The new Volvo CE L120 Electric wheel loader is being used for the first time in a tunnelling application – digging a route for Munich’s new underground rail station
An L120 Electric wheel loader from Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) is being employed in the construction of a new underground station beneath Munich.
The Marienhof station is being dug out 44m below street level in the centre of Munich, with the project also including the construction of a tunnel to the existing underground railway at Marienplatz, which requires tunnelling under compressed air to prevent groundwater ingress.
The conditions create pressure equivalent to a four-metre dive, posing challenges for both people and machines. With diesel-powered equipment considered too great a fire risk, only electric machines are being used.
The project is being undertaken by ARGE Marienhof, a joint venture between Implenia and HOCHTIEF.
“Nobody is even allowed in the pressurized area without medical clearance,” Implenia senior site manager at Marienhof Reinhold Boiger says.
“Only electrically powered equipment may be used under these conditions. Any diesel machine would be an incalculable risk.”
Safe and efficient tunnelling
This is the first time the L120 Electric has been used for underground operation. A team comprising Volvo CE, ARGE Marienhof and Volvo CE dealer Robert Aebi has customised the machine for this specific application.
Enhanced with safety features like reversing and side cameras, people detection systems and automatic fire extinguishing systems, the machine’s battery temperature is also continually monitored for extra protection.
To deliver the loader to the site, it had to be lowered 26 metres by crane through a narrow gap
The L120 Electric is a 20-tonne wheel loader offering up to eight hours of battery operation depending on the application. In Munich, it is transporting excavated material from the tunnel head to the skip for transport.
For Boiger and this team, the L120 Electric wheel loader is just the beginning.
“We want to use more machines like this, and not just in situations when we have compressed air,” he says.
“Electric solutions are also the future of open tunnelling.”
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