residualdepreciation allowances from TS in-volvement in South American venturesand, in particular, from non-recurringexpenses resulting from the termina-tion of the Southland coal miningproject in Australia.The joint involvement in major inter-national mining and shaft-sinking pro-jects by Group companies in Austra-

lia, Canada, Germany and the UK yiel-ded the first measure of success withjoint venture operations in Tanzaniaand Ireland. As part of a targeted and

Situation Update

Ladies and gentlemen,business partners and associates,fellow workers

2

Situation Update

Report 2001

Roadheading with roofbolting in roadway no. 3580 at Niederberg colliery

coordinated collaboration venture(Thyssen Mining International) this newbusiness approach now includesvarious external partner companies.Consolidation measures have continuedas scheduled for the Construction Ger-many sector. The Group’s structural andcivil engineering companies have beenprogressively merged to form TS BauGmbH and all companies operatingthroughout the territory of the FederalRepublic have undergone an amalgama-tion of their operating sites.The aim of the ongoing rationalisationand reorganisation measures, which gohand-in-hand with system improve-ments in SAP networking, costing andsite performance control, is to achievea further increase in the operatingresults of both the Interior Installationcompany and the newly-formedStructural and Civil Engineering Group.In the Construction International sectorour companies in Austria and theUK have continued to make use ofthe opportunities available in theirspecialist markets (particularly infra-structure projects and tunnelling) andhave achieved good operating results.With new subsidiaries in Hungary,Germany and Ireland, together withgreater involvement in international jointventures (see Overseas Mining division),our overseas construction operationsare gaining a stronger foothold in anumber of growth markets and regions.In the Production sector we have nowcompleted the process of giving Thys-sen Schachtbau engineering operationsfull responsibility for their own or-ganisation and accounts. After a pro-gramme of radical reorganisation theengineering and major repairs section,which now trades as ‘TS Technologie +Service’, has laid the foundations for apositive contribution to company re-sults by a successful expansion of itsgroup external customer base.One of our companies in this sector,whose business is to supply pulverizedcoal to the steel industry, has safe-guarded its future income by ex-panding its production capacity andsecuring long-term contracts withmajor customers.

The TS Group Management Head-quarters Departments also succeededin achieving their restructuring ob-jectives. Thyssen Schachtbau GmbHCentral Services, which includes per-sonnel, finance/accounting and EDPdepartments, now operate a full cost-allocation system for their intercorpo-rate ‘clients’. Staff departments havebeen reduced in size or transferred tothe operations sector. The holdingcompany sector has seen an amal-gamation of central services, while inthe finance section the treasuryfunction has been strengthened.

A word of thanks to authors and editors

Because of the large number of articlesreceived from the various Groupbusiness sectors, the task of selectingreports for publication has yet againbeen a difficult one. We should there-fore like to acknowledge the dedicati-on of all those members of TS Groupcompanies who have submitted re-

ports and express our thanks for theircompetent and informative articles.Wealso wish to thank our trusty team ofeditors for the painstaking manner inwhich they have dealt with the wealthof material received and yet again forthe attractive presentation of this year’sReport.

Our mission statement

Our business objectives are un-changed: we seek technical innovation,we seek to motivate our workforceand enhance their capabilities, and westrive to perform in an efficient andreliable manner as part of a stream-lined organisation. Increasingly theneeds of the marketplace and thewishes of our clients call for project-specific partnerships and long-termstrategic collaborative ventures.We will continue to provide ourdomestic and overseas customers withhigh-quality technical solutions deliver-ed on schedule and to budget – afterall, our success depends on theirs.

3Report 2001

Situation Update

THYSSEN SCHACHTBAU– YOUR PARTNER TO SUCCESSsincerely yours

Werner Lüdtke Keith Jessup Dr. Peter M. Rudhart

In order to safeguard coal

production at Prosper Haniel

colliery, plans were laid in the

mid-1990s for the extraction of the

Roadheader drivage with thecombi-support system

Prosper Nord take located at a

depth of some 1,000 metres

between Prosper IV and Prosper V

shafts.

The area in question accesses thecoal seams I, H and G. The plan

was to drive main seam roads tobypass the entire take in the seam Hhorizon and then to enter seamhorizons I and G by means of risingand/or dipping stone drifts. This

4 Report 2001

Full roofbolting at the roadhead

Mining Germany TS MINING

Report 2001

development concept at once calledfor the creation of long-term mineworkings which would provide a stableframework for coal production duringthe planned period of extraction. Inorder to fulfil this requirement it wasdecided to use the “combinationsupport method” for the main seamroads and gate-roads.

Roadway drivage

Assembly of the roadheading machinebegan in August 1996. Just one monthlater work commenced on the mecha-nized drivage from the inclined drift tobunker N in the main seam roadway(seam H). The drivage operation wasinitially undertaken using conventionalheading techniques until the roadwayreached seam H at a drivage length of576 metres.

At the end of 1996 the machine wasfitted with roofbolting and settingequipment and the combination-support phase was able to commence.

Technical equipment

❑ Voest Alpine AM 105 roadheader❑ Böhler ABS roofbolter and setter❑ turbofilter dust-extractor (800 m3

capacity), auxiliary fan with cooler❑ GTA support setting platform (type

1910 e)❑ EKF II drag conveyor (approx. 75

metres in length)❑ Hauhinco pressure booster pump❑ pantechnicon including 1000 V

switchgear enclosure❑ monorail-mounted rail laying plat-

form

Roofbolting pattern and expert’s bolting report

The roofbolting pattern was laid downby Department TB 3 at DeutscheSteinkohle AG and is documented inan expert’s bolting report, which wasbased on the following roadway para-meters:❑ excavated cross-section: 28.8 m2

❑ support cross-section: 23.4 m2

❑ clear roadway width: 6.58 m❑ clear roadway height: 4.40 m❑ specified concrete thickness: 0.30 m

On the basis of this fundamental set ofdata, precisely 11.5 rockbolts and 5 in-seam bolts were to be installed permetre of drivage. Each 2 500 mm-longroofbolt was to be resin-bonded over2 400 mm of its length. For the road-way section in question the bolt rowspacing and bolt setting interval wereboth specified at 1.0 metres. Auxiliarybolts were to be installed as and whenrequired. Critical areas, such as bridgingzones, were examined separately, andunder certain conditions changes weremade not only to the bolt row spacingand bolt setting interval but also to thetype of bolts used.

Roadheading with the combination-supportsystem

The roadway drivage described herehas been using the combination-sup-port system since January 1997. Afteran initial period of familiarization withthe roofbolting technology, per-formance rates soon improved andexcellent drivage results could beachieved. The rate of advance depen-ded primarily on the two operatingprocesses “cutting” and “roofbolting”,which were a function of the rockstrength values. All the other road-heading operations were carried outin parallel, which is one of themain advantages of the combinationsupport method.

5

Roofbolting pattern for combination support system

roofbolt length: AL=2,4 mtr.resin-bonded

spacing betweenroofbolts: a = 1,00 mtr.spacing betweenrows: r = 1,00 mtr.number ofroofbolts: N = 11,5 St / mtr.additionalroofbolts: Z as required* = alternating (in addition to rows)

Combination-support method

The combination support system (typeA) involves the use of standingsupports combined with the installat-ion of roofbolts, bolting mats and back-filling. The following operating methodwas chosen for the drivage phase: theroadway profile is cut using a road-heading machine and immediatelyafterwards full roofbolting is installed incombination with roll-out wire mesh asrockfall protection. Conventionalsteel arches are then set some 25 to30 metres behind the machine, and theannular clearance between the sup-ports and the roofbolted strata issealed with backfilling concrete. Theroofbolt pattern, bolting density andarch-support specifications were laiddown in an expert’s report com-missioned by the client. Supportdimensions for special excavations,such as bridging zones, were calculatedon the basis of separate reports.

TS MINING Mining Germany

By the end of 2000 a total of 6,892metres of roadway had been drivenusing the combination system, whichinvolved the installation of some109,500 roofbolts.The average headingperformance amounted to 7.44 metresper working day, with the best monthlyresult of 10.72 metres per day beingachieved in December 1999.

Results and future outlook

The combined system of roofbolting inconjunction with conventional road-header drivage methods was success-fully implemented within a very short

period of time and high drivage rateswere achieved. The excavations stillshow no signs of pressure phenomena.Proof that the roadways have fulfilledplanning expectations will be providedwhen the drivages are used for theirintended purpose, namely the plannedextraction of coal in the target seams.

Dipl.-Ing. Harald Korfmann

6


Report 2001

The standing support is installed about 25 – 30 metres behind the heading face

7Report 2001

TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING Mining Germany

Ensdorf colliery is one of the two

mines currently operated by

Deutsche Steinkohle (DSK) in the

Saar coalfield. The pit achieved an

output of 9.8 tonnes coal disposable

per man-shift in the third quarter

of 2000, making it one of the most

efficient collieries in the whole

DSK group.

With fresh ventilation into the future

The development of coal deposits inthe Primsmulde district is now

essential if the colliery is to safeguardits long-term future. Accessing thesenew measures will also mean thesinking of a new upcast shaft.

surface to a depth of some 75 metres.Detailed studies indicated that theforeshaft required for the wider mainshaft, which was to be excavatedmechanically using a shaft boringmachine, should be sunk to the excep-tional depth of 90 metres so that thefaulted strata could be safely crossedusing the conventional technique ofsinking in the solid. Pre-drilling andstrata injection was systematicallyemployed in order to stem any wateringress in the foreshaft zone.

The excavation work for the fan driftand the top 10 metres of foreshaft,including the shaft collar, was under-

Gantry crane for materials hoisting and manwinding plays key role in the sinking operation

Preliminary work for foreshaft

The proposed shaft was to have adepth of 1,260 metre. As expected,exploration drillings revealed that the"boundary fault”, measuring some tensof metres, outcropped to the surfaceclose to the shaft collar. The potentialarea affected by this fault run from the

taken by construction companies usingthe open-cut method.The Primsmuldeforeshaft consortium, comprisingThyssen Schachtbau GmbH as generalcoordinator for technical operationsand Deilmann-Haniel GmbH as co-ordinator for commercial operations,was subsequently contracted to sinkthe foreshaft from the 10 metre levelto a depth of 90 metres.

A new township created

After a lead-time of only four weeksthe consortium began to set up thesite installations on 4th October 2000.As the Primsmulde shaft was a satellite

shaft, located several kilometres fromthe colliery’s north shaft, extensive on-site facilities had to be provided forthe construction teams. This meantinstalling washrooms and sanitary unitsfor some 40 persons, together withoffices, workshops, stores, a fuel fillingstation, compressed-air generating unit,fresh-water supply point, explosivesstore and waste box – as well as settingup the power supply installations.

The main sinking installation compriseda Liebherr mobile gantry crane, whichwas used for mucking out, materialshoisting and man-winding, as well as forraising and lowering the 10-tonne

Liebherr R 308 hydraulic excavator.A special 3.5 cubic-metre kibble wasbrought in for mucking out. Themanwinding cage was approved forcarrying 6 persons. The sinking equip-ment also included two shotcretebunkers complete with a Rombold &Gfröhrer integrated spraying system,an 18/75 kW booster fan for in-shaftventilation and an electrically-poweredemergency hoist with an emergencygenerator set in order to maintainwinding in the event of a power failure.The shaft equipment was completedby four plumb line winches, one cable-wire winch, one blasting cable winchand various site and in-shaft lightingsystems.

Sinking begins

The first preliminary drilling and stratainjection operations, which werecarried out from the floor of the shaftcollar at a depth of 10 metres, wereundertaken in parallel with theerection and assembly of the surfaceinstallations. A grout screen wascreated by drilling 28 boreholes to adepth of 45 metres, which were theninjected with 19 tonnes of cement.

The sinking operation commenced on23. October, three weeks after thestart of the site installation work, with

8

Mining Germany TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING

Report 2001

10-tonne excavator for foreshaft section can beraised and lowered at willManwinding cage transports personnel in foreshaft section

the shaft being excavated to a dia-meter of 8.8 metres. The excavationwork was undertaken with a diesel-hydraulic compact excavator. The pro-visional support measures requiredduring the main sinking phasecomprised the installation of oneM24 x 2500 mm rockbolt for eachtwo square metres of shaft wall, inconjunction with Q 188 steel rein-forcing mesh and a layer of B 25-quality shotcrete sprayed to aminimum thickness of 15 cm. Rightfrom the outset the well-trainedsinking crew achieved a sinking per-formance of 1.10 metres per workingday. As planned, no blasting wasneeded for the first few metres of thesinking, since the high break-out forceavailable at the machine was sufficienton its own to excavate the shaft floor.From a depth of about 25 metres,however, blasting was required on aregular basis to free the in-situmaterial.

The small quantities of water tricklingfrom the side-walls during the sinkingoperation were grouted directly fromthe shaft floor. When the 42-metremark was reached, a second pre-drilling floor was set up, as planned,in order to create a platform fordrilling four preliminary drilling andgrouting holes to a depth of 97 metres.No appreciable water ingress wasobserved during this part of theoperation.

SB VII boring machine makes its world debut

After completion of the sinking of adepth of 90 metres, a sliding formworksystem is to be used to line the fore-shaft section from the 80-metre levelto the shaft collar with an imperviousreinforced-concrete casing 40 cm inthickness.The completed foreshaft willthen have an internal diameter of7.5 metres. The 8.4 m-diameterassembly chamber for the SB VII shaft

boring machine, which will subse-quently be used for drilling the shaftdown to mine level 20, will then beexcavated between the 80-metre leveland the floor of the foreshaft.Before this operation can commence, arotary boring rig will be used to drillthe high-precision directional hole anda raise-boring system will be brought into enlarge the advance borehole to adiameter of 1.8 metres.This raise bore-hole is to be drilled to a final length of1,200 metres – a project on a scalenever previously attempted anywherein the world.

The successful outcome to this difficultshaft-construction project will againdepend on the painstaking work of theplanning engineers and the technicalskills of the sinking crews.

Dipl.-Ing.Thomas AhlbrechtHeinz-Dieter Matuschak

9Report 2001


Sinking commences below the shaft collar

Excavator being lowered to the shaft floor

Temporary shaft lining comprising rockbolts, steelmesh and shotcrete

Previous editions of REPORT have

contained regular accounts of the

shaft-deepening project under way

at Ensdorf north shaft, which has

been extended to its new bottom

landing on level 24 at a depth of

1,712 metres.This major sinking

operation has now reached

another important milestone –

which is reported on below.

Sinking the shaft sump –support lining installedin 13 days

After the shaft inset had been com-pleted, work commenced on the

New shaft extension reaches depth of 1,700 metres

sinking of the sump cavity to its floordepth of approximately 1,750 metres.The excavation was carried out in thesolid using conventional drilling andblasting, with the work being under-taken beneath the “Mega-platform” – afour-deck stage suspended above theinset which served as a temporaryoverhead protection platform. A single-boom shaft boring machine wassuccessfully used for drilling theblast holes. The debris was loaded bya 1.2 cubic-metre cactus grab anddischarged at the inset level into amobile tipper chute, which transferredit to the conveyer system. The grabwinch was installed on a horizontalfully-mobile skid frame which wasmounted on a suspended supportframe at the pit bank.

The side-walls were temporarilysupported with M24 x 2400 mm fully-resin-bonded rockbolts installed incombination with wire mesh. Thepermanent sump support systemcomprised backfilled pre-cast concrete

sections. These prefabricated castconcrete blocks were systematicallyassembled in such a way that the gapsrequired for the mounting of the sumpfittings were incorporated into the 37support rings, each of which was madeup of 7 individual elements. Thesupport work on the 40 metre-deepshaft sump was completed in 13 days –with the Mega-platform used for theshaft deepening operation againlending valuable assistance. The pre-cast concrete blocks were safelypicked-up and manoeuvred into theirfinal resting position by means of arotary-table crane which was mountedbeneath the upper stage.

High-precision installation of 160-tonnebottom frame

The shaft-sump fittings, which wereinstalled after completion of the sumpcavity, comprised the following com-ponents (from the sump floorupwards):❑ pumping platform with shaft-guide

spears for the auxiliary windingsystem

❑ shaft-screen deck❑ cambered-beam platform with

shaft-guide spears for main windingsystem

❑ ladder-shaft running the full lengthof the sump chamber, which alsoserves as a connection betweenthe individual platforms

❑ buntons for main winding system❑ shaft guides and brackets for main

and auxiliary winding operations.

These components were installed fromthe top level downwards using anadditional working platform which wassuspended from, and which movedalong with, the Mega-platform.


10 Report 2001

Shaft sump is excavated from the solid by drilling and firing and then supported by rockbolts and wire mesh

11Report 2001

The substantial foundations requiredfor the 160-tonne bottom frame werethen installed, with the assembly workneeded for the steelwork again beingcarried out from the converted wor-king platform with the assistance of therotary-table crane. At this point menti-on should made of the key role playedby the colliery surveyors, whose con-tribution to the level of precisionachieved during the entire operationproved significant.

Link-up phase commences

The bottom-frame operations werefollowed by the work on the overheadprotection platform and the installationof the shaft guides for the main andauxiliary manwinding systems, togetherwith the pipework – all of which wereinitially installed till beneath the hoistingsheave platform below shaft level 20.The installation of these paraxialcomponents was aided by the use ofclamp-on plumb lines and speciallymanufactured no-go gauges. All pipe-work was regularly tested for leaks.

The only thing left now was to connectall the shaft fittings at level 20. This

meant withdrawing the sinking gearand auxiliary equipment and installingthe permanent fittings. The four-deckstage itself, and then the rope-sheaveplatform, were dismantled piece bypiece from the working platformsuspended beneath the Mega-platformat level 24. A crescent-shaped stagewas then used to remove the protec-tive screen between the first andsecond shaft protection platforms upto level 20. The shaft guides for theauxiliary winding system were theninstalled in the former kibble compart-ment and the link-up was made for the


Picture right:Sinking debris is loaded by cactus grab into a

mobile tipper chute

The shotholes are drilled by a single-boom shaftboring machine

Final sump lining comprising backfilled pre-cast concrete blocks

auxiliary winding system between theshaft surface and level 24. The rest ofthe protective screen above level 20could then be removed by menworking on the top of the manwindingcage.

The critical phase

The critical part of the operationbegan on 30th September 2000 withthe extension of the shaft windingsystem to level 24.The screen deck, the

timbers for the cambered-beam plat-form, the guide spears for the mainwinding system and the ladder-shaftwere all dismantled one after the otherat level 20. The missing brackets andbuntons for the main winding systemthen had to be fitted and the shaftguides extended. On the morning of5th October 2000 the shaft washanded over to the colliery onschedule, with Ensdorf personnel thenassuming responsibility for the rest ofthe connection work.

The extension of winding in the northshaft down to level 24 constitutes asignificant milestone for the futuredevelopment of Ensdorf colliery. Thesuccessful completion of this complexoperation can be attributed to thedetermination and commitment ofall those involved, whose carefulplanning and excellent teamwork en-sured that the overall project was ableto progress in a steady and efficientmanner.

Heinz-Dieter MatuschakDipl.-Ing.Tilo Jautze

12


Report 2001

160-tonne bottom frame is assembled from the Mega-platform

20.000The Deutsche Steinkohle-run

Niederberg colliery is located in the

western part of the Ruhr coalfield

and produces some 8,000 tonnes of

low-volatile steam coal per day.

In the late 1980s work began on the

20,000 metres of drivage todevelop new coal reserves

development of a new part of the

take whose output would safeguard

the colliery’s coal production from

mid-2000 to the exhaustion of the

reserves in mid-2002.

High-speed manriding train cuts travelling time

The panel in question (panel 01) hadalready been extensively explored byreconnaissance boreholes drilledduring the development of the over-lying Finefrau seam. The entry to thenew panel is located about 8.5 kmfrom no. 1 shaft and the area can bereached within 25 minutes thanks to a

13Report 2001


Twin-boom drill jumbo for rotary boring of rockbolting holes

special high-speed train which operateson mine level 4. The men then travelon to the seam horizon via a system ofmanriding belts.Because of the distance between themine shaft and the workings, thedecision was taken to introduce thenewly-constructed high-speed trainsystem – which had not previouslyseen service below ground – in orderthat the shorter travelling times com-pared with conventional manriding

trains would allow the drivage teamsto maximize the time spent at theheading face. A total of 800 metres ofroadway had to be re-excavated inorder to reduce the track curvature forthe high-speed system. A 180 metres-long paved passageway was alsoconstructed through existing mineworkings in order to allow easy accessfor those boarding and alighting fromthe train. The project was carried outbetween 1994 and 1996 by Thyssen

between levels of 500 metres and amaximum depth below surface of1,000 metres.The average seam thick-ness is 0.80 metres and the quantity ofcoal reserves being accessed is about3 million tonnes.The panel development work com-menced in mid-1988, initially with twoheading teams working simultaneously- and with longer rest periods. After atotal drivage length of 680 metres,Geitling no. 1 seam was reached at the

14


Report 2001

Schachtbau’s Niederberg section, whonot only undertook the tunnel drivagework but were also responsible for theplanning and construction of the man-riding station at no. 1 shaft.

Development work begins

The area to be extracted in the newdevelopment panel measures some1,700 metres to the strike by 2,300metres to the dip, with a difference

end of 1989 via lateral road 4 west (adouble-lining support system wasinstalled when crossing the 150 metres-wide Kamper fault) and a shortinclined stone drift.The sinking operation for bunker no.0248, which had a capacity of 2,800tonnes and was 42 metres in depth,was carried out from 1990 until theend of 1993 – a facility which wouldensure that the flow of coal from thenew panel would be segregated fromthe main coal clearance system.Subsequent drivage operations com-prised a cross-cut and start-pipe forthe subsequent installation of an AM105 roadheading machine, together

Picture above: Roadheading crew after completingdrivage break-throughPicture left: Roadhead team in roadway 4641 shortlybefore the roadheading machine breaks through inthe counter-heading

stone-drift 0599, which had a drivagelength of 290 metres.By early 1998 the first gate-road (no.4670) and the first section of thewestern main seam road 0334 (1,800metres in length) were both comple-ted with roofbolt support technology(AM 85 roadheading machine withBöhler rotary boring equipment) andthe link-up was made to the above-mentioned main seam road 0368.The

various start-off points for the nextseries of planned roadways.In April 1999 DSK installed an AM 105roadheading machine in main seamroad 0334 with a view to driving road-way 4650 to a length of 1,900 metres.In November of the same year anotherAM 85 machine was installed in road-way 4640 and by turning the roadhea-der from roadway 0334 it was possibleto begin driving roadway 4641.During this period development workalso continued in the eastern axisof roadway system 0333 using con-ventional drivage methods. In De-cember 1998, after passing the start-offpoint for stone-drift 0546, the second

15Report 2001


with a main seam road in the Finefrauhorizon for the future extraction ofcoal from both the Finefrau seamand the Geitling no. 1 seam – a totalheading distance of approximately1,550 metres. When these roadwayshad been completed, lateral road 0530was connected to the Finefrau seamlevel via an extension roadway, a verticaldeviation and some 350 metres ofstone-drift (see plan page 17).Main seam road 0368 was excavatedby an AM 105 roadheading machinebetween 1994 and the end of 1995;this roofbolted roadway had an ex-cavated cross-section of 19 m2 andwas used for the exploration of thesouthern boundary of the take. Someeastern and western sections of theroadway later had to be abandoneddue to geological faulting.

Threat of colliery closure halts work – butnot for long

Work came to a halt in 1995 as thethreat of closure hung over Nieder-berg colliery. After Deutsche Stein-kohle had made a number of planningdecisions, roadheading operationscould be resumed in late 1996.The same year saw a direct link-up tothe bunker installation with the com-pletion of inclined drift 0590. Thereturn air could then be directed tothe Mausegatt seam level via inclined

western section of in-seam roadway0333 (650 metres in length, TH archprofile, 21 m2 cross-section) in theeastern part of the take was alsodriven during this period.

More start-off points means betterperformance

The completion of junction 0333/4660meant that parallel drivage was nowpossible. One rising drift was excavatedby an AM 85 roadheading machine atan average rate of advance of 12 met-res per day, while a second dippingroadway was driven by conventional

means using a roofbolting jumbo whichachieved rates of advance of between7 and 8 metres per day. After turningthe roadheading machine into mainseam road 0334 the associated changeof drivage direction meant that it waspossible to obtain reconnaissance onthe course of the Tönisberg fault,which constituted the ribside.Additional drivages were then con-structed after passing through the

Picture above: Access passage leading from shaft tohigh-speed manriding station

Picture right: Germany’s fastest undergroundmanriding train waits at boarding station

16


Report 2001

AM 85 roadheading machine breaks through into roadway 4641

roofbolting jumbo was able to beginwork on another 430-metre section ofroadway. A third drilling jumbo wasinstalled in April 1999 for the ex-cavation of roadway 0334, and wassubsequently used for driving thecounter-heading to roadway 4650. InJune 1999 a fourth roofbolting jumbowas brought in for the excavation ofcounter-heading 4640.

Preparations for coal winning

After carrying out the extensive de-velopment work needed in this panel,Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH completeda further two rise headings - as a resultof which the first coal face was able tostart up in April 2000.From mid-1999 to mid-2000 a total ofsix heading teams were engaged simul-taneously in six different roadwaydrivage operations. The cumulativeheading performance, expressed as anaverage, was 60 metres per workingday.To this had to be added fitting anderection work, machine assembly andconversion operations and variousmaintenance and transport tasks – all

of which were essential if coal winningwas to commence on schedule.

Drivage completed under arduous conditions

The long travelling distance from theshaft combined with the high work-

17Report 2001


Twin-boom rockbolting jumbo operating in roadway

place density and the need for auxiliaryventilation placed a great strain on theheading teams. In spite of the relativelyshallow depth, the extremely hot airand resulting high levels of humidity atthe heading face, together with occa-sional heavy makes of water, had a verynegative effect on roadhead conditions.Roofbolting was used systematically inall the drivages described above. Theroofbolts were installed at row inter-vals of 0.33 to 0.50 metres and the2.10 metre-long M27 or M33 fully-bonded resin-bedded bolts wereinstalled in conjunction with fold-outmesh mats. Higher bolting densitieswere employed in order to provideadditional reinforcement in thosesections of roadway affected by ex-ceptional geological stress. One advan-tage of roofbolting over conventionalstanding supports was that prop-freeworking faces could be maintained atleast until the passage of the first faceline.In developing panel no. 1 in the Geit-ling seam Thyssen Schachtbau GmbHsuccessfully completed more than20,000 metres of roadway drivage, anunderground coal bunker and a totalof 41 junctions and crossing points.

Michael Lottner

Niederberg Collierymine plan, panel 01

Development work is making

speedy progress in the Lippe-Mulde

district of Lohberg/Osterfeld

colliery, where the intention is to

extract coal from three panels in

the Zollverein 2 seam.

Inclined stone drift 0363 is being

A Hole with high Significance

constructed as the connection

between these panels and the

western lateral road on colliery

level 5.This so-called “western

triangle”, which is a highly congested

intersection zone, poses logistical

problems for this part of the mine.

The new “turn-key” Lippe-Mulde

ventilation shaft has helped

enormously in remedying this

situation.


18 Report 2001

Excavated debris is delivered by chain conveyor to the main belt on mine level 5

The “borehole” – or more accuratelythe 4.2 metre-diameter, 10 metre-

deep staple shaft – was constructedfrom a 1200-mm pilot hole usingconventional drilling and blastingmethods. When finally supported, thenew shaft was able to accommodate

liminary rock reinforcement.In order to be able to accommodateall the equipment needed in the lateralroadway on level 5, it was necessary tore-rip an 11-metre section of the road-way - which had originally been drivenwith floor enclosing segments – to

main belt conveyor. At the end of theoperation this tunnel will be convertedfor use as a support for the bunkerdischarge conveyor.

19Report 2001


two sheet-metal air ducts, a waste fall-pipe and a ladder-way.

Extensive preparations

In view of the extensive mine workingsalready present in this area, it wasdecided to undertake an endoscopicsurvey of the strata between thedrift and colliery level 5 before com-mencing the sinking operation. Thefindings indicated that strata injectionwas required in order to provide pre-

create a maximum width of 6.45 metresand a roof height of 5.1 metres. Like allother construction work carried out inconnection with the ventilation shaft,this operation was undertaken withoutinterrupting the main belt conveyor ortrack haulage system.This was achievedby covering the belt conveyer andhaulage track with a 10 metre-longprotective tunnel, which also served tosupport the chain scraper conveyorused to deliver the debris excavatedduring the sinking phase on to the

Made-to-measure

The work at the top of the ventilationshaft also continued without interrupti-on to belt conveying or materialstransport in the stone drift, which wasundertaken by diesel trolley. ThyssenSchachtbau’s drilling department firstused a P 1.200 drilling rig to bore outthe directional hole with a 216 mmchisel bit system, and then reamed outthe hole – first to 450 mm and then toa diameter of 1200 mm – using the

Shaft sinking below the roadway: collar excavation extends well below the arch supports

same machine operating as a raiseborer. Due to the restricted space, thepilot borehole had to be directionallydrilled at an angle from the upper road-way. In spite of this complication, thepre-determined break-through point inthe roof of the lateral roadway on level5 was accurate to the nearest centi-metre.

The roadway arches in the upperroadway of the new ventilation shafthad to be braced on one side with asupport beam before excavating theshaft collar, while the side-wall was alsoreinforced with rockbolts.The 3 metre-deep, 6.5 metre-wide collar could thenbe excavated by drilling and firing frombeneath a protective canopy, afterwhich the cavity was lined with con-crete to a finished width of 4.5 metres

using a formwork system. The ready-mixed concrete was delivered tolevel 5 in mine cars and was pumpedthrough the pilot hole to the collararea for placement behind the shutter-ing.

The hole is delivered on schedule

The sinking work was carried out bydrilling and firing using the pilot bore-hole, with 1.5-metre pulls, to an ex-cavated diameter of 5.1 metres. Aftereach pull the exposed surface had tobe consolidated with M24 x 2400 mmrockbolts and wire mesh. Duringthe sinking phase no strata controlproblems were encountered in thearea stabilized by the preliminary in-

jection measures. Difficulties only arosein the pilot-hole zone, where isolatedfalls of ground repeatedly preventedthe clearance of the sinking debris.

Once the shaft had broken throughinto level 5, the shaft curb and ring-curb headframe could be assembledand backfilled. The 8-segment TH-profile shaft rings could then be in-stalled at setting intervals of 600 mm,working upwards from the headframe.This work was carried out froma mobile shaft stage which wassuspended on chains. The backfillmaterial was placed in sets each com-prising three shaft rings. Once thesupport rings had reached the collarof the shaft, the permanent shaftcover was fitted and the various shaftfacilities installed, namely the 1250 mm-diameter waste fall-pipe (which wassuspended in a special mounting), thetwo ventilation ducts and the ladder-way with its ladder platforms for fall-pipe inspection and maintenance work.

The only other work to be done at thetop of the shaft was to install the con-veyor top-end mast for the return endof the discharging belt, and assemblethe dirt intake chute and dust hood.

In spite of the complex cycle of opera-tions and the need for differentdepartments to coordinate theiractivities when carrying out the dif-ferent phases of the sinking project,the ventilation shaft was successfullycompleted within seven months andhanded over to the client on schedule.

Congestion relief

Ventilation to drivage 0363, and sub-sequently to the connecting tail-gatesand main gates serving the first coalpanel no. 472, can now be suppliedfrom the western lateral roadway oncolliery level 5 through two metalventilation ducts (1400 and 1600 mmdiameter) installed in the ventilationshaft; these in turn lead into concer-tina-type ducts which carry the freshair to the heading face, thereby con-

20


Report 2001

Overview of the Lippe-Mulde ventilation shaft

siderably improving the climatic condi-tions. The new ventilation route alsomade it possible to dispense with theauxiliary ventilation ducts which ranalong the bottom of the inclined drift.Inclined drift 0363 was initially ex-cavated using a belt conveyor installa-tion which discharged on to an inter-mediate chain conveyor and twodownstream short-length belts set upat the bottom of the incline.This con-veying system, which was costly tomaintain, was considerably simplified bythe introduction of a waste fall-pipewith stairway inserts, which was in-stalled in the ventilation shaft. Thewaste belt is now almost 100 metresshorter in length and discharges theheading debris directly into the fall-pipe.This material falls on to a bunker

discharge conveyer at the bottom ofthe shaft, which in turn transfers itdirectly on to the main conveyor instal-lation. A series of microwave sensors,which are positioned at the intakeend, in the pipe and at the dischargepoint, monitors the flow of wastethrough the fall-pipe and ensures thatthe system remains blockage-free.These two measures considerablyrelieved the congestion which had builtup in the level section of roadway atthe bottom of inclined drift 0363.This area continues to be used as amaterials assembly point for supplyingoperations associated with the drift, andit also contains a concrete materialsbunker. The space saved can now beemployed to accommodate much-need-ed workshops for the diesel trolleys.

All under one roof

The entire operation to construct theLippe-Mulde ventilation shaft wascarried out under one roof as a turn-key project. From the planning stageand the supply of the special fabrica-tions and fittings, through to theexecution of the underground work,the Thyssen Schachtbau Shaft Sinkingand Drilling Division, working in closecoordination with colliery personnel,was able to deliver the entire contractas a complete package.

The new shaft is indeed a hole of highsignificance.

Dipl.-Ing. Matthias SteinwellerDipl.-Ing. Heinrich Latos

21Report 2001


Lohberg/Osterfeld colliery - Dinslaken-Lohberg entrance

Niederberg colliery, which produces

anthracite and low-volatile steam coal,

is to merge with Friedrich-

Heinrich/Rheinland mine in early 2002

to create the new West colliery.

The last in-seam development projects

at Niederberg involved the drivage and

equipping of panels 358 and 359 in

07’s district, which were to ensure

coal production at the mine until

mid-2002.

New coal panel is a turn-key project

drivages, with rotary drilling beingthe preferred method for the boltingand shotfiring operations, given thefavourable geology.The support systemwas based on M27 and M33 full-resinbolts 2.1 metres in length, which wereset in rows 0.33 to 0.50 metres apart.Fold-out mesh mats were used toprotect the workforce from rockfalls.

High rates of advance

Under the given operating conditionsa normal heading performance of8 metres per day was achieved usingconventional drivage methods. Peakvalues of 60 metres per week wererecorded with teams operating sixdays out of seven. The AM 85 road-heading machine achieved a con-tinuous performance of 13 metres perday in the loader-gate drivage. Amodified version of the Voest-AlpineKSS (combined safety system) wasemployed for the first time for cutterpick flushing. This system has thebenefit of using low water pressuresand flows, which in turn has a positiveeffect on heading performance.


22 Report 2001

AM 85 roadheader in loader-gate 358 breaksthrough into the northern main seam road

Break-through

The roadways needed to access thecoal panels were partly driven by

Deutsche Steinkohle’s own headingteams and partly by Thyssen Schacht-bau.The latter was responsible for thesouthern section of the future tail-gate3581, the southern main seam road,the loader gate and the inclined stonedrift 0581.

With the exception of the loader gate,all drivage operations were carriedout using a twin-boom roofboltingjumbo for drilling the round and set-ting the rockbolts and a side-tippingloader for debris clearance work. Thecoal-loader gate was driven using anAM 85 roadheader and the roofboltswere installed by a Böhler-equippedrockbolting and setting machine. Rock-bolt supports were employed in all

Contract extended

As a result of their excellent drivagerecord, and the experience acquiredfrom the face installation work,ThyssenSchachtbau’s Niederberg section wasalso awarded the contract for equip-ping panel no. 358.

Before this project began, however, itwas apparent that the very tight dead-lines involved in the subsequent ex-cavation work could only be met bybringing forward the two drivagebreak-through dates and by employingadditional personnel. However, theplanned budget for the year 2000could not permit the deployment ofextra staff, at least not for the faceinstallation work. This meant that onlythe heading teams could be deployedin 2000, while the face equipping workhad to be put off until early 2001.

By employing every available means foraccelerating the rate of progress, theroadheader drivage operation wassuccessfully concluded two weeksahead of schedule, while conventionaldrivage 3590 was actually completedmore than 4 weeks before the planneddeadline. Valuable time was thereforewon for the subsequent face installa-

tion work. The most decisive factor inthis respect was not the early com-pletion of the finishing work in thedrivages, but the fact that the debrisloading phase had come to an end,

thereby allowing work to begin on dis-mantling the conveyor structure. Theremaining operations in main seamroad 3590, such as equipment dis-mantling, securing the bridge zone andfinal roofbolting work, could thereforebe postponed until February/March2001.

Once the AM 85 roadheader hadbroken through in mid-November2000, work could begin on thedismantling of the first conveyor in-stallation, and the second followed inmid-December.This freed up a numberof working crews, who were then ableto turn their attentions to the facepreparation and installation work. Inorder to prepare for the face equip-ping phase, which involved the in-stallation of the face supports, faceconveyor and coal plough, roofboltswere additionally installed in a 350metre section of the main seam road.This was undertaken using fully-grouted M33 bolts 4 metres in length.

23Report 2001

The AM 85 takes a “well-earned break” after completing the loader-gate drivage

Station 0521 materials transloading point for 07’s district, excavated by Thyssen Schachtbau


This was immediately followed by thetransport and assembly operationsrequired for the face and roadwayconveyor systems, as well as for thegate-end pantechnicons which wouldsubsequently supply the coal-faceequipment. The shield supports, com-plete with the necessary hydraulicpacks, air-conditioning systems andshifting gear, were also brought in andinstalled, and this was followed by theerection of a manriding conveyor inroadway 3581.

From mid-December onwards, whichwas the break-through date for theroofbolting jumbo, the team was ableto decommission one belt after theother - working in the direction ofconveying - and excavate the series oftrenches required for the belt transferstations. This meant that a portion ofthe dinting dirt had to be transported-out in containers. The new belt con-veyors were then installed and started-up as this operation progressed. At thesame time dinting work had to be

undertaken in the future tail-gate andmain seam roadway and the belttrenches excavated for the subsequent

transfer points (see photos). The sixbelt conveyors, with belt widths of bet-ween 1000 and 1400 mm and anoverall length of 2,300 metres, werethen installed, followed by the 5 kVpower supply station and all electricalinstallations; finally, a new mine drainagesystem was laid.

This operation was accompanied bythe final installation of various items ofequipment and facilities, including theface and roadway conveyors, shieldsupports, shifting gear and gate-endpantechnicons, a large timber store andthe stringers required for the standingsupports which would be installedafter the ploughing phase.

From the beginning of January the sizeof the workforce was increased, so thatup to 120 manshifts per day weremade available 6 days a week for thedifferent project operations.

A total of 5,500 shifts were requiredfor the entire project, with the faceinstallation work accounting for some4,300 shifts and the other mining ex-cavations (trench digging and supportwork) the remaining 1,200.

24


Report 2001

Belt trench excavated to create headroom for the belt transfer station

Assembling the face conveyor

Face trials were successfully completedin panel 358, Geitling seam 2, on 23rdFebruary 2001, and coal ploughingsubsequently began on schedule on26th February. This meant that theproject team had beaten the very tightcompletion deadline by 3 workingdays. On 6th March, that is only 7working days later, the fully-equipped350-metre face conveyor and shieldsupports were moved into place alongthe coal face and the northernroadhead was secured with solidtimber chocks. By 10th March all thenecessary standing supports had beenpermanently installed in the roadwayused for the ploughing-in phase.On 12th March the fully-equipped sitewas handed over to the coal winningdepartment as a working coal face.Thyssen Schachtbau’s Niederberg sec-tion had given an impressive demon-stration of its ability to develop andequip a complete production face andto deliver it to the client on time as aturn-key facility.

Michael Lottner

25Report 2001


Picutre bottom:Heading team after break-through

Picture above:Ready-assembled shield-support columns wait in themain seam road

Picture left:Face equipping – ploughing-in phase

During the year 2000 Thyssen

Schachtbau activities at Deutsche

Steinkohle’s Lohberg colliery were

marked by a number of important

Review of TS operations at Lohberg colliery

events which reflected the changes

currently taking place within the

German coal industry as a whole.


The number of shifts worked perday at the Lohberg site, expressed

as an annual average, was some 20%down on the previous year, with thefigure recorded standing at 90 MS/d.During the first half of the year thecolliery’s last operating roadheaderwas dismantled and transported to thesurface. The machine had in recentyears completed some 9,000 metresof drivage in the Matthias seam, whichlies at a depth of about 1,300 metres,and had excavated nine Continuous-Miner junctions - all without any majorincident. This achievement is all themore remarkable because the highgas content of the in-situ coal andthe high local strata pressure en-countered throughout the entiredrivage operation had imposed theneed for gas reconnaissance boreholes,in compliance with gas outburst guide-lines, and additional boreholes tocomply with rockburst guidelines.

The cessation of roadheader drivageoperations contrasted with the in-creased mechanization of conventionaldrivage projects based around theintroduction of drill jumbos.The morefrequent deployment of jumbo drillscan be attributed mainly to the in-creasing use of roofbolting in develop-ment roadways. As the drill jumboswork close to the roadhead whendrilling the holes for the next round ofshots, they can also be used for in-stalling the roofbolts. During the roof-bolting phase, in which the bolts areinserted right up to the heading faceimmediately after shotfiring, additionalstanding supports are usually installedin the outbye section of the roadwayto create a combination supportsystem.Over the last two years the TS team atLohberg colliery has driven some

2,200 metres of roadway using this“new” roadheading technique. Eachmember of the heading team under-went an intensive training and re-fresher course so that the newoperating technique could be quicklyand efficiently put into practice. In spite

of the new working routine, which atthe outset was quite unfamiliar to mostmembers of the workforce, safetytargets were easily achieved and therecorded figure of 10 accidents waswell below the pre-set target of 20incidents per million working hours.

Dr.-Ing. Stanislaw KopiecPeter Bergmann


180.000 metresWith the construction of the

Bulyanhulu shaft in Tanzania and

the Primsmulde shaft boring

project in Germany, the Thyssen

Schachtbau Group has now

completed a total of some

183,150 metres of shaft sinking

during its operating life.

This achievement marks TS out as

one of the world’s leading shaft

construction companies.

130 years ago

The foundations for this branch ofactivity, which has traditionally beenpart of the specialist mining sector,were laid by August Thyssen as far backas 1871 when the name of the existingbusiness was changed to “Gewerk-schaft Deutscher Kaiser” – a company

which united all Thyssen’s coal andsteel companies under one name andfrom which emerged the Mülheim-based Schachtbau Thyssen GmbH in1919, which had detached itself fromthe main Thyssen group.

In 1871 exactly 130 years ago, thecompany’s shaft sinking business beganwith the sinking of the DeutscherKaiser I shaft in the Hamborn coalfield,which at that time was owned byAugust Thyssen.


28 Report 2001

Shaft sinking crew of the shaft Deutscher Kaiser 4 / Wittfeld

130 years of shaft construction – with more than

180,000 metres of shaft sunk

The first freeze-shaft

In addition to caisson sinking, some ofthe earliest methods of shaft con-struction involved the use of boringrods to drill through unconsolidatedand water-bearing strata, as well asconventional shaft sinking techniquesusing drilling and blasting in con-solidated rock formations.

In 1905 the company began to includefreeze-shaft sinking within its field ofoperations. The first freeze-shaft pro-ject, namely the Friedrich Thyssen Vshaft at Hamborn-Marxloh, was follo-wed in 1907 by the two freeze-shaftsLohberg I and II at Dinslaken, each ofwhich were sunk to a freezing depth of415 metres.

A broad portfolio of international sinkingoperations

The first tentative steps outsideGermany were taken in 1911 with thesinking of two shafts in Belgium – anoperation which marked the start of

Thyssen Schachtbau’s internationalcareer.

The range of services currently offeredby the Thyssen Schachtbau Shaft-Sinking and Drilling Division includenot only the construction of mineshafts, which can be sunk either byconventional means or using thefreezing method, but also bunkers andother shaft workings, which areconstructed by means of rodless shaftboring machines or by raise-boring,together with the necessary con-necting galleries and insets.

More recently Thyssen SchachtbauGmbH has been involved in a numberof joint projects, including the sinking oftwo exploration shafts in the Gorlebensalt deposits which are to be used forthe permanent disposal of radioactivewaste, the drilling of the deepestrotary-bored staple shaft to date at theWestern Deep Levels gold mine inSouth Africa (approx. 3,000 metresbelow sea level) and the constructionof the world’s highest shaft, which is atthe Jungfernjoch in the Swiss Alps(3,571 metres above sea level). The

company broke new ground for shaftdeepening when it completed an inno-vative project at Ensdorf colliery wherethe existing mine shaft was extendedby some 426 metres to a depth of1,751 metres.

In sinking the 1,260 metre-deep Prims-mulde mine shaft in the Saar coalfield,which is the world’s deepest boredshaft, the TS Shaft Sinking and DrillingDivision’s shaft boring department willbe setting new standards in this field.

Dipl.-Ing. Norbert Handke

29Report 2001


Sinking of Deutscher Kaiser 1 / Hamborn

JOB DONEOn 26th February the heading

teams broke through to connect

Haus Aden/Monopol with Heinrich

Robert - and thereby established a

new Colliery Ost.

A 3-year lead-time

In 1999 it was reported how DeutscheSteinkohle had to adapt its productionlevels to the demands of the freemarket and was therefore increasinglyobliged to reduce its output. Theadaptation measures needed for sucha programme of change called for anintensive and lengthy planning process.

The 1999 report sought to illustratethe scale of the planning programmeby taking as an example the in-seamand stone drivage operations requiredfor the underground link-up of HausAden/Monopol and Heinrich Robertcollieries. On 26th February 2001,

Job done!A new colliery is created

exactly 3 years after the work started,this major colliery link-up project wasbrought to a successful conclusion -and the new Ost Mine was created.

The long road to break-through

A total of 5,484 metres of new road-way had to be driven in order toachieve the merger of the twocollieries. From February 1998, aspart of this major tunnelling operation,Thyssen Schachtbau successfully com-pleted some 2,753 metres of drivageworking from the Heinrich Robertend.


30 Report 2001

The new connecting roadway

The roadheading work was carried outby conventional means using a twin-boom drill jumbo, loader, twin-railworking platform and backfilling in-stallation complete with an 8 cubic-metre storage hopper. The headingproject included 15 special excavations,with a total length of 439 metres, andalso 306 metres for the crossing of theFlierich and Rünther fault zones.The average rate of heading advanceultimately reached 5.0 metres perworking day – a creditable perfor-mance which ensured that the 3-yearproject remained on schedule. Thisachievement was subsequently re-cognized by colliery representativesand political figures at a colliery link-upceremony on 26th February 2001.

The next phase

The completion of the connectingroadways is just one part of the newcolliery’s long-term planning pro-gramme. Work is now under way toaccess the coal reserves, which liebeneath Bergkamen-Overberge andLerche, which is part of the Hammdistrict area.

The Lerche shaft, which is beingdeepened to 1,340-metre, will in futurebe used for both manwinding andmaterials haulage and will also serve asthe intake ventilation shaft.

Thyssen Schachtbau has now beenentrusted with the preparatory workfor a roadway link-up with the Lercheshaft, which involves two differentstart-off points. This roadheading

project is scheduled for completion inDecember 2001 and will constituteanother important step towards coal-mining industry with long-term viability.

Dirk Wagener

31Report 2001


West-East cut along connecting roadway axis

In June 2000 the Westfalen shaft

consortium, which comprised

Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH and

Deilmann Haniel GmbH, was con-

tracted by Deutsche Steinkohle AG

to undertake the work of filling-in

surface shafts 1, 2, 6 and 7 at

Westfalen colliery.

End of an era – shaft infillingat Westfalen colliery

End of an era

The last skip was wound to the surfacein shaft no. 1 on 1st July 2000, markingthe end of coal winning era where pro-duction had started nearly 100 yearsbefore. Shaft nos 1 and 2 were sunkbetween 1909 and 1911. Shaft no.1had a final depth of 1,087 metres, whileshaft no. 2 was 1,071 metres in depth.No. 1 shaft was used as the mainhoisting shaft until its closure, whileno. 2 shaft was the ventilation shaft andalso served for manwinding and mate-rials haulage duties. Sinking work beganon the new no. 7 manwinding andventilation shaft at Hamm Heesen in1976. Manwinding to a depth of1,330 metres commenced in this newshaft in October 1983. Shaft no. 6 wasprimarily used as a ventilation shaft.

Shaft infilling commences

After the client had laid down the infil-ling deadlines for the individual shafts,the Westfalen consortium began workin June 2000. Both the precise projectdeadlines and the availability of thefriction winder meant that strict timelimits applied when shortening andextending the winding systems.Formwork stages had to be installed inall four shafts; in shaft nos 1, 2 and 6the installation depth was 250 metres,while in no. 7 shaft the stage wasinstalled at a depth of 1,070 metres.As the colliery was to continue withunderground salvage work until thefilling operation in shaft no. 7 was com-pleted, air pipes had to be installed inall the formwork stages in order tomaintain the ventilating air supply.Furthermore these pipes had to beused for the controlled removal ofCH4 by means of the main fan in no. 6shaft.

The infilling work commenced in no. 1shaft and continued with no. 7 shaft, tobe followed by the simultaneous fillingof shaft nos 2 and 6. Before the opera-tion could begin, the shafts had to beinspected – beginning from the rope-sheave platform in the headgear tothe proposed installation level forthe working platform and formworkstage – in order to check and clean thevarious shaft fittings (buntons, pipes,cables, ladder-ways, ladder stages andshaft lining).

Safety first

M24 x 1500 mm steel rockbolts wereinstalled 20 metres above the stageinstallation level at intervals of 1 metrearound the circumference of the shaft;these were to be used for the attach-ment of a double-layer catch net, toprotect those working in the shaft,which was to be fastened both to thebolts and to the existing shaft fittings.

A mounting beam installed above thissafety net was fitted with a number ofattachment points for a compressed-air hoist (maximum payload 6 tonnes),which was used for position changingbetween buntons. Communication andsignalling was provided by the existingtapping rope, the cage signalling systemand a dialling telephone.

Progressive dismantling

Before the winding system could beshortened the working platforms inthe open shaft section had to beinstalled in such a manner that theywould not impede the winding opera-tions. These platforms were construc-ted from steel girders covered withdouble-layer decking (80 mm timbers)and were attached to the shaft lining in


32 Report 2001

Installing the main beams for the formwork scaffold


Shafts 1 and 2 at Westfalen colliery

such a way that the workers were atno risk of falling down the shaft.The cavities which were to act as abut-ments for the formwork stages wereexcavated using Long Year core drills

fitted with 250 mm diameter bits. Afterthe openings had been made in thefree shaft section, the seatings wereconstructed using grade-B25 concreteand the stage support beams werethen lowered into place.

After the winding system had beenshortened the stage system was com-pleted and finished with double-layerdecking. A grating measuring 4 metressquare was fitted to ensure that theventilation flow could be maintained.Before the formwork stage wasfinally closed off, the existing 500 mmcompressed-air line had to bedetached below the timber decking.This pipe would later be used for CH4drainage.The first ventilation pipes could thenbe installed in 2-metre sections on theformwork stage, with the openingsprotected by gratings to preventpersons or material inadvertentlyfalling down the shaft. A lightweightscaffold, with a working height of14 metres and fitted with an internalstairway, was installed in order that theshaft could be fully salvaged 15 metresabove the stage.This scaffold was alsoused for extending the ventilation

pipes, which were fitted in 8-metresections.The shaft fittings were dismantled fromthe top downwards, it being necessaryto adapt the dimensions of thesalvaged material to fit the availableshaft conveyances. A travelling ladder-way system was used by those carryingout the salvage work.

Job completed on schedule and with zeroaccidents

The shaft operations were completedwith the dismantling of the overheadprotection system and lightweight


View of overhead protection system

Completed construction scaffold

Installation of support beams for working platform

scaffold and the removal of the otheritems of equipment to the shaftsurface.With the shaft team working from thewinding cage, the existing shaft pipewas converted for use as an inertisa-tion line and a CH4 and CO2 samplingpipe (flexible measurement pipe) wasinstalled.

Finally, the old 500-mm compressed-airpipe was detached 3 metres below thepit bank and a sliding valve was fittedfor the subsequent connection of theProtego hoods- which would be usedfor the cold flaring of mine gas to theatmosphere.

The shaft consortium completed itswork on 18th November 2000. Thecontract was concluded on scheduleand the operation was a total success.All those engaged in the shaft projectwere given regular instructions onworking to correct health and safetystandards. During the contract periodthree members of the workforce weretrained as safety officials and a furtherten received rescue-team training.These measures, together with thecompulsory use of twin-rope harnes-ses when working in the shaft, certainlycontributed to the impressive safetyrecord achieved by the Westfalenconsortium: during the contract periodno reportable accidents occurred andthere was not a single entry made inthe first-aid book.

Great credit is due to all members ofthe workforce for their commitmentand their adherence to safe workingpractices.

Dipl.-Ing.Veit Passmann

35Report 2001


Core drilling of shaft wall cavities Installation of support beams for formwork scaffold

View of overhead protection system

Stage support beams with working platform below

Work safety in operation

Our actions reflect ourresponsibilities

Fewer accidents means financial savings

The BBG (german kind of workmanscompensation) annual safety awardfor special achievements has beenrewarded for TS Mining to the Rhein-land Mine Site as that one for re-

presented TS Shaft Sinking and Drillingto the Borth Mine Site. These werethe only representative of the specialistmining companies to be selected fromthe coal-mining sector of operations –and for Rheinland it was their thirdaward in a row.

Central Services WORK SAFETY

36 Report 2001

0

1000

500

1500

2000

2500Shifts

2.0611.863

1.285

1998 1999 2000

Shifts lost through accidents, with statutory sick payMining Division

-10 %

-31 %

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000

75

55

44

3529

21

39

1910

217

263322

1625

32

11

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling

TS Technology + ServiceTS Mining

reportable accidentsper 1 million working hours

THYSSEN SCHACHTBAU

We obviously underestimated the

capabilities of our workforce when

we set a target of 10 % fewer

accidents for the year 2000 – and

by a long way. The actual accident

figures for 2000 were in fact 28 %

down on the previous year. With

the accident rate standing at

18 reportable accidents per million

working hours, the number of

accidents recorded has fallen by

50 % within a space of three years –

a remarkable achievement by any

standards.

Photograph of BBG awards: 1. Prize winners (from left) Section Head H. Ludwig, Section Head U. Reinecke 2. (from left) Department Head (Mining) M. Haccius, Chairman of the works committee B. Grätz, ProductionManager R. Reese

Successful work-safety practice has apositive economic contribution tomake, in that fewer accidents meansfinancial savings. In the mining sectorthe number of shifts lost throughaccidents at work, with statutory sickpay, has fallen by 31 % from 1,863 to1,285. Even taking into account the factthat 10 % fewer shifts were worked in2000 compared with the previous year,there was still a 23 % improvement inthe figures for shifts lost due toaccidents.The marked improvement in the safetyfigures recorded by the differentoperating sections, in other words thesuccess of our workforce in fulfillingtheir contractual obligations, can beattributed in no small measure to ourcontinued pursuit and implementationof work-safety measures. In order todraft, implement and analyze thesuccess of these measures we haveintroduced six safety initiatives in ouroperational divisions:❑ a work-safety committee for each

operational sector❑ a safety guidance committee for

the mining sector❑ a safety deputy or mineworker,

who is released from normal work-place duties, to be appointed foreach working site

❑ a safety officer for each workplace❑ a series of in-house seminars for

the mining division focusing on thespecific problems of each work-place

❑ specific access to external seminarsand training aids provided by theBBG.

Operational Safety Measures

It would be nice to think that simply byincreasing the level of operationalsafety measures that we introduce, theaccident rate will be reduced. Ofcourse things are not quite as simple asthis, and real efforts will be needed toreach our 2001 target of a 10 %reduction in accidents compared withthe previous year.We feel that our catalogue of opera-tional measures, which forms theframework for our safety programme,is both objective and suitable for thepurpose. However, the intensity withwhich the different Thyssen Schachtbaudivisions fulfil and implement thisframework of measures can, in someindividual cases, still be improved.The decisive step for consolidatingwhat has already been achieved, andfor developing this further, must comefrom, and be completed by, eachresponsible Line Manager.The followingseries of questions, which are a keypart of many safety talks, may serve asa useful guide to those with LineManagement responsibilities:

What are my responsibilities for thesafety of my fellow workers?Am I open to questions – and do I

answer these questions effectively?Do I ask questions - and do I take in theanswers?Is the way in which I perform my work-safety actions in keeping with the safetyobjectives which I have set my fellowworkers?

The results which have been achievedcan also partly be attributed to themanner in which we have implemen-ted our responsibility for workplacesafety at the different operating sites.Further improvements can be madehere, if we have the necessary resolve.The Safety Department will continueto play an active role throughout 2001so that further progress can be madetowards our ultimate objective – zeroaccidents.

Dipl.-Ing.Thomas Sievers

37Report 2001

WORK SAFETY Central Services

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

26

6

11

10

21

19

18

16

TS TECHNOLOGY +SERVICE

Divisions:

TS SHAFT SINKING and DRILLING

TS Mining

THYSSEN SCHACHTBAU

Target for 2001:Reduce the rate of accidents

per 1 million working hours by 10 %

2000target for 2001

Participants from the Rheinland section attend work-safety seminar

History of the project

In the early 1970’s, Imperial Oil Ltd,

experimented with multiple well

drilling from one location, or pad,

and utilized steam injection in order

to lower the viscosity of the bitu-

men deposits and thus improve oil

recovery or make oil extraction

possible at all.

TMCC provides oil well solutionImperial Oil Ltd.: Well abandonment project,Cold Lake, Alberta

Over the years, as technology pro-gressed, the number of wells

drilled on one pad were increasedfrom 7 to 30.

80’s,TMCC sank a shaft around a wellto access the point where a break inwell casing occurred. This particularwell was located in a clay formationand therefore, ground freezing tech-niques were not required. ImperialOil’s well no. F01-05, being locatedwhere muskeg is present, requiredground freezing to make excavationpossible.

With TMCC’s past experience in shaftsinking and ground freezing,TMCC washired to undertake this project.

Ground freezing

Imperial Oil employed a well drillingcontractor to install 16 freeze pipes ona 7.5m diameter surrounding the well.These freeze pipe casings wereinstalled from surface to a depth of85 m, at 1.5 m spacing between holes,

Mining International TMCC

38 Report 2001

In 1999, one well on pad F01 at theMaskwa site near Cold Lake failed. Inearly 2000, Thyssen Mining Con-struction was contacted by ImperialOil to explore the possibility ofemploying mining techniques to aid inthe recovery of the failed well. As aresult of the failure of the well F01-05,the F01pad had to be shut down. Forenvironmental reasons, the well cannotbe legally abandoned in its presentcondition. The casing at a depth of 77metres must be recovered to allow re-entry below this depth for abandon-ment purposes.

Thyssen Mining Construction has pastexperience in well recovery. In the late

leaving 0.75m for ice growth betweeneach freeze well.The freeze pipes wereleft at initial ground elevation forTMCC to complete freeze cellar con-struction.

Upon TMCC’s arrival on site in lateAugust, freeze well drilling had not yetbeen completed, therefore, con-struction of the freeze plant, com-pressor room and hoist buildingcommenced. Initial concrete footingsand concrete pads were poured tohasten the installation of 2-85 toncapacity freeze units. The nature of theproject required oil field standards andpiping quality assurance standards tobe strictly adhered to. TMCC, havinglimited oilfield experience, found the

piping installation to these standards tobe both a challenging and rewardingundertaking.

Construction of the freeze cellar wasinitiated concurrently with the in-stallation of the freeze plants. Fourseparate circuits, consisting of 4 freezeholes each, were established. The fourcircuits could be supplied with coldCaCl brine directly from the freezeunits utilizing a supply manifold. Foursupply and return lines to deliver andreceive brine from the freeze plants tothe freeze cellar were installed in aculvert and buried in order to gainworking area. The freeze agent usedwas liquid Ammonia.

Instrumentation

The freeze progress was monitoredwith the use of thermocouple tem-perature sensor strings located in wellsadjacent to opposite sides of the shaft,1.5 m outside of the freeze circle.To give us an accurate picture of thisprogress, each of the thermocouplestrings had sensors located at 5 metreintervals to 85m below the sur-face. All thermocouple readings were -transferred to an LCD readoutmonitor located in the freeze plantarea, which was available for in-stantaneous readings at any particulartime. Due to design temperaturerestrictions on piping, a temperature of-29 degrees Celsius was the maximumtemperature to which the brine couldbe cooled and this was achieved.

Initially, ground temperature at depthwas believed to be in the neigh-borhood of +10 degrees Celsius,however, the actual temperatureencountered was +26 degrees Celsius.This elevated ground temperatureincreased the freeze time from 60 to120 days. The nature of the ground

39Report 2001

TMCC Mining International

What is Muskeg?

In northern USA and Canada: boggy ground in an undrained or poorly-drained area of alluvial or glacial deposits, or, more specifically, in a rocksyncline, which is filled with fine water-logged material, decomposed organicmaterial, or peat moss, and is incapable of supporting large weights. Thesurface tends to be slightly undulating. In Alaska the term is generally employedfor peaty or boggy ground irrespective of the topography.

Site arrangement with clam and pumps in the background

conditions coupled with the heat loadat depth caused the progression offreezing from the collar downward,which is opposite of a normal freezingoperation. The consequence of thiswas that excavation of the shaft couldnot commence until the bottom of theshaft area was frozen in order to avoidthe risk of ground water transfer intothe frozen shaft. Imperial Oil ceased allsteam injections in wells within a 1kmradius to facilitate the freezing of thisparticular well by lowering the amountof heat being introduced into thereservoir.

Plant construction

With the freezing of the shaft under-way, surface plant construction carriedon. This consisted of 2-650cfm electriccompressors, a single drum Timberlandhoist, 2 stage winches and 1 Cryder-man clam winch. All the electrics torun this equipment were installedsimultaneously with their placement.At the completion of the equipmentinstallation, a 10m x 30m building waserected to house the freeze/sinkingplant so that they would be protectedagainst changing weather conditions.

Shaft excavation

Excavation of the shaft commenced onDecember 28th of 2000 with a back-hoe to a 5m depth. The shaft is ex-

cavated to 4.6 m diameter and theinternal liner plate diameter is 4.3 minstalled. With the thickest part of thefreeze wall being at the surface – dueto the high temperature gradientbetween surface and excavation depth– this proved to be more difficult thanoriginally anticipated.The next phase of excavation wasrecently completed on January 29,2001 and utilized a crane and sinkingbucket. A brine drilling system was inplace. We drilled with sinking drills,benching our way down in 1.8 m inter-vals.

The failed well casing is being removedon the way down by torching means.Mucking of the blasted material is done

with a Cryderman clam loading intobuckets which are hoisted to the sur-face for dumping.A shaft lining system was adopted as ameans of shaft wall stabilization.TMCC uses both, bolted sections ofliner plate and ring beams. We installthem top to bottom following ex-cavation progress and keep the liningto within 1.8 m of the bottom at alltimes. In intervals of approximately7.5 meters, the annulus of the liner issealed and then grouted not just tofurther aid in the stability of the liner,but also to protect from ice creep andprevent cross communication ofaquifers once the well is abandoned.The Cryderman clam is suspendedfrom a clam winch located in the

40


Report 2001

Man winding cage transports workmen down the shaft to help grouting

Interior of the shaft with lining system, ring beans and Cryderman-clam

hoistroom and tied back to the shaftring beams to secure it while mucking.It is lowered as required to facilitatethe mucking process.

A substantial collar arrangement wasconstructed and installed in order tosupport a well service rig, which will berequired for well abandonment. Thecollar steel was designed to accommo-date sinking operations including shaftcollar doors, headframe foundationand material handling area. TMCC hasrecently completed the erection of asemi-portable headframe and commis-sioning of all sinking components. Thisphase of the shaft sinking from 30m to77 m is underway. Normal sinkingoperations will be carried out until therequired depth is achieved.

Site safety

Safety is of paramount importance inany efficient operation and the ColdLake Project is no exception. Prior tocommencing risk analyses werecompleted on all aspects of the projectto develop risk management strategiesfor the various phases.Worker involve-ment and participation in all site safetymeetings, inspections, JSA’s and jobobservations have been well acceptedby both the client and TMCC alike.Thesite objective is to be accident free tojob completion and worker participa-tion toward this goal has been ex-ceptional.

Project completion

Upon reaching the required depth forre-accessing the well, a concrete plugwill be poured at the shaft bottom.The failed well will be tied back to theshaft wall and a new casing welded tothe original and extended back to thecollar, stabilizing it to the shaft ringbeams every 10 metres. Once backon surface, the sinking set up will begeared out and a well service rig set upover the newly installed casing. Theservice rig will be required to retrieveall and any down-hole equipment inthe well enabling total abandonment.When the well is cleared of all down-hole equipment, the service rigwill be demobilized to accommodatebackfilling operations. Backfilling willconsist of a clay-mix material to within1 metre of the ground elevation. Atthat point, a 1 metre concrete cap will

be poured on top of the backfillmaterial in order to seal the shaft.

Conclusion

At the completion of this project,Imperial Oil will be able to resumenormal operations including steamingand oil recovery on the F01 pad.

TMCC will have gained valuable ex-perience working in the oil field andwill be well placed to provide similarservices for other projects.

Barry Upton

41Report 2001


The headframe is elevated to the right position

Shaft collar arrangement – guide rail and bucketsuspended from the winch, clam winch andhoistroom in the background

Bulyanhulu

The gold deposits of Bulyanhulu,

which is also known as “Buly” by

local residents and mine workers, is

situated in the Victorian Greenstone

Belt between the East and West Rift

Valleys in north west Tanzania, just

three degrees south of the Equator

and about 45 km south of Lake

Victoria.

Under African Skies

operates a charter passenger servicetwice a week and cargo is air-freightedto the mine on an “as required” basis,from Johannesburg. Rail transport fromSouth Africa to the mine site is oftendelayed by derailments; materialsdelivery times can vary from 8 to12 weeks, depending on circumstances.Road transport from Dar Es Salaamtakes about five days.

Fast Track

Byrnecut International’s high expecta-tions for a successful entry into themining contracting business in Africahave been easily exceeded. The com-pany, operating in partnership withThyssen and RUC, has increased itsrate of advance in ramps and levels byfifty percent to reach performancesaveraging 1000 metres per month.Thatamounts to more than thirteen (13)kilometres completed since workstarted in September 1999.Byrnecut’s client, Kahama MiningCorporation Ltd (a subsidiary of theCanadian mining company BarrickGold Corporation), is already planningthe next phase of expansion beforeproduction has even commenced andhas accepted the proposal submittedby the joint venture for a furtherfifteen (15) kilometres of developmentfor the deepening of ramp workingsand associated ore driving, therebyextending the drivage programme intomid- 2002.

Size of ore-body still unknown

Exploration of the ore deposit in-dicated that the in-situ ore reserves

Mining International BYRNECUT MINING

42 Report 2001

The tropical climate is surprisinglymoderate, due to Buly’s location

on a plateau some 1,200 metres abovesea level. Annual rainfall averages1,000 mm and occurs mainly duringthe wet season from November toMay.

The mine site relies largely on air andrail transport for its supplies.The clientoperates an air service (two hoursflying time) direct to Buly from DarEs Salaam, the nation’s major city,five times a week. The Joint Venture

Mine entrance

totalled 10.5 million ounces, as op-posed to the 7.5 million ouncesestimated in late 1999. The oredevelopment work carried out byByrnecut to date has encounteredcontinuity of mineralisation. Withdrilling also being used, the orebody has been extended 4 kilometresalong the strike and two kilometers atdepth – and it remains open.In view of this successful outcome, afour- phase development programmehas been proposed for the Buly mine.The first phase, which is being fast-tracked by Byrnecut-RUC, is currentlyunder construction in the main zone.Subsequent phases would be de-veloped in the east and west zonesand in the ore-body at depth.Work on the Phase One Develop-ment at Buly is moving quickly, with a6.4-metre diameter production shaftbeing sunk to a depth of 500 metresby a joint venture of Thyssen and RUC.Byrnecut has already made a connec-tion to the shaft at the 300-metre levelto facilitate a rapid Phase One pro-duction start-up, once the shaft loadingpocket and the upper portion of theshaft have been fitted out in early2001.

Unfolding Potential

The success already achieved at Bulyhas had much to do with the attitudeof Byrnecut’s development crews, whohave adapted themselves to the isolat-ed location, logistical difficulties andcultural differences, and along the wayearned the respect of their Tanzanianwork colleagues. The success also hasa lot to do with each crew’s desire toset the same standards of performan-ce and quality which they previouslyachieved in Australia.The core members of the Buly crewsare drawn from Byrnecut’s miningcontract sites across Australia. Thejumbo operators, loader drivers andair-leg miners are mainly Australiansand New Zealanders and most haveundergone Byrnecut’s comprehensiveSkills Training and Safe 2000 trainingprogrammes. They are capably sup-ported by a small contingent of SouthAfricans whose job is to provide thetemporary and permanent servicesneeded behind the developmentjumbos. An equally small contingent ofAustralians and South Africans providea reliable maintenance service and areachieving better than predicted mobilefleet availabilities.The Byrnecut International manage-ment team is committed to training

prospective employees from thenearby communities. Most have little orno work experience, so Byrnecut usesa literacy and dexterity test to identifythose applicants with potential skills formechanized mining tasks. Successfulrecruits are given a safety inductionand Byrnecut uses a modified SkillsTraining programme. The trainingmodules incorporate theory and ‘onthe job’ practical assessment and aretranslated into Swahili, the dominantlanguage in the region. Progress ismonitored and assessed by a Byrnecuttraining instructor and experiencedcrew members provide specializedpractical instructions.

Developing Buly – in the waste

Byrnecut develops the 15%-gradientramps, footwall drives, ore entries andspecial workings in the waste zoneusing a twin-boom Tamrock PowerclassJumbo, which is fitted with 4.9-metredrill steel. The heading profile in thewaste is usually 4.2 metres in height by5.0 metres in width.The target advancein waste is 5 rounds cycled in 24 hours.

43Report 2001

BYRNECUT MINING Mining International

Crew-members in the mine

Practical training in the mine

Advance achieved per round is 4 metres. The charge-up crew uses aCaterpillar IT unit fitted with man-carrier basket and 250 kg pressurizedANFO Loader to charge each round.Blastholes are primed with cartridgeemulsion explosives and initiated bynon-electric means. Waste loading isdone with one Toro 1400D equippedwith an 8 cubic-metre bucket,which normally trams no less than 130 metres from face to stockpile, ordirect to the EJC 430 dump trucks.Ground support to the face precedesjumbo drilling in all headings.The backsand walls are pattern- bolted by air-legoperators and assistants who workfrom two Seco Boart scissor-lift plat-forms. Bolting density in the wastedepends on the proximity to the orebody and varies from 4.7 bolts to5.7 bolts per metre of advance.

– in the ore reef

Rapid progress is being made in theore reef drives. Byrnecut’s crews areachieving outstanding productivityrates of 18 metres per day using onesingle-boom Secoma Quasar Jumbo,which is equipped with a 3.7-metredrill steel. The reef is steeply dippingand has an average width of 3.5 metres, while its range varies from2 to 6 metres. The mining profile is3.5 metres in height and the widthof the drive is taken to the geologicalboundaries of the ore. Mining widthsvary from 2.3 to 6.0 metres.The targetadvance in ore is six rounds cycled in24 hours. Advance achieved per roundis 3.0 metres. Ore headings are loaded-out by three Toro 151 LHDs;tramming distances are generally nogreater than 250 meters. Toro 400salso load-out the ore rounds, wheremining width permits.The loader drivers use the broken oreto construct a work-pad so that theair-leg ground support crew can reachthe backs and walls for bolt installationto the face. Split-set anchor bolts areinstalled in a 1.2 metre by 1.2 metrestaggered pattern. Mesh is occasionallyinstalled to support the loose andfriable areas, especially in the weakerparts of the reef, which are character-ized by argillitic alteration.Ore and waste (sg 2.9) is truckedalong the steep 15% main ramp to thesurface stockpiles using six EJC 430Dump Trucks, which have a payload oftwenty tonnes. Each truck hauls about25,000 tonne- kilometres per monthover a one-way haul of 2.7 kilometres.Operating times average out at 415engine hours per truck per month.Haulage distances are expected todecrease once the first phase of oreand waste winding commences.Byrnecut crews work 12-hour shifts,13 days per fortnight. A three-crewrota system is used: two crews work9 weeks on site while the third takesa 4-week break. Crew membersgenerally return to their homes duringthese rest periods, though some take

the opportunity to travel to otherinternational destinations. Popular localretreats include the Serengeti Wild LifePark and Zanzibar.Byrnecut invites you to watch thisspace for further developments in thisexciting project - under African skies.

Graeme Sauer

44

Mining International BYRNECUT MINING

Report 2001

Open-trench working in unstable overburden

In the Report 2000, the McArthur

River Shaft #3 presink and set-up

was described and ended with

sinking ready to go. This article

summarizes the progress of the

shaft to the end of 2000.

McARTHUR RIVER MINE – SHAFT #3 UPDATESinking towards the world richest uranium deposits

The contract, along with all work innorthern Saskatchewan, is under-

taken by Mudjatik Thyssen Mining(“MTM”), a joint venture betweenThyssen Mining Construction ofCanada Ltd. (“TMCC”) and MudjatikEnterprises (“ME”). ME is, in turn, ajoint venture between a number ofAboriginal groups and communitiesfrom northern Saskatchewan.

ditions at the McArthur River mine,MTM had the methodology for sinkingwell refined. The shaft diameter was6 metres and the depth 540 metres.The geological setting was 12 metresof loose sands, 488 metres of horizon-tally bedded, water bearing sandstonesand 40 metres of basement Gneiss.The shaft collar was completed to adepth of 25 metres and the shaftsinking infrastructure installed. Thefacilities consisted of:

❑ 30 metre high sinking headframe;❑ 700 kW Lakeshore Double Drum

Single Clutch Sinking Hoist;

45Report 2001


Sinking methods

With the experience of sinking 2 si-milar shafts (shafts #1 and #2) andthus of the prevailing geological con-

Double Drum Sinking Hoist

❑ 4 – 15 kW New Era stage winches;❑ 2 – 7 kW Timberland clam winches;❑ 4 Sullair 100 kW compressors;❑ 2 “Herman” Clam type shaft

muckers;❑ 1 Tamrock 2-boom shaft jumbo;❑ 1 Concrete Batch plant;❑ 1 – 4 Deck sinking stage and

4.6 metres of concrete form;❑ 6 – 100 kW Flygt submersible

pumps;❑ 6 – 40 kW Flygt submersible

pumps;❑ 1 Grouting plant;❑ Surface support of 2 Komatsu

loaders and 1 Terex 25 tonne 4x6truck.

Sinking at intervals of 3 metres

The sandstones are heavily waterbearing at McArthur River and, ac-cordingly, probe holes and groutingwas required throughout the sand-stones. Grout covers were drilled55 metres to cover a 45 metressection of the shaft. Twelve coverswere completed during the sinking tothe basement. The covers were drilledutilizing the 2 boom jumbo also usedfor shaft sinking.

The sinking method employed wasbenching, utilizing a 2 boom jumbomounted in the sinking stage to drillblastholes, 60 – 3.66 metre blastholeswere drilled resulting in averagebench advance of 3 metres. Cartridge,emulsion explosives and Magnadetdetonators were used for blasting.Shaft mucking utilized 2 Herman boomtype mucking units loading into 4 cubicmetre buckets.

The excavation diameter was nominal-ly 6.6 meters, allowing for a minimumwall thickness of 300 mm. The con-crete lining was advanced in 4.6 metreslifts. This was done in a way that theliner was maintained at a maximum of10 metres above the shaft bottom.

Concrete was prepared in a MTMowned batch plant adjacent to theheadframe and delivered undergroundvia a 150 mm "slickline" pipe to the sta-ge where it was distributed into theforms.

Complex water management

The contract required a pumpingcapability during sinking of 2,000 litres/minute. This was achieved by theinstallation of pump tanks in the lining

at 50 metre intervals. Initially a 40 kWsubmersible pump was used to pumpa 50 metre head. From there onwardsa 100 kW pump was used to pumpthe 100 m head. This process wasrepeated as the shaft was deepened. A40 kW pump was used to pump fromthe stage to the wall tank and a 10 kWpump from the shaft bottom to thestage. At completion, the shaft waterrate was 100 litres per minute. A totalof 5 – 100 kW pumps were in serviceat shaft completion.

46


Report 2001

Sinking stage

The crew

Shaft crews consisted of a five manmining crew supported by a deckman,hoistman, electrician and mechanic oneach shift and a welder, dryman andbatch plant operator on day shift.Management of the project was pro-vided by a Project Superintendent andShaft Captain. Administrative supportwas provided by the staff at the Shaft#1 Development Project. All workersworked a 12 hour shift per day on a 14days on, 7 days off schedule.

Sinking progress

Sinking commenced on November 27,1999 from 25 metres depth and was

completed to 542 metre depth onAugust 17, 2000. During this period,some 101 days were expended onprobing and grouting, 5 days wereunavailable due to hoist breakdownsand 2 days were spent on station ex-cavation at the 250 metre level.Sinking activities were carried out on153.5 days for an average advance rateof 3.35 metres per day.MTM underground mining crewsbroke through from the mine intoShaft #3 on January 25, 2001.

A total of 6,172 cubic metres ofconcrete was poured for an averagewall thickness of 580 mm versus adesign thickness of 300 mm.

On schedule and within budget

McArthur River Shaft #3 was complet-ed ahead of schedule, safely and onbudget. The methods, skills and tech-niques developed in the sinking of3 shafts at McArthur River will ensurethat MTM/TMCC will remain as one ofthe premiere shaft sinking contractorsin North America.

Andy Fearn

47Report 2001


McArthur River … … Mine Project.

Shaft landing at mine surface

In spite of the difficult climate and a number

of infrastructural problems, excellent progress

has been achieved in the development of the

Bulyanhulu gold deposits in northern Tanzania,

some 45 kilometres south of Lake Victoria – a

project which commenced in September 1999.

Gold in Tanzania

Mining International TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING

Headgear withore bunker

The gold deposits are owned by theCanadian mining company BarrickGold Ltd., whose Tanzanian subsidiaryKahama Mining Corporation Ltd. isresponsible for the construction andfuture operation of the mine.

Shaft sinking

After all the shaft-sinking equipment,namely the winding gear, shaft winder,service winches and sinking platform,had been assembled, installed and putinto operation, and the permanentwinder house constructed, the jointventure - which comprised the SouthAfrican specialist mining company RUCMining Contracting Company andThyssen Schachtbau GmbH – beganthe shaft winding operation, with thefirst kibble being raised on 27th April2000. The scale and technical designused for the sinking project was based

on Tanzanian, Canadian and SouthAfrican specifications and regulations.

First skipful of gold ore brought to the surface

The 6.4 metre-diametre shaft has nowreached a depth of approximately500 metres and the in-shaft hoistingfittings have been installed down to the420 metre level. This meant that mid-shaft loading was able to commence inearly April with the first skipful of orebeing raised to the surface. After thisdate the mined ore will be brought tothe surface through the sinking shaft viathe 300 metre level (level 4,700) whilethe shaft sinking operation continues.

Inclined drivage

The roadheading operation to developthe ore body, which is being under-taken as a joint venture by RUC andByrnecut, has made excellent progresssince September 1999.

This work mainly comprises theheading of a 9,500 metre-long inclineddrift, which has an average gradient of

some 15°, as well as crosscuts, break-aways and level development.

The upper level development wasaccompanied by the excavation ofsome 2,000 metres of vertical shaftworks between the levels, including orepasses, waste passes and ventilationboreholes, which were created usingthe raise-boring method.

Local infrastructure

The lack of any infrastructure innorthern Tanzania poses a realchallenge for the project engineers,particularly when it comes to supplyingmaterials to the site. Most of themachinery, equipment and generalconstruction materials have to bebrought in by rail, road or air fromSouth Africa.

Rail transport from South Africa takesbetween 2 and 3 months to reach themine site. By comparison, trucks onlyneed about 4 weeks to reach Bulyan-hulu from South Africa. However, dueto the relatively poor road conditions,deliveries can only be brought in by

49Report 2001

TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING Mining International

As described in Report 2000, themining project involved sinking a

1,090 metre-deep surface shaft,constructing 10 shaft landings anddriving a 15-degree inclined drift toaccess the steeply-dipping ore body.

View of shaft site

truck during the dry season, that is tosay from May to November. Essentialsupplies can be flown in, but this is veryexpensive at $4.5 per kilogramme ofair freight.

The local site conditions meant that acareful and costly system had tobe developed for materials planningand spare-parts warehousing. Plantand machinery have to be ordered,assembled and transported in severalmonths before they are required. Itwas therefore essential for the minesite to operate an efficient provisioningsystem with a forward-looking reserveof spare parts and a well-stockedmaterials yard.

Shaft-sinking

The shaft strata, which are composedof andesitic, dioritic and basaltic

formations with rock strengths of up toa maximum of 140 MPa, are excavatedusing conventional drilling and shot-firing methods. The sinking gearcomprises an Atlas Copco quadruple-arm pneumatic-hydraulic boringmachine capable of taking pulls of3.70 metres. However, because of thelocal geology, the depth of advance hassubsequently been reduced to about3.0 metres.

Some of the relatively steep rockformations are intersected by faultzones filled with volcanic rock, whichtend to break away in large lumps.

The sinking debris is loaded into a4 cubic-metre kibble by cactus grab,and subsequently raised to the surfaceby the shaft winder.

Shaft lining

The concrete lining is installed almostsimultaneously with the sinking opera-tion under way on the floor of theshaft. The non-reinforced concretelining, which has a minimum thicknessof 23 cm, follows the sinking floor at adistance of between 15 and 20 metres.The concrete is prepared on site andtransported to the shaft mouth bymobile mixing machine, where it isdelivered down the fall-pipe to abaffle-plate mixing tub located on theupper deck of the sinking platform.Theconcrete is then pumped throughhoses to its ultimate destination behindthe shutter.

The concrete shutter comprises fiveindividual rings with a total height of5 metres.The bottom ring is fitted witha bunton box – a system normally

50

Mining International TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING

Report 2001

Shaft site with access road

employed in South African shaft sink-ing which allows the shaft buntonsneeded for the subsequent installationof the shaft guides etc. to be set inplace at the same time as the per-manent shaft lining is being fitted.Slotted boxes, which are bolted on tothe face side of the top casing ring,allow the formwork to engage with theconcrete. These boxes subsequentlyserve to accommodate the pipeworkbrackets and cable holders.

Shaft landings

The landings are also excavated byconventional drilling and shotfiringin parallel with the shaft sinkingoperation, with the horizontal shot-holes being drilled by hand usingcompressed-air hammer drills. AnEimco overhead shovel loader is alsodeployed as a back-up to the sinkinggrab.The floor and skip-pocket areas ofthe shaft landings are lined withreinforced concrete, while the roof andside-walls are finished with shotcrete.

Summary

The shaft sinking work and the con-struction of the ten shaft landings,together with the commissioning ofthe permanent shaft winder, is ex-

pected to be completed in June 2002.Given the adverse climate conditionsand infrastructural problems, theproject performance has been verysatisfactory to date. Within sevenmonths the project team – in additionto sinking the foreshaft – has success-fully assembled, installed and com-missioned all the site facilities, com-prising containers, office units andsanitary installations, together with thepermanent shaft equipment, includingthe hoisting winches, winder house andheadgear structure.

These operations were mainly carriedout during the rainy season, when it isnot unusual for 76 mm of rain to fall ina single hour and cases of malariaoccur more frequently; during the shaftsinking phase this meant that the fore-shaft was completely flooded withrainwater on several occasions, as nodrainage system was available. Malariais not uncommon in the humid climateand working progress is influenced as aresult.

For structural reasons part of theshaft-sinking team was recruited locally.

Training programmes and daily safetyinstructions proved successful and nosignificant accidents have occurredduring the sinking operation. Particularcredit is due to the sinking crews,which comprise personnel fromTanzania, South Africa, Australia andGermany, for their excellent safetyrecord and achievements to date.

Dipl.-Ing. Norbert HandkeDipl.-Ing. Dietmar Schilling

51Report 2001

TS SHAFT SINKING AND DRILLING Mining International

Shaft-sinking personnel

Foothills around Lake Victoria

The Stillwater Complex PGM

(Platinum Group Metals) – ore body

extends over 26 miles and is open

at depth.There is potential for over

100 years work at current mining.

Environmental concernstake high priority

The mine is located near Nye in theBeartooth Mountains 90 miles south-east of Billings, Montana. There is a6,000 foot variance from valley at5,000 feet to the mountain tops atover 11,000 feet . It has been minedsince 1985. Each stope is accessedfrom above and below by levels drivenat 300 feet interval vertically. Miningcurrently continues between the 6,900foot and 3,200 foot levels, all arequoted from sea level. The mine isadjacent to the Yellowstone NationalPark, Red Lodge Ski area and theCuster National Forest. Environmentalconcerns are a high priority andThyssen Mining actively complies withall local and federal requirements.The pristine Stillwater River, containing4 types of trout, flows between theeast and west sides of the mine. Blackbears, deer and Bighorn sheep arecommon visitors to the mine site.Thyssen Mining occupies the historicand picturesque Beartooth Duderanch as its man camp.

This report covers the introduction toproduction mining at the Stillwatermine and the effects of location, mining

methods, physical results and clientrelationships are discussed.

This report is written by Andrew Saltis,Project Manager for the Stillwater –Nye Project. Mr. Saltis has beenwith Thyssen Mining Construction ofCanada Ltd. (“Thyssen Mining”) since1995 and has been involved withthe McArthur River and Cluff Lakeuranium development and productionmining projects in northern Saskatche-wan, the Jericho Kimberlite bulk sampleproject in the North West Territoriesand is now on his second stint as theproject manager at the Stillwaterproject in Montana. Thyssen Miningwas the first mining contractor to beinvited back to the Stillwater Mine inStillwater Mining Company’s (“SMC”)history after the successful first projectwhich occurred in 1998.

The contractor in production mining

The current project started life as a10,220 foot development projectbeginning in September 1999, soonafterward another 5,000 feet wasadded in the western area of the mine.During the initial period, ThyssenMining was asked by SMC to carry outa small amount of secondary develop-ment in order for SMC to access ore;however, after a brief cost exercise,Thyssen Mining declined to give a priceas the cost to SMC would prove tooprohibitive. This factor, combined withthe facts that Thyssen Mining sitemanagement already had contractproduction mining experience and thatthe rising price of PGM market,

brought about SMC’s subsequentrequest to Thyssen Mining to provide aprice for expanding the original projectby mobilizing a production miningoperation at the Nye site. ThyssenMining’s bid was successful and pro-duction mining began in February2000.

Contract Details

The initial premise was that ThyssenMining were to take over and mine 5stopes already in production on theeast side of the mine.SMC personnel from those stopeswould then be released to work inother stopes on the west side ofthe mine. The stope locations wereselected for their proximity to driftsalready being developed by ThyssenMining. The stopes selected effectivelyrequired Thyssen Mining to take overfull operations on the east side of theStillwater mine and would be virtuallya stand alone operation in terms ofsupplies, maintenance, ventilation andinteraction with SMC personnel. Thiswould ease any administration andsupervision difficulties.

“Contract on trial”

The east side stopes are also differentfrom the west side in terms of geologyand physical conditions. The ore istypically more disturbed, offset withnumerous faults and in softer groundconditions. Due to the very difficultgeological conditions SMC was initiallyconcerned with a contractor takingover this scenario as there was noprevious history or experience ofsubcontract production mining for

52 Report 2001


THYSSEN MINING

Thyssen Mining – contract ore production mining at the Stillwaterproject Nye, Montana /USA

them to draw upon. Consequently, theinitial contract was for only 3 monthswork which would minimize the riskand exposure for both parties. Thecontract stated that there was poten-tial for up to 500 - 650 tons per dayhauled and that road grading andstope preparation must be included.SMC would continue to provide ma-terials to underground lay downs usingthe successful Normet system andwould provide underground liaisonpersonnel, geologists and engineers toenable SMC’s overall mine plan to beimplemented.

The camp is growing

Total manpower for this project wasestimated at 48 which effectivelydoubled the number of Thyssen Miningpersonnel at the project. To accom-modate this, the Beartooth man camp,that Thyssen Mining was alreadyoperating some 2 miles from the mine,had to be expanded. Extra roomswere opened up and sleeper trailerswere mobilized. The man camp has asewage limit of 90 persons, thereforethis theoretically held a cap on thenumber of persons in the project. Astime progressed, a number of person-nel found accommodation in the localcommunity and effectively a sufficientnumber of personnel was able to beemployed as the project increased.The increase came about in April 2000when SMC requested Thyssen Miningbegin stoping in the west side of themine, too. The area coincided withThyssen Mining’s other developmentactivities on the west side and ap-peared to be a natural fit. Taking overthe stoping also increased the haulageactivity, therefore Thyssen Mining alsotook over the rail materials andore/waste removal operations. Thetotal number of employees on sitereached 140 and included a newlyformed construction crew. The sub-contract for diamond drilling wasexpanded at the same time with threerigs working continuously to keep upwith the drifting progress of theThyssen Mining development crews.

The contractual changes in detail

During the operation of the firstcontract, SMC and Thyssen Miningbecame aware of some of the short-comings of the details in the originalproposal. The previous contract priceswere built with minimal historicalevidence and with higher risk factors.A revision of and an extension to theoriginal contract became necessary.The new contract would amend someadministration and invoicing metho-dologies and also utilize the costinginformation gleaned in the initial con-tract. The new contract was approvedfor September 2000 and was in effectuntil the end of December 2000.Costs for SMC fell as productionincreased and reduced prices wereimplemented.

During the operation of this secondcontract, it became apparent thatThyssen Mining had gained the ex-pertise to be very proficient at thistype of mining with good miningmethods, cost control and safetyresults. In November 2000, ThyssenMining requested from SMC that it beallowed to submit a new contract tocover 6 months of production miningin 2001 between January and June.

SMC was very receptive to this bidand instructed Thyssen Mining toprepare a new proposal. The new bidretained the factors of the old pro-posal but streamlined the administra-tion and invoicing process further.

Flexibility – major asset for the client

SMC accepted the third proposal andproduction mining continued. A three-month proposal had thus developedinto seventeen months of contractedwork. However, during February 2001,the mine had accumulated a 20,000ton stockpile, stope productivity levelswere at an all time high and SMC’srecruitment efforts led to the requestthat Thyssen Mining demobilize thestoping crews. The demobilizationeffectively allowed SMC to reduceoverall monthly costs and stockpilelevels. Client trust and reliance in-creased, and Thyssen Mining has alsogained a reputation for quality produc-tion mining in the US. With the abilityto mobilize and demobilize quickly andeffectively in response to client re-quest, Thyssen Mining has shown thatthe use of a contractor in productionmining is trouble free and a viablealternative for short term projects.

53Report 2001


Photograph of the East Side Surface – the east side portal in the bottom left of the picture

The west side reef is generally lessaffected by faults over short distancesbut can be overturned or more flatlaying than the east side. Generally, thewest side reef and footwall is morecompetent than the east side.

Production mining – in two basic styles

Each stope is generally operated on atwo shifts per day basis with one minerand one “bull gang” member as a two-man crew. The two-man crew woulddrill, blast, muck and supply themselvesfrom the entrance of the stope to theface. A production supervisor and a“nipper”, i.e. an underground helpernipping material, would organize theday’s duties and ensure their supplypoint was fully stocked. A super-intendent would liaise with the clientand the workforce to ensure im-mediate and longer-term objectiveswere met. This format proved sosuccessful at the Nye site that SMCstaff often spoke about Thyssen Miningas “the problem solvers” rather thanproblem producers.

Thyssen Mining operates up to sevenstopes at any one time. Each stope iscapable of producing between 20 and200 tons per day depending on itsmining methodology. Stopes at theNye site generally consist of overhandcut and fill in two basic styles:

The first is LHD (load-haul-dump) cutand fill where access to the ore is pro-vided by secondary ramp developmentoff the footwall and where the reef isthick enough.

The second is a footwall access to araise-bored hole which is bored closeto the reef package. These are calledcaptive slusher stopes or “can” stopes.They are designed whenever the reefis not wide enough for the LHD cutand fill method to be employed.

The access to these stopes generally isby ladder from the top, the initial cut ismade from the ladder to the lowestlevel. The cut is opened up and aslusher installed which removes themuck via a cribbed chute to thematerial removal point on the nextlower level. From that point onwards,the method is similar to the LHD cutand fill. After the stopes are workedout, the cavities are packed with a dirtand sand infill to serve as the floor forthe next bench which is taken 10 fthigher.

Production and blasting operation

Mucking equipment includes 1.25 yard,2 yard and 3.5 yard LHD’s. ThyssenMining maintains its own equipmentfleet with supplemental rental equip-ment. The majority of the ThyssenMining fleet has been in use since theoriginal project in 1998 and has beenmaintained to excellent standards.Some modifications to equipment hasbeen designed on site to improveequipment availability such as the hosebulkhead system on the drill jumbo’s.

Trucking is carried out by 13 and15 ton trucks. Some material is takendirectly to the shaft via the level acces-ses while waste is alternatively taken tothe surface portal and dumped. Greatcare is taken to mark ore and wastepiles in stope access muck bays asdilution is finely tracked. Each area isassessed in compliance with markedpiles as is each stope on dilution fromagreed mining widths. Upon contact

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Report 2001

With Thyssen Mining’s history of over18 years of continuous productionmining at Cluff Lake in Saskatchewan, ithas also shown that long term relati-onships are possible too.

Production mining – geology

In exploration, diamond drill holes aredrilled on 50 foot centers in a squaregrid pattern from each level. ThyssenMining initially employed its own rigsand crews at Nye but moved to usinga diamond-drilling subcontractor (N.Morissette Ltd.) with LM37’s and aDiamec 262 to drill holes up to 650feet long. SMC engineers carried outthe planning and geology assessmentof the holes. The holes were drilled atBQTK (59.9 mm hole diameter, thinwall) and initially used the KS++/4 bitfor very hard rock which provideddrill penetration rates acceptable toThyssen Mining in these ground condi-tions.

Difficult geological conditions on the eastside

The rock types were magmatic inorigin being Gabbros, Dunites, Noritesand Olivine, with pre-mineral dykesintruding and pegmatoidal occurrencesin most units.The geology on the eastside of the mine is greatly affected bythe reef changing its inclination andalso by numerous offset faults. Hangingwall rock can be very competent tovery poor. Ore grades on the east sidecan generally vary from 0.3 ounce perton to over 2 ounces per ton. Someproduction faces, backstopes andslashes have been estimated well overthat amount. Ore can appear as visiblesulphides similar to iron pyrites andalso can be finely disseminated and notvisible. In either case, the grade canbe similar. The ore pinches and swellsgenerally with a vertical continuity.Typically, a stope can be minedbetween levels at the same Eastingbetween levels.

Photograph of backstopes

with the ore, the bottom cut is madeand the ore is mined out at minimumwidth to the full extent of the definedarea at one elevation.The walls of thestope are examined for ore contentand slashed as required to ensure thefull potential is realized.

Slusher stopes are designed where reefwidths are under the minimum widthof a 1.5 yard scoop. Stope widths canbe as narrow as 3 feet where supportcan be given by installing wooden stullsand backboards. Material supply tothese stopes is provided by small skiplike devices which slide on the manway ladders for guides. Ore and wastepasses down a “cribbed chute” to thematerial removal point on the nextlevel below. Small grizzlies are installedon the top of these cribs to preventany chute blockages. Scrap in ore andwaste is critical, therefore it is removedas soon as the material is dumped inthe stope muck bay or in the stopeitself when slashing takes place.

Equipment for drilling generally isSECAN jacklegs with occasional use ofa twin boom air jumbo where groundconditions and drift size permits. Crosshead bits and 7/8” hex steel are thenorm for jacklegs. A jackleg test bedhas been designed and built by ThyssenMining site mechanical staff which cantest 42 separate functions in a leg ormachine. All testing is done under-ground on site and replacement ofparts is done purely on a reduced per-formance basis. The same staff alsodesigned a jumbo boom modificationwhich has greatly reduced hose changedowntime.

West side stopes are developed as topand bottom sill cuts in preparation forsub level caving or as ramp and fillstopes. Selective blasting (split blasting)is practiced to minimize dilution and toenable larger equipment to access thestope at a later date (split blastdiagram). Typical stope round dimen-sions are 6 – 10 feet wide, 10 feet highand 6 feet deep.This minimizes dilutionin the width and ensures a jackleg candrill the height and reduces directionalerrors when the reef changes itsazimuth. A geologist assesses eachround before the next round is takenunless it is a known that the stope ison the edge of a waste gap zone.

Ground Support

Ground support is installed on asystematic basis according to 5 basicbolt densities or “support types”.Each support type increases boltingdensities, however it is not just para-meters such as bolts per square footwhich vary but also bolt types (splitsets/ dywidags / cable bolts), additionalmeasures (mats/ mesh/ shotcrete/spiling) and drift opening type (drift orjunction).

The typical bolt types in stopes weretype 2 and type 3. Occasionally theground conditions would requirehigher types (typically in areas of highergrade ore or higher olivine content).Cable bolts vary between 20 and50 feet in length depending on groundconditions and the operational planabove the current cut or level. Theyare cement filled with one tube andthe bottom is stuffed to preventcement fallout.They can be plated andtensioned or left unplated.

Mesh for ground cover comes as chainlink rolls 5 feet x 20 feet or as 4 feet x8 feet expanded metal panels. Thepanels are sandblasted to removesharp edges. Mats are typically either9 feet or 4 feet in length to accommo-date the bolts.

When the face becomesa ballroom

Bolt patterns typically are centeredaround a 3 foot x 3 foot pattern orvariation thereof. Bolting is always towithin 3 feet of the face with wallsbeing bolted from the back.The systemworks well but is dependent on super-vision diligence to ensure if any in-crease in density is immediately in-stalled as variations are common fromround to round.

A 10 foot high face is typical on sub-sequent cuts as, after the first, theundercut “brow” is utilized to reducedrilling requirements. The subsequentcuts are usually offset due to dip ofthe reef. The “ballroom” areas instopes are common as ore widths canvary from 2 feet to over 30 feet. Cablebolting is required after 20 feet. Ball-rooms are opened by an initial driftrunning through the ore zone. Then,from diamond drill hole assessmentsand geology site visits, the size anddepth of any subsequent slashing isordered to ensure full extraction.

Rarely is ore left unextracted. Thisoccurs when the ground conditionswould put the continuation of thestope at risk. Each stope was assessed

55Report 2001


Stope access

weekly on its ground type with eachwall and the back being assignedits own bolt density requirement. Aweekly planning meeting sets out thegoal for the next week and also pro-vides a forum for ideas on how totackle the issues that the ground con-ditions impose. A second weeklymeeting is carried out with thecontract administration group toensure information and issues are dealtwith efficiently and are not mixed withoperational planning matters.

Positive safety results

In terms of safety statistics, the Nye sitehas twice reached 100,000 hours withno lost time accidents and, at the timeof writing, has reached 6 months (over160,000 hours) with no lost timeaccident. Two full time safety co-ordinators are on site at any one timeand, combined with safety meetingsand individual safety team representa-tives, ensure full communications flow.The Thyssen Safety Management Planwas implemented during this project. Ithas been a valuable contribution to theimproved safety awareness on site.

Production targets continuously surpassed

Stoping tonnages were consistent andimpressive. Every monthly target wasmet and surpassed quite substantiallyon occasion sometimes by as much as45%. Monthly output included all tonsagreed by geologists. These tonnagesvaried between 9,000 and 11,000 tonsdepending upon the number of eachtype of stope and the productionphase that each stope was en-countering during that month. Twice,a Thyssen Mining stope was the num-ber one ounce producer for themonth for the whole mine. This stopewas a conventional cut and fill “ball-room” stope and competed against thesub-level cave “super stopes”.

Thyssen Mining has, since the beginningof the production project, maintaineddilution figures less than half that ofthe best dilution figure for an SMCoperated stope. Typical worst casedilution was 9 % with many instancesof 0 %.This translates immediately intocheaper tons and improves the abilityto manage ground control measures.Dilution is based on equipment usage,ore widths and mining method.Dilution in some cases can be “gooddilution”.This leads to cases where themaximum allowed width because ofequipment constraints is diluted by orewhich is outside of the allowed miningmethod width.

Liaison and relations with SMC wasexcellent with Thyssen Mining inputbeing valued for its timeliness andquality. Thyssen Mining mined in 25different stopes on 7 levels and, at thetime of writing, had extracted 116,000tons from these stopes in the courseof 12 months.

Andrew Saltis

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Report 2001

Jumbo Hose Bulkheads

TS BAU Construction Germany

EBBG (Mining Experience Operating

Company), which is a subsidiary of

Glückauf Sondershausen Entwick-

lungs- und Sicherungsgesellschaft

New concert hall is a masterpiece of acoustics:

(GSES), was set up to market

Sondershausen colliery as a tourist

venue, including the notorious

‘crystal tour’ and other attractions

such as mountain-bike runs and

underground wedding ceremonies.


Excavation of the roof profile with ‘acoustic terracing’

57Report 2001

58

Construction Germany TS BAU

Report 2001

In May 2000 the consortium formedby Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH and

TS-Bau Proterra was awarded thecontract for the underground ex-cavation of a concert hall big enoughto accommodate an audience of 300.The new hall would create a newtourist attraction and at the same timeenhance the national and internationalreputation of Sondershausen as amusical venue.

Ideal geological conditions

Rock mechanics experts were satisfiedwith the plan to excavate such a largechamber in stable rock-salt strata;however they did recommend a non-aggressive cutting action for the roofand side-wall contours. From theMining Inspectorate point of view, themain focus of attention was directed atthe roof arch profile – a key areawhere safety and stability were para-mount.

One of the main challenges facing theplanning engineers was to create ahigh-quality acoustic chamber. Themodel-based geometric calculationscarried out before the project begancalled not only for an arched profilebut also for a special ‘terracing’ ofthe roof in order to enhance theacoustic effect. The hall was to

measure 26 metres long by 18 metreswide by 10 metres in height.

In addition to the concert hall itself,other chambers were to be excavatedto accommodate a foyer, cloakrooms,dining area and washrooms, togetherwith an adjacent bowling alley.

Know-how for the acoustic terracing

The project partners opted for anAM 50 roadheader for the chamberexcavation phase and ripping work, asit was considered that this machinehad a non-aggressive cutting actionwhich would comply well with thesafety requirements and acousticspecifications.In order to achieve the total chamberelevation of 10 metres, the main cavitywas excavated in three horizontalslices of 3.0 to 3.5 metres in height.

Excavation of the second and third slice (after completion of roof profile)

The project which subsequently un-folded some 700 metres beneath thetown can be described without exag-geration as unique. One entry in theGuinness Book of Records followedanother. Even the new concert hallitself is expected to be a recordbreaker. Visitors to the various eventstaking place in the hall will swell theexisting number of enthusiastic visitors,who include mountain-bike fans, crystal-tour trippers and wedding guests.

59Report 2001


Glückauf Vermessung Sondershausenexcavation patterns were devised foreach of the ‘acoustic steps’, and thesewere then cut out by the machineusing a spot and zonal laser systemwith continuous monitoring. Much out-lay was also devoted to the change-over operations required at the

conveyor and cutting head for thecomplex cross-cutting action whichhad to be performed in order toproduce the terracing effect. Aftercompletion of the top slice theacoustics technician attached to theheading team was able to verify that an

Concert hall after excavation, with electricians engaged in installing the electrical installations

The creation of the arch-profile roof,with its terraced contours, proved to

be a particularly complicatedoperation. Working in

close collaboration with

excellent result had been achieved. Noproblems were encountered duringthe subsequent excavation of the twolower slices, which were completed ontime and to a high standard. Theconstruction of the side-walls, withtheir precise angle of 4 degrees, calledfor a particularly high level of work-manship (Figures 3 and 4).

After undergoing a successful finalinspection, the chamber was handedover to the client on 2nd January 2001.

Formal opening scheduled for May 2001

Once the engineering and fitting workhas been completed, including layingfloors, constructing the stage and walk-ways, fitting out the cloakrooms, layingcables and lighting circuits, and installingthe stage equipment, the concert hall isto be formally opened in May 2001.

The construction of the new under-ground attraction meant excavating

some 6,000 cubic metres of materialfrom virgin drivages and trimmingoperations. The project was jointlyfunded by the Federal Land ofThuringia, the GSES and the town ofSondershausen.

Dipl.-Ing. Hans-Joachim Aland

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Report 2001

Concert hall after excavation, with workmen engaged in laying the wood flooring

61Report 2001


The B 169 trunk road, which

connects the areas of Cottbus

and Chemnitz, links the Riesa-

Seerhausen-Hof region to the A 13

in the north-east and the A 14 and

A 4 in the south-west.

Local bypass forthe B 169 trunk road

become something of a bottleneck andthe need for a traffic-relief roadwas recognized as a priority withinthe context of the German FederalTraffic Management Plan. The Meissen

Highways Department, who wereresponsible for issuing the contract forthe road improvement scheme, optedto divide the project up into sevenindividual sections.

Demolition of existing bridges on Breitscheidtstrasse

Bridges for pedestrians and cyclists over the B 169

Project commencement

The bypass construction projectcommenced in September 1999, andwas completed on 15 December 2000with TS Bau (formerly Pape Bau-Union) being responsible for allthe main contractual work required.The preparatory work involved de-molishing a bridge, using explosives,knocking down a shoe factory andformer petrol station and carrying outextensive site clearance operations,which required the removal of some100,000 cubic metres of soil, the layingof 5,000 metres of drainage pipes(some to a depth of 8 metres) and theconstruction of a rainwater spill-over

The Elbe bridge, which forms partof the B 169 in the Riesa conur-

bation, is a vital transport link in thatthe nearest river crossing points atMeissen and Torgau are 20 and 40 kilo-metres away respectively. On the leftbank of the Elbe, where it flowsthrough Riesa, is the B 169/B 182intersection, while to the south-westthere is a link-up with the B 6. In viewof the very high volume of traffic usingthese junctions, which have never beenupgraded, the route through Riesa had

tank alongside the river Elbe. Existingtelephone, gas and water services,together with medium-voltage andhigh-voltage cables and street lightingcircuits, were relayed or replaced aspart of the road construction work.

Three soundproof barriers some 250metres in length were constructedalong the route of the new road inorder to reduce the traffic noise levelfor the benefit of the urban residents.

Two road-traffic bridges and twoadditional crossings for cyclists and

pedestrians, as well as retaining wallsfor the 7 metre-high access ramps,were constructed within a very shortspace of time. 3.5 km of the newcarriageway was built with four-lanes.

Due to the very high traffic density,especially in the morning and eveningrush-hours, the inconvenience causedby the traffic re-routing arrangementsfor the Bahnhofstrasse and BerlinerStrasse junctions, and around the city-centre ring-road, called for a great dealof patience and understanding fromcommuters.


Earth-moving operations for bridge construction work

Soundproof panel walls Road-traffic bridge

The redevelopment of the underpassfor the old Elbe bridge, the con-struction of the new underpass andthe link-up with the B 182 and B 169are all to be finished by the projectcompletion date of 30 June 2001.Thenew four-lane Elbe bridge crossing atRiesa, which is still under construction,will also be ready for traffic by thisdate.

Dipl.-Ing. Heike Stohr

For thousands of years architects

and planners working on building

projects have endeavoured to use

the natural laws of physics, such as

light, sound, heat and cold, to put

into practice the wishes of their

clients.

DIG uses diverted daylight to brighten up Deutsche Bahn’s

control centre in Munich

ture and technical design posedcomplex problems for the planningand installation of a daylight deflectorceiling.

Let us now examine the project’s threebasic requirements:

1,200 surface plates for the rotational hyperboloids

The core of the operations centre is acircular room with a radius of 9 metres

The classical amphitheatres, forexample, were masterpieces of

acoustic design and these structuresare in fact still used today for all kindsof events.Then there are the pyramidsof Egypt, whose ability to maintain abalance between heat, cold andhumidity allows them to preservehuman and animal bodies, and evenfoodstuffs, for incredibly long periodsof time.

The Deutsche Bahn constructionproject for the railway operationscentre in Munich has also managed toextract maximum benefit from thenew building. Here the installation of a“daylight deflector ceiling” meant thatimportant requirements were met atthe same time:❑ the deflection of daylight,❑ the absorption of ambient sound

The operations centre – with 140 ope-rators providing a 24-hour service –is responsible for controlling andmonitoring all train movements in theBavaria region. The three-storey build-ing is circular in shape and its architec-

Figure 1: Sectional view of daylight deflector ceiling

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DIG Construction Germany

Construction Germany DIG

64 Report 2001

which houses all the technical equip-ment. This concrete structure was tobe provided with a visually appealinginternal lining. Figure 1 (left) shows theconcrete wall and behind that theoperational equipment. The liningsystem (daylight deflector ceiling) fittedin front of the wall, here depicted insection as a double line, is designed asa half rotational hyperboloid. Thethree-dimensional form of this liningposed a very interesting mathematicalproblem when it came to working outthe dimensions of the inner-lining pla-tes, and much computer time andexpense was devoted to finding anappropriate solution. With the de-flector ceiling designed as a completecircle with openings, the planners hadto produce calculations for approxi-mately 1,200 surface plates comprisingsome 150 different individual shapes.

Light deflection

To meet the functional requirements ofan operations center for 140 em-ployees comprising workplaces for upto 8 monitors the glass surfaces werekept to a minimum, with the result thatonly a moderate amount of daylightreached the lower rooms.

This drawback was compensated forby the geometrical layout of the lining,which used a concentrated light sourceto cast a fairly uniform spread of lightover as wide an area as possible –

rather like a car headlight.This principleis demonstrated by the light-deflectiondiagram shown in Figure 1.The surfaceplates were made from a specially-treated and structured anodizedaluminium material so as to achieve adiffuse and dazzle-free light coveragewithout any loss in luminosity.

Sound absorption

Hard surfaces such as concrete, metaland glass are poor absorbers of sound,with the result that the building suffer-ed not only from the undesirable halleffect but also from a high level ofbackground noise.

In order to improve this situation theindividual lining plates were providedwith perforations 2 mm in diameterand set about 4 mm apart.This createda free-space surface area of approxi-mately 20 %. An acoustic fleecematerial was also bonded onto theplates to provide frictional resistanceto the penetrating sound waves andthereby absorb the acoustic energy.

The light deflector linings were supple-mented by separate sound absorptionchambers – in simple terms open shelfunits inlaid with sound absorbingmaterial – which were fitted aroundthe walls of the room.

As the final touch – the fabricsurrounding the acoustic chambers

depicted local views of the Munichlandscape in accordance with theirlocation on the map – thereby givingthe impression of a large area of glass.

It has to be said that complex assemblyprojects of this type can only be putinto practice with real teamworkbetween the parties, namely the client,tenant and architect, on one hand, andthe manufacturers and contractors, onthe other.

The project once again gave DIG(Deutsche Innenbau GmbH) theopportunity to display its skills andcompetence as a specialist contractorfor interior construction and design.

We hope that the brighter surround-ings in Deutsche Bahn’s operationscentre will help lighting the way for allits trains to arrive safely at theirdestination.

Dipl.-Ing. Jörg Stieren

Figure 2: Perforated plasterboard panelling, sound absorption chambers with fabric covering

Project partnersClient:Hirundo Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH & Co.Vermietungsgesellschaft KGUnsöldtstraße 2, 80538 Munich

Tenant:DB Netz AG, NL SüdRichelstraße 1, 80634 Munich

Architect/General planner:SIAT Bauplanung und IngenieurleistungenGmbH + Co. KGRosenheimer Straße 145, 81671 Munich

Underwriter:ARGE Investa/Tercon

Contractor:STRABAG Hoch unf IngenieurbauMunich branch

Light deflector ceiling supplied by:Durlum Leuchten GmbHAn der Wiese 579650 Schopfheim

Figure 3: View of daylight deflector ceiling

Old cranes get new home

Plans by Carbonaria GmbH for the

construction of a new coking plant

on the western bank of the

Schwelgern dock facility meant

It’s all change at Duisburg-Schwelgern docks

Travelling cranes gowalk-about

moving two of the existing overhead

travelling cranes, which were

destined for new roles as freight

handling installations.The new sites

chosen for the cranes were on the

north bank of the Schwelgern docks

and at the Walsum dockyard, both

of which could be accessed by

water.

Travelling crane is “shipped out”

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Report 2001


Gigantic scale

The bridge cranes are both massivestructures, as shown by the followingdescription of crane installation IV:

This steel giant, which was constructedin 1981, weighs in at 722 tonnes andmeasures 123 metres in length. Thetrolley track stands an impressive17 metres in height.

The logistical problems associated withmoving an object of this size thereforecalled for very careful planning.

Transfer plan

The cranes were to be moved to theirnew locations using a pontoon. Veryprecise static calculations had to beundertaken in order to ensure that theheight level remained constant whentransferring the installations from solidland to the specially adapted floatingplatform. The design alterations madeto the pontoon, combined with theuse of trained personnel for the water-tank pumping operations needed tomaintain ballast equalization, wereabsolutely vital to the success of theproject. Any uncontrolled settling of

the pontoon would have causedsudden tilting of the payload andresulted in the failure of the operation.

A job well done

TS Bau (formerly Pape Bau-Union)began preparing for the transferoperation as early as April 2000, soas to be ready to move the cranesduring late August and early Sep-tember.

The first stage of the project wascarried out at the cranes new locationsites, where the rail-tracks, substructureand current collector ducts had to be

Crane shifting system

Transfer ramp at Walsum south dockyard

re-built. In all some 1,230 metresof crane tracks and 610 metres oftrolley-wire ducts were assembled andinstalled.Work also had to be done at theoriginal crane sites, where a similarquantity of tracks had to be dismantledand, in some cases, disposed of.

The transfer ramps required for themove also had to be built up usingsome 5,000 cubic metres of earth,which had to be carefully compactedto cope with the surface pressurewhich would be exerted by the cranes.

The transfer operation itself wasundertaken by a firm of specialists.During the move the TS Bau measure-ment and surveying departmentcarefully monitored the degree ofsettlement so as to be able to give anearly warning of tilting. The care takenduring this stage of the operationmeant that substructure changes werekept to a maximum of 15 mm – whichwas easily dealt with by the projectengineers.

Both bridge cranes are now per-forming to the complete satisfaction of

Travelling cranes on tour

Constructing the transfer ramps Original emplacement on west bank

Formation work

New tracks for overhead travelling crane

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Report 2001

their new operators – Eisenbahn undHäfen AG.

Josef KremerDipl.-Ing. Andreas Pabst

69Report 2001


The autonomous township of

Plauen, famed for its tradition of

lace-making, lies on the banks of

the Elster river at the heart of the

Vogt region in the south-west of

the Free State of Saxony.

A contract with a difference

After the relaying and repositioning ofthe underground pipes and cables,TS Bau was awarded the contract toestablish temporary track facilitieswhich would allow the normal tramtransport service to be maintained

during the renovation work. From thepublic tenders which followed, thecompany was able to acquire ordersworth a total of DM 15 million for fiveindividual projects as part of the “Infra-structure measures for Plauen towncentre”.This included contracts for therenovation of the open-space areas,using high-quality natural stone paving,the relaying of some 2,500 metres oftrack and the construction of coveredstation areas, including a servicebuilding. The work also comprisedthe installation of a 1500 mm drain-water collector and the reconstructionof the road leading to the town centrevia Hammerstrasse and Syrastrasse.The advantage of these inner-cityconstruction projects was that theycombined a number of specialist skills,namely road-building, civil engineeringand rail-track laying.

New town centre to be unveiled in August2001

Working to a tight schedule the opera-tion commenced in July 2000 with the

Plauen town centre gets face-lift

Plauen’s new central tram station is constructedwithout interruption to regular transport services

Local transport services for the town’s71,000 inhabitants are provided by

Plauen’s municipal tramcar company. Aspart of a town-centre rebuilding project,work is now under way on the com-plete renovation of the central tramstation, which is used daily by up to20,000 passengers, together with thesurrounding area. The operation beganwith the rebuilding of the “Stadtgalerie”shopping centre, a project which wasfunded by private investment.

New tramcar tracks in the centre of Plauen


70 Report 2001

removal of the existing service facilities.Despite the best efforts of staff fromthe Federal Office of Archeology, theunderground excavations produced nonew insights into the town’s history.As it was necessary to keep inter-ruptions to the tram services to aminimum, some 300 metres of twin-track had to be completely re-laidduring October and November using amultiple-shift system which includedweek-end work. Once the new raillayout is completed, the track structurecan be replaced during March 2001

and the road-building work can thencommence.The use of an innovative and advancedperformance control system has meantthat the construction project has beena pilot scheme in some respects. Bymeans of a detailed “project-structure-plan” based on the SAP R/3 system theeffective costs are assigned very pre-cisely to the individual performancesectors, so that by recording per-formance data via the KALWIN calcu-lation software the actual costs can becompared with calculated costs using a

Station zone with semi-finished roof structureInstallation of balustrade walkway

Working space is confined by ongoing tramcar services

dedicated interface system.This meansthat discrepancies can be corrected atan early stage and conclusions drawnfor the purpose of subsequent calcu-lations.The newly refurbished town centre is tobe handed over to the client on 10thAugust 2001. Until then all those invol-ved in the project will be working flatout to ensure that this ambitious inner-city scheme is completed on scheduleand with a positive operating result.

Dipl.-Ing. Roland StelzigDipl.-Ing. Jörg Romankiewicz

71Report 2001

ÖSTU-STETTIN TUNNELBAU Construction International

As part of the on-going

reorganization of the Thyssen

Schachtbau Group all tunneling

activities in Germany have now

been brought together under

Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau GmbH.

After a change of name from the

former Östu Tunnelbau GmbH, the

new company is now actively

entering the German market as an

affiliate of Austrian-based Östu-

Stettin Hoch- und Tiefbau GmbH.

New Company Joins TS Group:

Mülheim an der Ruhr

The German arm of Östu-StettinHoch- und Tiefbau GmbH

(Leoben) has seen its new business getoff to a promising start with an initialworkforce of some 30 employeescurrently involved in the constructionof the new Cologne-Frankfurt intercityexpress line, which is due to becompleted in 2001.

mining sector excludes all coal-relatedoperations, in order to respect thedemarcation line between the activitiesof Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau GmbH andthose of other companies in theThyssen Schachtbau Group.

"The team possesses a combination ofexperience and youthful dynamism.Backed up by the Leoben-basedparent company, the new enterpriseis expected to perform well even inthe fiercely-competitive German con-struction market.”

Dr.-Ing. Helmut Ligárt

The company’s core business is basedon techniques for the conventionalconstruction, consolidation and sup-port of underground cavities in avariety of cross-sections and usingvarious different excavation methods.

TUNNELLING SHAFT SINKING – MINING – UNDERGROUNDRAILWAY – SPECIALIZED CIVILUNDERGROUNDENGINEERING

all feature in the company’s wide rangeof activities.

The company’s shaft-sinking activitiesare restricted to conventional projectscarried out at shallow to mediumdepths (approx. 100 metres), and the

TUNNELBAU GMBH

Emergency exit shafts are fitted with inner linings

Project scope

The shaft sinking work and the in-stallation of the shotcrete lining werecompleted by Östu-Stettin Hoch- undTiefbau GmbH in October 1999. Afterthe ATAC (consortium responsiblefor tunnel sections A and C) had ex-cavated the connecting adits fromthe main tunnel and completed theconstruction of the steel-concretesupporting arch and shaft floor, aspecialist sub-contractor was calledin to install the sealing elements, whichcomprised welded plastic packingstrips with radial jointing rings.The main services to be providedby Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau were asfollows:❑ installation of a pressure-tight steel-

concrete inner lining to link up withthe connecting adit to the tunnel

❑ installation of a rectangular, cen-trally-positioned lift-shaft from thebottom of the emergency shaft upto ground level

❑ construction of staggered landingsand stairway

❑ supply and fitting of prefabricatedstairway sections, and

❑ erection of a shaft-top building

Construction procedures

In close collaboration with the projectconsortium it was decided to con-struct the steel-concrete inner lining

using a single-face sliding form as acast-in-situ concrete body. The lift-shaftwas then also to be cast in situ seam-lessly using a double-face sliding formsystem.This meant that the two slidingforms would have to be dismantled onreaching the shaft surface, in order tobe able to construct the upper sectionof the lift-shaft which projected about4 metres above ground level.The landings in the area of the con-necting steel reinforcement, which hasalready been laid in sliding concrete,are constructed from the bottomupwards in a subsequent concretingphase using conventional floor slab

In Report 2000 Leoben-based

Östu-Stettin presented a report on

the successful sinking of emergency

exit shafts along the Cologne-

Rhein/Main intercity express line.

Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau GmbH has

now been awarded its first contract

for the installation of the inner lining

in three of the Schulwald-tunnel

shafts, which are between 27 and

42 metres in depth and have an

internal diameter of 8 metres.

After completion of the sliding concrete operationthe lift-shaft stands on its own in the emergencyexit shaft (in this case shaft NA2).The connectingreinforcement for one of the landings can be seento the right

Concrete being delivered to emergency shaft NA5during sliding phase

Construction International ÖSTU-STETTIN TUNNELBAU

73Report 2001

ÖSTU-STETTIN TUNNELBAU Construction International

forms, which then act as abutmentsfor the stairway sections which arebrought in as pre-cast concrete units.A site crane is used to raise thesections into their final position onelastomer bearings reinforced withsteel inserts, prior to the installation ofthe shaft-top building, which has beendesigned as a steel-concrete structure.Special attention has been paid to theplanning and organisation of the slidingphases. Once the concreting operationhas begun, the concrete has to beplaced wet-for-wet in a constant andcontinuous flow so as to produce amonolothic shell. Any unscheduledcessation of the concreting operationwill therefore prove extremely proble-matic, as it will always impair the qualityof the finished product and result in asubstantial increase in costs due to the

need for an unbudgeted monolithicjoint to be inserted. The sliding phasesat all three construction sites werecompleted as planned and without anyinterruptions.

Operating equipment

The in-shaft operations were assistedby a site crane located at the shaft top.Two of the shafts were served by aLiebherr 140 HC revolving towercrane, whose design dimensions weresuch that the lifting hook was able toreach any point on the shaft cross-section to a depth of 40 metres belowground level, with a minimum load-carrying capacity of about 7 tonnes.A Liebherr portal crane with a loadingcapacity of 12.5 tonnes was already inplace at the third shaft, as this instal-lation had been used for the sinkingoperation.The steel sliding form with fixed con-creting stage and sub-slung curing plat-form, with a dead weight of some

5 tonnes and an overall weight of upto 7 tonnes (including the store ofsteelwork), was raised and controlledhydraulically via 10 lifting trestles in theshaft inner shell and 4 lifters at thecorners of the lift-shaft. Alignment wascontrolled during the sliding phase by4 optical plumb-lines installed on theshaft floor, whose readings were takenfrom the concreting stage.This systemensured that the tolerance specifica-tion of +/- 20 mm was safely main-tained.A special 1.5 cubic-metre skip wasused for delivering the concrete. Thisitem was fitted with a mechanizedmetering unit and hydraulic hosepinch-off for effective dischargecontrol, with both systems operatedelectrically from the end of the fillerline.A ladder scaffolding tower accom-panied the concreting team as theoperation advanced and was availableat all times as an emergency escaperoute in the event that personnel had

Emergency exit shaft NA4 after installation oflandings, viewed from shaft bottom; the pre-fabricated stairway sections are lowered in throughthe surface opening in order to allow the landingsto be connected together

Cast-in-situ lift-shaft in position in the centre of the emergency exit shaft; the gap in the steel concrete of theshaft lining (right) will be used to supply water to the tunnel for fire protection purposes

to leave the sliding form and moveback into the main tunnel.Transport tothe workplace was normally providedby means of approved crane-lifted

kibbles which brought the workersfrom the surface to the sliding formplatform.“Doka” concreting forms were usedfor the steel-concrete work on thelandings and at the shaft-top building.

Manpower

During the sliding phase the site wasmanned around the clock on a 2-shiftbasis. The installation of the 8-10 mm-diameter steel reinforcing bars provedto be a critical part of this operationand the reinforcement column had tobe laid using 6 men per shift in orderto achieve optimum progress. The menworked in pairs when carrying out thevarious operating processes, such ascrane steering, underground materialstransport, concrete placement andsliding-form operation, as well as thebringing in of numerous componentsand the re-setting of the scaffoldingtower. Each shift comprised 12 menand one supervisor.The steel concrete work on thelandings and at the shaft-top buildingrequired teams of between 4 and5 men working on a one-shift basis.

Progress

During the sliding phase an averageperformance of 5.45 metres per daywas achieved with a concrete place-ment of approximately 19 cubicmetres per metre of distance.The peakperformance reached over a single shift

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Construction International ÖSTU-STETTIN TUNNELBAU

Report 2001

Intersection between connecting adit andemergency exit shaft at NA4; the lift-shaft andlanding no. 2 are clearly visible

was 3.5 metres in 12 hours.The weightof reinforcing steel used, which variedas a function of the target concretethickness, was about 110 kg per cubicmetre and the average steel layingperformance amounted to 0.7 tonnesper man per shift.

The landings were constructed using acyclic working method. Each team wasable to complete one landing per shift,not including the 2 – 3 days trainingperiod. The prefabricated stairwaysections were laid at the rate of 8 unitsper shift. At the time of going to pressthe shaft-top building had still to becompleted.

Commitment and determination

The various operations carried out atthe different working sites along thenew intercity express line were atestimony to the skill and determinati-on of the Östu-Stettin TunnelbauGmbH workforce in the performanceof their first contract. The successfulcompletion of the tunnel lining project,which was based on the correct choiceof technical method, operating equip-ment and working cycle, has given thenew company an encouraging startand has been an excellent referencefor the competence of its workforce inthe shaft-construction sector.

Dr.-Ing. Helmut LigártOn 12th December 2000 a wayside shrine wasdedicated to Saint Barbara at the 3,305 metre-longKatharina Kasper tunnel in Dembach “in gratefulthanks for a project free from accidents”.The tunnelis part of the Cologne-Rhein/Main intercity expressline.

Taking an active part in the dedication ceremony are DB project manager Dipl.-Ing. B. Belter and Sister Christeta Hess, who is Provincial Mother Superior and “tunnel godmother”

75Report 2001

ÖSTU-STETTIN Construction International

Östu-Stettin Hoch- und Tiefbau

GmbH is currently engaged in the

reconstruction and conversion of

the Langenwang clarification plant as

a contract operation for the Mürz

water authority.The aim of the

extension project is to comply with

the new emission laws for municipal

2000Clarification plant getsTechnology 2000 re-fit

waste water and sewage systems –

in this case for a treatment plant

serving some 24,000 inhabitants.

Digestion chamber with roof casing, thickener and foundation for tower block

and houses both the fines crusher andthe screenings and sand washer. Thisunit connects with the sand trap, whichis a circular cone-shaped structurecrossed by a bridge.

Ground water – a local solution

The sludge pumping station is in theform of a 7-metre deep, 4-part steel-concrete shaft and its construction callsfor a solid foundation. However, theproximity of the Mürz river means thatthe entire area is subject to a highground-water level, with the result thatextensive and controllable waterpumping facilities are required, alongwith sheet pile-supported trenchenclosures.

The construction work, which beganin August 2000, had to take

account not only of the statutoryrequirements but also of the ecologicaland economic aspects of the project.

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Construction International ÖSTU-STETTIN

Report 2001

new clarification plant was handedover to the client.

Main installations are re-designed

The main plant installations are beinggradually reconstructed in parallel withthe preparatory operations. Thisincludes the use of state-of-the-arttechnology for the design of the spiral-feed pumping station as an intakefor two screw feeders, providing arated delivery capacity of 250 litresper second. The rainwater settlingtank, which is a two-stage unit, isconstructed from steel-concretepipes 2000 mm in diameter and isdesigned for an overflow capacity of440,000 litres.

The steel-concrete screening plantmeasures 13.10 x 8.60 x 6.50 metres

Extensive modernization

As Technology 2000 could only be putinto action by extending the existinginstallation, additional constructionwork is needed to prepare for andcomplete the project.This involves siteclearance and sludge-tank conversionwork, together with the installation of atransformer station and the draining ofold slurry ponds. New wells are to beconstructed and permanent fencingerected, while water-level and high-pressure piping also has to be laid.Thelayout of the external structures isanother important part of the projectwhich had to be completed before the

Funnel-shaped casing with reinforcement marks the start of the digestion chamber

77Report 2001


An imposing backdrop

The slurry handling plant is an im-pressive structure and comprises twocylindrical, pre-tensioned steel-concre-te containers for treating the thickenedslurry. The digestion chamber, which isvisible from a great distance, stands21 metres in height and 12 metres indiameter and has a total capacity of1,200 cubic metres.

The thickening plant, which is also12 metres in diameter, only needs tobe 9 metres in height to provide therequired capacity of 400 cubic metres.

The tallest part of the installation,which is located between the twoaforementioned tanks, is a 23 metre-high tower section complete with stair-well, pipe ascension shafts and accesspoints leading to the operating areas.

The control building itself is designedas a single-storey structure andmeasures 17.7 x 16.4 metres.

Another important part of the installa-tion is the reclarification tank, which is atriple-chamber rectangular unit with aholding capacity of 3 x 1,230 cubic

metres and a 9 metre-deep pre-stageslurry hopper.

The two existing rainwater retentionbasins will in future be used as prelimi-nary clarification tanks while the threeclarification units, each measuring30 metres in diameter, are to be con-verted for use as activation tanks. Thisconversion work will involve increasingthe height of the chamber walls, re-moving the old coating and renovatingthe existing concrete.

This completes our tour of the pro-posed Langenwang clarification plant.

Östu-Stettin’s ability for undertakingprojects of this type, from both anecological and economic viewpoint,provides local authorities with thetechnical advice and hands-on ex-perience which they need in order tofulfil their statutory emission require-ments in respect of waste water andsewage treatment.

Ing. Manfred Elter

Outletfromscreeningplant

Digestion chamber with roof casing for thickener

The Arlberg axis is one of the most

important parts of the Austrian rail

network. For this reason the

European Union has included the

Landeck to Bludenz section in its Plan

for Trans-European Transport Net-

works, which was drawn up in 1990.

Background

Trains have to travel at very slowspeeds along much of this section ofthe line. There is also the danger ofavalanches in winter. Extensive ava-lanche-protection measures are inplace to ensure that trains can use thissection in safety, but these systems areexpensive to maintain.

Adding a second track to the linebetween Langen am Arlberg andKlösterle will not only relieve theexisting situation but will also helpimprove the rail service on the Arlberg

New seismic system for strataexploration in the Blisadona tunnel

section and enhance the attractivenessof the region as a whole.

The project comprises:

❑ the re-construction of the 2.4 kilo-meter-long Blisadona tunnel to thenorth of the existing section

❑ the laying of a twin-track line bet-ween the stations at Langen amArlberg and Klösterle

❑ the rebuilding and modernizationof Langen station, and

❑ the erection of substantial ava-lanche defences.

The new section of track will bedesigned as a 140 k.p.h. high-speedline, which will commence at theeastern end of Langen station. Thiswork will involve the complete re-placement of the existing rail tracks.Because of the limited space available,work on the main Blisadona tunnel hadto be carried out from a 430 metre-long access gallery. All the debris ex-cavated from the tunnel was to beused for the construction of avalanchebaffle works in the Grosstobel andFuchslochtobel areas.

The construction project was to com-prise a total of eleven tunnelling sec-tions and two open-trench sections.

Local geology

The site lies on the southern edge ofthe northern Limestone Alps, which inthis area are known as the KlostertalAlps. The dominant macrotectonicstructure of the southern KlostertalAlps is the Spullersee syncline, whichtrends primarily in an east-west di-rection, and the tightly-compressedKlostertal anticline, which lies to thesouth of the Spullersee.The rock strata are primarily compo-sed of limestone and dolomite rockfrom the Alpine Muschelkalk series,together with clay shales, marls andlimestones of the Partnach beds andlimestone, dolomite, shales, rauhwackelimestones and dolomites from theArlberg beds.The strata series, which trend in aneast-west direction, dip in variousdirections and are folded on steepaxes, due to the high tectonic stressacting on the southern face of theLimestone Alps. In some places the


78 Report 2001

Project overview Local geology – longitudinal section and horizontal projection

rock is even recumbent, while thegeneral area of the construction site istraversed by several acute-angled faultzones running almost at right angles tothe general line of strike.

Construction phase and results

The Blisadona Tunnel consortium, com-prising Östu-Stettin GmbH (Leoben),Beton- und Monierbau Ges.m.b.H.(Innsbruck), Universale Bau AG (Salz-burg) and AST-Holzmann BauGes.m.b.H. (Graz), was awarded thecontract for the tunnelling operation inthe autumn of 1998 and the projectcommencement date was set for 19thOctober 1998. The site equippingwork began in early November of thatyear, along with the excavation of theaccess tunnel (VT 1). After workingthrough the difficult section of uncon-solidated rock, the tunnelling operationencountered alternately clay shale andcalcareous marl, as well as successionsof the Partnach strata and thickly-laminated limestone beds. During the

excavation of the access tunnel andmain drive, work also commenced onthe east portal, with the removal of thepreliminary cut, and on the excavationof the pillar entry. Because of thealtitude of the site, the work beingcarried out during the winter periodwas often interrupted by avalanchedebris, with one particular flow causingconsiderable damage.

79Report 2001


A lucky escape

On 19th July 1999, the day of the luckyescape, the crown section of the maindrive had been excavated on the dipas far as the 230 metre point.The risingdrivage in the twin-track tunnel drivehad reached the 250 metre point ofthe crown section, with the floorsection having been excavated up tothe 172 metre mark. Suddenly there

Excavator at the access-tunnel portal/beneath the existing rail embankment

Material washed out into the tunnel

was an increase in water ingress at themain drive heading face, with the usualinflow of a few litres rising to as muchas 70 litres per second. The left-handside of the roadhead comprised veryconsistent strata, while the right halfwas composed of less stable material;drainage holes were therefore drilled inthis area to take the water away fromthe heading face and walls of the tunnel.Shortly after the change of shifts at22.15 hours the water inflow at theroadhead increased dramatically tomore than 200 litres per second,whereupon the drivage team hastilywithdrew from the face of the heading.The flow of water poured out over thejunction area and into the dippingtunnel of no. 2 drivage, while morewater entered the dipping accesstunnel and flowed out to the surface.The initial torrent of water was thenfollowed by a moving mass of bouldersand rubble, mixed with saturatedsmall- and fine-sized material. Thesmaller particles were carried outthrough the access tunnel along withthe large mass of water. The drainagechannel which had been constructed

at the portal entrance to the accesstunnel could not cope with this largeflow of mud and debris, with the resultthat fine-sized material poured downthe hillside and into the town ofKlösterle.Both the mobile concrete mixer andthe shotcreting rig, which was bracedin position, were washed some100 metres down the tunnel by theavalanche of mud and debris.The rockwas strewn about the floor of thetunnel to a depth of between one andtwo metres from the heading face backto the junction in the rising section ofthe drift. Thankfully there were noinjuries as a result of this incident.

The search for new safety systems

This incident triggered the search for apreliminary exploration system capableof providing a reliable indication ofphenomena of this type; the newsystem was to be made available asquickly as possible and should notimpede the tunnel drivage operation.

The various types of equipment avail-able on the market were tested forfeasibility under the aforementionedconditions and a cost comparison wasundertaken. It was at this point that theproject engineers happened to see abrochure from NSA Engineering Inc.(Neill/Strid/Association), who arebased in Golden, Colorado. This com-pany’s NSA Tomography System(NSA-TRT) is designed to providereconnaissance data on the strata infront of the heading face, giving acoverage length of 100 metres and anall-round cavity coverage of 25 metres.After intensive planning and careful on-site preparations the first measure-ments were undertaken with thesystem in three of the tunnel drivages.The results were analyzed and in-terpreted immediately after themeasurement process. The graphicrepresentations produced convincingpictures of the forward strata and eachmember of the drivage team wasfascinated to know whether the find-ings would be borne out by the sub-sequent development work. Many ofthe hard and soft zones depicted in the

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Report 2001

Water inflow in the crown drivage zone

graphics were indeed encountered asthe drivage advanced.

Looking into the darkness

The excellent predictive capacity of themeasurements was enough to convincethe tunnelling engineers that the

system should be used in the remain-ing tunnel drivages. The measurementequipment provided usable averageblock lengths of 80 metres and a totalof 9 measurements and 20 predictionblocks were obtained for the remainingdrivages.The NSA-TRT system, when used cor-rectly, proved in practice to be a usefuland sensible addition to the art of con-

81Report 2001


Tomography with three-dimensional representation of the expected hard and soft zones

Mobile concrete mixer entrained by the flow of mud and rock

trolled tunnelling. Predictive systems ofthis kind will soon become a basicrequirement for improved safety intunnel drivage operations.The system’s greatest asset is theclarity of its three-dimensional graphicsand its capacity for providing a geolo-gical section of any required part ofthe exploration zone. As a result, thesubsequent behaviour of the strata andarea of the pull can be assessed veryeffectively.The drivage operation in the Blisadonatunnel has now finished.The fact that nofurther unforeseeable incidents occur-red, in spite of a total make of waterwhich in some cases reached 300 litresa second, can be attributed to the NSAseismic-reflection tomogram system.The tunnel lining operation will becompleted in the summer of 2001 andthe electrification and track-laying workwill then be commenced.The station atLangen am Arlberg is to be re-con-structed during the summer of 2001and 2002 and a full rail service is to beresumed on this section of the linefrom 2003.

Ing. Peter Schwab

82 Report 2001

The activities of Ödenburg-based

Stettin-Hungaria, which is one of the

new subsidiary companies of Östu-

Stettin Hoch- und Tiefbau (Leoben),

were previously recorded in Report

1999. As already stated, the

management of the new company

felt compelled – in view of the pro-

mising economic developments

taking place in Hungary – to seek

out new markets and customers

away from the company head office

and immediate environment. From

the outset they were determined to

compete on a country-wide basis

with their market competitors and

successfully held their ground with

well-known European operators –

an impressive demonstration of

Stettin-Hungaria’s capabilities.

Seizing the opportunity

An opportunity arose in December1998 with an invitation to tender foran international PHARE project toconstruct a new trade centre andChamber of Commerce headquarters

NEW WORLD TRADE CENTREconstructed in Raab, Hungary

in Györ/Raab.The town of Raab, whichis one of Hungary’s fastest growingindustrial centres, lies half way betweenVienna and Budapest and is home tomany European corporations.The con-tract was to be carried out with sup-port from PHARE CBC (PHARERegional Development Unit, Ministryof Agriculture and Regional Develop-ment) and would be strictly governedby EU regulations.In order to be able to meet the contractspecifications, which were quite de-manding for any small company, Stettin-Hungaria set up a bidding syndicate withits parent company Östu-Stettin.

150 days to wait

Bids were opened at the Ministry offi-ces in Budapest and Stettin-Hungariawon the contract as the best bidder.However, the company had to wait150 days for the final decision from thetendering body.The contract was finallysigned on 12th August 1999 – and the

Construction International STETTIN HUNGARIA

project was to be completed within365 days.The rebuilding project comprised anarea of 1,214 square metres.The base-ment of the building contained an un-derground car-park, while the ground-floor housed a conference room for300 persons. The three upper storeyscontained various offices, including thepremises of the Chamber of Com-merce and Austrian Consulate.

Room with a view

Visitors to the roof terrace are able toenjoy a wonderful view over the oldtown of Raab. One of the contractspecifications which the engineeringteam found most challenging was toconvert this roof terrace into a fully-operational “green area”. The buildingenclosed a total of 5,370 squaremetres of fully air-conditioned usablespace. The conference rooms wereequipped with up-to-date sound andvideo equipment.

Shuttering of main cornice

83Report 2001

STETTIN HUNGARIA Construction International

Obstacles fail to delay speedy completion

The project required substantial quan-tities of material to be moved in andout - 8,200 cubic metres of excavatedmaterial, 4,700 cubic metres of con-crete and 315 tonnes of steel. Theformwork preparations were under-taken by a Hungarian subcontractorwhose men had acquired experienceworking in Germany. As early as thesecond week of the project the sitesuffered from an increased ingress ofground-water, which called for somequick and effective decision-making.The site engineers opted for thesinking of vacuum wells, which success-fully lowered the water level by some80 cm. The construction team wasthen able to construct the 45 to60 cm-thick steel-concrete raft andinstall the aquafin ground-water in-sulation. A total of 30 days wereneeded to lower the ground-watertable.The water level currently reachesthe floor of the underground car-parkand the sealing measures have nowproven their long-term effectiveness.Another problem facing the project

engineers was posed by the proximityto the site of one of the rapidly-expan-ding city’s main thoroughfares. Thismeant that sheet piling had to be sunkto protect the excavation trench fromsignificant levels of traffic-generatedvibration.

Good planning is appreciated at thehighest level

The project progressed according toschedule thanks to the dry autumn weat-her and relatively mild winter. In March2000 the steel framework for the cupolawas put in place in the presence ofassembled VIPs. Good planning and thestrict supervision of duties ensured thatthe project engineers had sufficient timeto focus on the building’s high-technologyfeatures.A quality assurance plan was drawn upfor the implementation of the projectand the local offices of EMI – who areaccredited providers of quality control inHungary – were given responsibility for

Finishing work for foundations Concreting the ceiling above cellar level

Visit of the PHARE delegation

the site, an operation which involvedcontinuous sampling and analysis work.The project was also regularly visited bythe PHARE programme’s Budapest dele-gation, who were always satisfied withthe rate of progress.After final inspection and approval, theclient set 24th August 2000 as the datefor the ceremonial opening of thebuilding. Dignitaries present at theopening included the EU Ambassador toHungary, Mike Lake, the city mayor andthe President of the Chamber of Com-merce.The company’s management teamand the chief project engineers apprecia-ted the various speeches in recognitionof their efforts, and were pleased to beable to hand over a building whoseentrance hall acknowledged Stettin-Hun-garia as the general project contractors.

Dipl.-Ing. Attila Kerekes

84 Report 2001

The completion of a new office

block with an innovative design

concept has again enabled Östu-

Stettin Hoch- und Tiefbau to

demonstrate its specialist skills as

a building contractor.

Office Block Sets New StandardsFuture purpose unknown

The new office building, which is to beused by SAP Österreich, was con-structed on the grounds of the formernorthern railway station close to thecity center of Vienna. The structureis part of an ambitious inner-city re-development project which coverssome 120,000 square metres andcomprises mainly offices and otherpurpose-built premises, including acinema, fitness centre and restaurants.This new “commercial mile” hasdeveloped in the last few years and ishome to many well-known companynames, including IBM, OMV, BankAustria and Zürich Kosmos.

In September 1998 the building con-sortium of Östu-Stettin GmbH,Stragab AG and Wibeba BaugesmbHwas commissioned by ProjektaGes.m.b.H. to act as general contractorfor the turn-key construction of aneight-storey office block. Östu-Stettinwas to be responsible for the technicalcontrol of the project.

The building was designed to comprisea usable floor space of 13,700 squaremetres and included a two-storeyunderground garage with room for128 cars.

Bau International ÖSTU-STETTIN

Maximum flexibility

At the time of tendering, and even asthe construction work began, theultimate purpose of the building wasstill unknown, and so maximum flexibi-lity had to be incorporated into theinternal design. Only whilst the superstructure was being constructed theoffice block was taken over by thecurrent occupier, SAP-Österreich, andextensive changes were made to thespecifications.These new requirementsresulted in a 25 % increase of theoriginal costs.

After completing the preparatorywork the construction of the outershell of the building began in Novem-ber 1998. With the building measuringsome 130 metres in length, three giantconstruction cranes were required tocover the full extent of the site. Theexcavation work for the undergroundgarage was hampered by the fact thatit was located in former wetland of theriver Danube, which meant that theground-water level had to be loweredduring the construction phase. Soilremoval and the placement ofconcrete was unavoidable in this partof the site.

The entire garage structure was built insteel, with jointing strips being fitted toseal the outer walls and floor.A coatingof bitumen was also spray-applied tothe basement to provide additionalinsulation and prevent water ingress.The ground-floor and eight upperstoreys, which are accessed via threestair-wells, were also constructed insteel-concrete. Very few internal wallswere installed in order to allow asmuch flexibility as possible for theinternal floor space. This meant thatlarge span widths had to be overcomewhen carrying out the casing and con-creting work. The floor slab work wastherefore undertaken using wide-spanmobile travelling tables.

Cutting-edge technology

Only as the superstructure was alreadybeing erected new specifications and“tailor-made” design of the buildingwere being defined in collaborationwith the future occupiers and specialistplanning consultants. The fact that thebuilding was to be occupied by acomputer development companyoperating in the forefront of tech-nology placed high demands ontechnical innovation and equipmentdesign.

The client specified a building capableof incorporating spacious computertraining rooms and offices whosedesign offered the latest in flexible andopen-plan accommodation.

The top storey was to contain anumber of prestigious office areas witha rooftop view over Vienna, whichwere to be used as seminar rooms fora maximum of 10 persons.This part ofthe building was also to have its ownVIP kitchen and would include a largeterrace with a floor space of some180 square metres. A staff canteen anddining-room is situated on the groundfloor for the use by the company’s ownpersonnel.The outer facade of the building wasconstructed from suspended graniteslabs which were set through the elon-gated window casements.

High-quality air conditioning

Special attention had to be paid tovarious in-house facilities such as heat-ing, air conditioning, ventilation andelectrical services and the installationof these systems called for special skillson the part of the building designteam. All the seminar rooms and top-floor offices were fitted with air-con-ditioned ceilings which would create adraught-free and even-temperatureenvironment. The staff offices wereequipped with combination systemscapable of heating and cooling the airas required.

Core features

The entire EDP cabling circuit, which isthe main supply artery for any modernIT company, was designed to besufficiently flexible to cope with theadditional needs imposed by futureupgrading. One of the client’s maindemands was that the office layoutshould be as open and adaptable aspossible, which called for the installa-tion of a flexible flooring system andadaptable partition walls.

Though the client had been quiteprecise in his target specifications,design changes had to be accom-modated during the constructionphase and these were successfullydelivered on schedule thanks to theadaptability of the site constructionteam.

Although the overall project wasaffected by the many different designalterations introduced during theconstruction phase, which resultedfrom the fact that the entire block wasto be occupied by a single companywith quite specific operating require-ments, the building was successfullyhanded over to the client after a totalconstruction period of 21 months.Thesmooth progress and overall success ofthe construction project can beattributed to a large degree to theefforts of the supervisory team andsite foremen and special thanks aredue to them in this regard.

This difficult construction project,which involved the installation ofexpensive ‘high-tech’ equipment, againserved to demonstrate Östu-Stettin’scapacity for delivering on schedule.

Ing. Robert Hitschmann

85Report 2001


JUNCTION 33

Construction International TGB

ROTHERHAM

Aerial photograph showing resurfacing workson the M 1 Motorway under trafficmanagement and contraflow working at theWhitehill Lane Underbridge.

Aerial photograph showing parapet strengtheningto Pleasley Lane Overbridge on the M1 Motorway.

The contract for the M1 bridges

consisted of the strengthening of

Pleasley Road Bridge, which spans

the M1 in South Yorkshire, and

Whitehill Lane Bridge, which carries

north- and south-bound M1 traffic

over an existing A road.

The Whitehill Lane Bridge includedmajor concrete repairs to the soffit

of the bridge, which was honey-combed and badly deteriorated due tochemical attack. Hydro-demolition andsprayed concrete was used to repairthe soffit. In conjunction with this work,the existing surface on the M1 wasremoved down to the concrete deck.The waterproofing, surfacing and jointswere then replaced during varioustraffic management operations.

bending and tensional resistance tostabilize the edge beams.

All the works were encapsulated toprevent debris falling onto the motor-way below. The existing parapetbarriers were refurbished on bothbridges.

All the works required substantialtraffic management and detailedplanning was carried out twenty-fourhours a day, seven days per week.The project was successfully com-pleted ahead of programme.

Mike BurtonKurt Klingbeil

87Report 2001

TGB Construction International

Photograph showing completed parapet strengthening works and resurfaced pedestrian footpath on PleasleyLane Overbridge, M1 Motorway.

Photograph showing temporary scaffold to facilitatebridge strengthening and parapet works to PleasleyLane Overbridge over the M 1 Motorway.

Photograph showing temporary scaffold to facilitatebridge strengthening works to Whitehill LaneUnderbridge, M1 Motorway complete withtemporary cover to pedestrian footpath.

Photograph showing parapet strengthening workson Pleasley Lane Overbridge on the M1 Motorway.

The main purpose of the contract wasto comply with current loading re-quirements. The existing footpathswere broken out and a substantialreinforced tied-in beam was con-structed to provide sufficient lateral

Engineering's Installation Section has gradually

developed over the last few years and has outgrown

its premises at Bedford Park in Scunthorpe.

New Offices and Factoryin Humberside Area

Moving to new premises atBessemer Way, on the Sawcliffe

Industrial Estate, gives Installation theadded benefits of 7,500 sq. ft of work-shops equipped to supply locally-basedclients, as well as those further afield inLincoln and Humberside, with the best-value solutions to all their engineeringrequirements. The official opening bythe Mayor of Scunthorpe, CouncillorMick Todd, took place on 23 October2000 and Councillor Nic Dakin, Installa-tion Section’s own MD Dudley Jonesand other dignitaries were in atten-

and it is on this premiss that we havebuilt our success. We hope in this waythat our business will continue toexpand and that the increased range ofservices available from the new work-shops will be of benefit to customersboth old and new. Our product rangenow includes:1. Electrical installation and mainte-

nance, mainly at Corus, Scunthorpe,where we work on medium andheavy industrial 3-phase systemsserving materials-handling and pro-cess equipment.


88 Report 2001

dance. In his opening speech, Engineer-ing Director M Myronko outlined theSection’s objectives, which would formthe basis for positive future develop-ments in the installation sector.

Quality – the key to success

Our reputation has been built on ourquick response to customers needs,giving a quality service at the rightprice. We believe that customers havea right to expect quality performance

Contract forSiemens in theSeabank power-station

2. Work carried out for the Environ-ment Agency, namely a 3-yearcontract for the testing and repair ofelectric fishing equipment

3. Mechanical maintenance on mate-rials handling equipment, such asconveyors, crushers, screens, re-claimers etc.

4. Structural fabrications, such aschutes, conveyors, tanks and iron

89Report 2001


Queen Victoria furnaces at the Scunt-horpe plant – both projects wereundertaken by Thyssen Engineering inconjunction with Mining and TechnicalServices. Since completing the Redcaroperation, we have carried out similardrilling work on the Queen Maryfurnace at Scunthorpe. We are nowconsidering expanding this service on aEurope-wide basis.The Installation Section can look backon a successful 2000, particularly withregard to their increased presence atCorus’ Scunthorpe steel works. Thisinstallation comprises a number ofdifferent processing units, including ironand steel making, power generationand other energy-related services. In2000 we extended our operations toinclude the Corus plants at Redcar andRotherham, together with existingworks at Stocksbridge which are alsotargeted for expansion.The year 2000 also saw a contractundertaken for Faist, G & H Montageand Siemens at the Peterhead PowerStation, where acoustic housings andwalls were erected around the gasturbine and generator set as part ofa noise-reduction programme. Thisproject subsequently resulted in acontract from Rheinhold to undertakesimilar work at the Seabank PowerStation in Bristol and also from MarlaAirport Services. In 2000 the Sectionwas therefore awarded contractsfrom a total of four German-basedclients.It is hoped that the opening of ournew factory will allow us to expandfurther into the power station sector.With three new power stations beingplanned for the North Lincolnshirearea,T(GB) is hoping to obtain furtherbusiness opportunities both for itsInstallation Section and for T(GB) Con-struction (North). The fact that bothoperations will be sharing the premisesat Scunthorpe means that we can nowwork more closely together and offeradded value to our extensive range ofcompany services.

William MetcalfKurt Klingbeil

this year in conjunction with our sistercompany Mining & Technical Services.This involved the drilling of additionalsalamander tapholes on blast furnacesat the Redcar and Scunthorpe steelworks. The Redcar unit was drilled onthe east, west and north sides of thefurnace bottom to allow a total ofsome 1,300 tonnes of iron to bedrained out into the torpedo vessels.

The electric fishing system consists of batteries or generators supplying acontrol box which sends a boosted high-voltage current to a cathode andanode arrangement. When the latter are lowered into a river between setpoints they induce a current and any fish swimming between the two unitsare stunned and float to the surface; they can then be removed from the river,checked for disease and then returned to the water unharmed.

ELECTRIC FISHING SYSTEM

runners. We can also manufactureand install our own equipment, ifthis is required by the customer.

A further specialized service

Our expertise has also been de-monstrated by a project completed

This enabled Corus to achieve aquicker furnace shutdown and meantthat they could undertake refur-bishment within the 70 days deadline,thereby considerably reducing theperiod required for furnace start-up.Salamander tap hole drilling had onlybeen carried out twice before, once onthe Queen Ann and once on the

New factory

Kirklees Metropolitan Council had

a vision to provide a safe, attractive,

quality shopping environment by

way of a pedestrianised streetscape

feature and engaged Thyssen

Construction North to carry out

Effective partnering makes design a reality

the works involved under their first

ever partnership agreement.

Thyssen's considerable experience

of partnering was a significant factor

in helping Kirklees Metropolitan

Council achieve their aims.

As soon as the contract was award-ed, the staff from both parties who

were to be involved in the schemeattended a partnering workshop toidentify the scheme’s key objectives andfuture working relationships. Everyoneentering into the partnership arrange-ment showed great enthusiasm for theproject, which was marked by a realspirit of teamwork and cooperation –as the Project Team Charter shows.


90 Report 2001

Photograph showing block paving and feature lighting to pedestrianised area.

The scheme lies at the heart ofHuddersfield's main shopping area andincludes well-known stores andspecialist shops. The project team tookgreat pains to minimize the generaldisruption caused by the works to theshopping public and deployed valueengineering to mitigate escalatingcontract costs.

The scheme included substantial areasof high-quality block paving, streetfurniture and feature lighting and thework was completed ahead ofprogramme, within budget and toeveryone's satisfaction.

All those involved with the schemeagree that it was an undoubted successand are now looking forward to thenext contract.

Mike BurtonKurt Klingbeil

91Report 2001


Photograph showing feature block paving andfeature lighting to pedestrianised area.The multi-coloured band winding through the middle of thestreetscape is intended to portray the effect of astream running through the pedestrianised area.

Photograph showing intricate block paving to pedestrianised area.

Project-team-charter

92 Report 2001

The turn of the year 2000 was

marked by a new lease of life for the

13 year-old contract with Thyssen

Krupp Stahl AG for the supply of

pulverized coal from the company’s

drier-crusher plant, along with a new

set of operating criteria; the renewed

contract is set to run for at least

10 years until 31st December 2010.

New drier-crusher contract to 2011means increase in plant capacity

Production EMSCHER AUFBEREITUNG

Full production capacity will then beavailable and Emscher AufbereitungGmbH will be in a position to supplythe blast furnaces of Thyssen KruppStahl AG with up to 2 million tonnes ofpulverized coal a year.

Dipl.-Oec. Eberhard Vogt

As a result of the increasing demandfor pulverized fuel from Thyssen

Krupp Stahl AG, Emscher AufbereitungGmbH is now bound by contract tofurther expand its production capacity.This will mean the addition of a sixthdrier-crusher unit, and as with previousinstallations it will be constructed by

Claudius Peters AG of Buxtehude.Construction is expected to take amaximum of one and a half years tocomplete and plant commissioning isscheduled for mid-2002.

93Report 2001

TS TECHNOLOGY + SERVICE Production

Now trading as “TS Technology + Ser-vice”, the new section has now extend-ed its external client base and in doingso has laid the foundations for a po-sitive business expansion.

New orientation

The new management was assignedthe task of developing a new businessorientation and market strategy. Thismeant compensating not only forlosses in sales to major external clients,but also for the falling volume oforders from other Thyssen Schachtbauoperating sectors (as a result of therestructuring under way in the Germancoal industry). Unfortunately this calledfirst for an appropriate downsizing ofoperating capacity – particularly inmanpower – in order to create theeconomic basis needed to continuebusiness operations in this field. The

adaptation measures were finally com-pleted in the year 2000.

Project-management system introduced

In order to ensure that client orderswere handled efficiently and on time,all functions (costing, productionplanning, design and workshop fabrica-tion) had to be entirely re-organized.The design team was incorporatedinto the production planning stageand major projects were henceforthto be handled by a project manager.To enable orders to be managed aspart of a continuous process, fromcustomer inquiry and tenderingthrough to production order process-ing, a software support system wasimplemented which would in futureallow all necessary information on the

EngineeringElectrical engineeringAssembly

ProductionMaintenanceTS Technology + Service is launchedAs part of a comprehensive and

much-needed programme of

restructuring within the Thyssen

Schachtbau Group, the Mülheim-

based mechanical engineering

section has now taken full control of

its own organization and accounts –

one of the first operational depart-

ments to do so – and has adopted

a more market-driven business

approach.

Production TS TECHNOLOGY + SERVICE

94 Report 2001

manufacturing stage of the orders tobe retrieved at any time during theproduction process.

The section’s performance range andmarket orientation was re-designed incollaboration with an outside con-sultancy firm. The new image of themechanical engineering team wasconveyed to the public by a change ofname to TS Technology + Service.

An idea becomes reality

TS Technology + Service sees itself as astate-of-the-art service provider. Thenew company can provide a full rangeservices, from concept planning totechnical implementation – includingengineering, fabrication and assembly,as well as maintenance and dismantling.

All operations can be undertaken asindividual jobs or as a completepackage provided under one roof.

An extensive plant and machinery poolwith crane capacity for unit weights ofup to 75 tonnes, and a production areaof some 7,600 square metres, enablesthe section to undertake large-andheavy-fabrication and repair jobs.

A wide range of steel fabrications,components and machinery is nowproduced for a variety of customers inthe power-station and steelmakingsectors, as well as for the mechanicalengineering and mining industries.

The company premises are easilyaccessible to traffic and benefit fromtheir own railway siding.

With highly-motivated and qualifiedstaff working at every level, andsupported by certificates of com-petence for welded fabrications and acertified quality management system toDIN EN ISO 9001, the new companyis able to guarantee high quality andmaximum customer satisfaction. TSTechnology + Service clients appre-ciate the company’s flexible approachand commitment to deadlines and thetechnical skills of its workforce.

New business acquisition

The year 2000 also saw the setting upof a sales team for new businessacquisitions. This team is now suppor-ted by a new and updated companybrochure which contains an impressivecatalogue of the extensive range ofservices provided by TS Technology +Service.The positive attitude displayedby the members of this team hasbecame apparent in the form of asignificant increase in turnover.

As a result of improved client contactsand increased customer confidencefollowing the company restructuringmeasures, existing customer relationshave been strengthened and a numberof major new clients have beensecured.

TS Technology + Service: delivering ontime, guaranteeing success

Dipl.-Ing. Dipl.-Kfm. Udo van de Sand

95Report 2001

TS TECHNOLOGY + SERVICE Production

In November 2000 Thyssen

Schachtbau Technology + Service

department was awarded the

contract to design, construct and

supply a ladle car for Thyssen Krupp

Ladle car for Thyssen Krupp Stahl AG

TKS’s decision to add a second ladlecar to service their number 2

vacuum plant was based on the needfor greater plant availability and therequirement for an increase in produc-tivity. Having a second ladle car avail-able will allow the steel ladles to betransported independently to thevacuum plant and from there to be

Stahl AG’s number 2 oxygen steel

works. Delivery is scheduled for the

end of April 2001.

The new ladle car already partly assembled in TS Technology + Service’s assemby department

96 Report 2001

Production TS TECHNOLOGY + SERVICE

transferred to the downstream con-tinuous-casting unit.

The engineering phase has alreadybeen completed in collaboration withTKS and various subcontractors, andthe workshop manufacturing opera-tions have now begun. In line withthe terms of the contract, TKShave made continuous quality-controlchecks during the manufacturing phase.

Also the TS assembly departmentwas presented with an interestingchallenge, due to the very large andimmensely heavy car componentswhich have to be moved from place toplace during the final assembly stage.The technical specifications are asfollows:❑ design weight approx. 100 t❑ dimensions (length x width x

height) 11100 x 6000 x 7300 mm

The contract required TS to carry outthe engineering design, manufactureand assembly of the new ladle car,whose large frame dimensions madevery rigorous demands on the designand practical execution of the weldfabrication work. The overview showsthe progress achieved to date, in-cluding the following components:

❑ welded car frame❑ ladle centering device❑ heat screen❑ cable-arm❑ traveling gear and❑ drive unit.

❑ wheel base 5200 mm❑ travel speed 32 m/min❑ drive power 4 x 30 kW❑ load capacity 420 t.

In view of the co-operative responsealready obtained from Thyssen KruppStahl AG and the progress made todate, the Technology + Service depart-ment is confident that this project canalso be completed on time and to thecustomer’s complete satisfaction.

Dipl.-Ing. Ralf KünzlDipl.-Ing. Jürgen Botzki

Report 2001

CONTENT

I M P R I N T

IMPR

INTPublisher:

Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH,Ruhrstraße 145468 Mülheim an der RuhrTel. +49 (0) 2 08 30 02-0Fax +49 (0) 2 08 30 02-327email:[email protected]

Editor:Redaktions-Service Benk,Manfred König

Assistance:Eva Löwe

Translation:KeyCom KonferenzdolmetschenChrista GzilKarin Bettin

Layout:Iris Huber, www.denkbetrieb.deLithos:SRT, Holzwickede

Photos:Karsten BootmannA. DertnigDSK AGHaslam GreenAndreas KühnReiner LorenzEddy MaplesWolfgang NiesenKlaus SannemannStudio SchauerSkycam Aerial PhotographySTARKE Druck- & Werbeerzeugnisse

L.WeissMitarbeiter Thyssen SchachtbauArchiv TSArchive TS-Beteiligungsges.

Production:color-offset-wälter GmbH & Co. KG, Dortmundwww.color-offset-waelter.de

All rights are reserved.Copyright by Thyssen Schachtbau GmbH

MINING GERMANY

1 Situation update

TS Mining4 Roadheader drivage with the

combi-support system

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling7 With fresh ventilation into the future

10 New shaft extension reaches depth of 1,700 metres

TS Mining13 20,000 metres of drivage to develop

new coal reserves

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling18 A Hole with high Significance

TS Mining22 New coal panel is a turn-key project26 Review of TS operations at Lohberg colliery

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling28 130 years of shaft construction –

with more than 180,000 metres of shaft sunk

TS Mining30 Job done! A new colliery is created

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling32 End of an era – shaft infilling at

Westfalen colliery

Central Services · Work Safety36 Work safety in operation

Our actions reflect our responsibilities

MINING INTERNATIONAL

TMCC38 TMCC provides oil well solution Imperial oil Ltd.:

Well abandonment project, Cold Lake, Alberta

Byrnecut Mining42 Under African Skies

TMCC 45 McARTHUR RIVER MINE – SHAFT #3 UPDATE

Sinking towards the world richest uranium deposits

TS Shaft Sinking and Drilling48 Gold in Tanzania

TMCC 52 Thyssen Mining – contract ore production

mining at the Stillwater project Nye,Montana /USA

CONSTRUCTION GERMANY

TS Bau 57 New concert hall is a masterpiece of acoustics:


61 Local bypass for the B 169 trunk road

DIG 63 DIG uses diverted daylight to brighten up

Deutsche Bahn’s control centre in Munich

TS Bau 66 It’s all change at Duisburg-Schwelgern docks

Travelling cranes go walk-about69 Plauen town centre gets face-lift

Östu-Stettin Tunnelbau 71 New Company Joins TS Group:

Östu Stettin Tunnelbau GmbH, Mülheim72 Emergency exit shafts are fitted with

inner linings

CONSTRUCTION INTERNATIONAL

Östu-Stettin75 Clarification plant gets Technology 2000 re-fit78 New seismic system for strata exploration

in the Blisadona tunnel

Stettin Hungaria82 New World Trade Centre constructed in

Raab, Hungary

Östu-Stettin 84 Office Block Sets New Standards

TGB86 JUNCTION 33 Rotherham 88 New Offices and Factory in Humberside Area90 Effective partnering makes design a reality

PRODUCTION

Emscher Aufbereitung92 New drier-crusher contract to 2011 means

increase in plant capacity

TS Technology + Service 93 TS Technology + Service is launched95 Ladle car for Thyssen Krupp Stahl AG

2001

Mining Germany

Mining International

Construction Germany

Construction International

Production

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yssen-sch

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