Atlas Copco helps with London Underground upgrade 05 December 2012

Taylor Woodrow BAM Nuttall is reporting reliable service from Atlas Copco compressors, which are driving concrete spraying for the £500 million upgrade of London's Tottenham Court Road underground station.

The upgrade, which is a joint venture between Taylor Woodrow and BAM Nuttall, will deliver a ticket hall six times the size of the present unit, as well as new station entrances, additional access to the Northern and Central Line platforms, plus 14 escalators and six lifts – opening in 2016.

Two Atlas Copco compressors positioned on the site's surface have been providing air for drilling and chipping tools but mainly the application of sprayed concrete tunnel linings.

Ben Thomson, Taylor Woodrow BAM Nuttall tunneling engineer, says that the project required guaranteed quality air, total machine reliability, 24/7 availability and cost efficiency.

As a result, the decision was taken to enter an agreement that provided two new stationary, Elektronikon controlled, fully weather-proofed and winterised Atlas Copco GA 132FF single-stage, fully integrated rotary crew compressors.

High quality air is essential to the successful delivery of uncontaminated, fibre-reinforced liquid concrete to vertical and curved overhead surfaces through the shotcrete process.

Compressed air is introduced at the delivery nozzle to spray the concrete mixture onto the receiving surface. This wet-gun procedure produces less rebound and waste, with the advantage that larger volumes can be placed in shorter time.

"We felt it was the right decision to go with Atlas Copco, who provided us with two new compressors and the reassurance of continuous, reliable performance, which is vital to our below-ground operations," states Thomson.

Once the current phase involving the shotcreting duties of the compressors is completed, the two units will be transferred for operation at the joint venture's other major transport upgrade project, at London's Victoria Station.

The first construction phase for the London Victoria station upgrade commenced in 2011 and the project is scheduled for completion by 2018.

Brian Tinham

Related Companies
Atlas Copco Compressors

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