The production of 83,000 concrete HS2 tunnel segments has begun on July 24 at a new facility at Hartlepool docks.
Over 83,000 precast tunnel segments will be produced for HS2 in order to construct the Northolt tunnel east and Euston tunnel. They will be used to construct 5.5 km of twin bored tunnel for the Northolt tunnel East, and 8 km of twin bored tunnel for the Euston tunnel between Old Oak Common and Euston. Each ring has an 8.8m outside diameter, is 35 centimetres thick and weighs seven tonnes.
The Hartlepool facility will be used to produce HS2 tunnel segments for around three years but the investment from Strabag in the site is part of a long term UK investment strategy.
Robotics will be used by the Strabag team at the facility and a state-of-the-art automated segment carousel will ensure shorter turnaround times and better quality in production. The automation used in creating the steel reinforcement cages reduces wastage to negligible volumes and operates with energy efficiency levels significantly better than traditional methods.
96 concrete segments rings will be produced each day at the site, with teams of 30 working in shifts across 24 hours, seven days per week.
In October 2021 Strabag was awarded the contract manufacture the HS2 tunnel segments and chose Hartlepool as the location for their new production site.
Located in a unit at Hartlepool Dock which was previously used for the fabrication of oil rigs, the new facility has been fitted out with a state of the art automated segment carousel and reinforcement hall.
Over 100 jobs have been created at the Hartlepool facility, including six new apprenticeships and a number of formerly unemployed people recruited from the local area. Strabag are also utilising the local supply chain, sourcing aggregate from local quarries and using UK recycled steel.
HS2’s main works civil contractor, Skanska Costain Strabag joint venture (SCS JV), are constructing HS2’s London tunnels. The segments will be transported by rail to HS2’s London logistics hub, part of HS2’s commitment to reduce carbon emissions in construction. Starting in the summer, a 20 carriage train will depart from the site each day over six days, increasing to 2 per day as production increases.
From the Logistics Hub, the segments will be transported by an electric Multi-Service Vehicle (MSV) to the neighbouring construction sites and transferred on to the four giant Tunnel Boring Machines that will be constructing these tunnels.
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