In a step forward for the Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project, Full Span Launching equipment was flagged off today by Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw. L&T designed and manufactured the equipment, to be used for the construction of the viaduct for the high-speed railway project.
L&T is also the EPC contractor for the construction of key parts of the project. The 1,100-ton capacity equipment, consisting of straddle carriers and girder transporters, was designed and manufactured by the private sector infrastructure major at its Kanchipuram facility. According to a statement released by the Ministry, 55 MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) units were involved in the production of this equipment.
Select countries like China, Korea, Italy and Norway generally produce such equipment.
Why the Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project Needs Full Span Launching Equipment
Construction of 325 km of the viaduct will require 20 such Full Span Launching equipment between Vapi and Ahmedabad in the state of Gujarat. Full Span Launching Methodology will be used to launch girders as fast as possible. Precast girders of full span length will be erected as a single piece for the double-track viaduct. This technique is faster than launching multiple segments between piers.
Precast Pre-Stressed Concrete (PSC) box Girders of 30, 35 and 45-metre spans will be launched by these machines. The PSC girders weigh between 700 to 975 metric tons. The Ministry statement claims that a 975 ton, 40 meter length PSC girder will be used for the first time by the construction industry in India.
Also present at the ceremony were Miyamoto Shingo, Hon’ble Minister, Embassy of Japan, Suneet Sharma, Chairman & CEO, Railway Board, Satish Agnihotri, MD, NHSRCL, Anupam Kumar, S N Subrahmanyan, CEO & MD, L&T Construction.
Progress on the Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project
- Land Acquisition:
Gujarat, Dadra & Nagar Haveli: 97%
Maharashtra: 30% - Work in Progress
325 km out of 508 km - Material Requirement:
Cement: 7.5 million tons
Steel: 2.1 million tons
Structural Steel: 70,000 tons - Employment Potential:
90,000 jobs
6,000 already employed
Work on National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) executed 508 km Mumbai Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Project is already underway. Construction has begun on a 325 km stretch in Gujarat, where 97 per cent of land needed for the project has already been acquired. Work on the Maharashtra section of the line has been delayed as a result of land acquisition issues in the state. Only 30% of needed land has been acquired so far.
According to the Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Mumbai Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project will create over 90,000 jobs. This will include 51,000 jobs for technicians, skilled and unskilled workers. He also said that more than 6,000 workers were already deployed at various construction sites in relation to the project. He also stated that experience of execution of Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project, the works of other corridors will be faster.
Construction work is expected to boost the local economy along the alignment. 1000s of trucks, dumpers, excavators, batching plants, tunnelling equipment will be needed. It is estimated that 7.5 million tons of cement, 2.1 million tons of steel and 70,000 tons of structural steel will be used in the construction, according to the Ministry of Railways.
More about the Straddle Carrier
This equipment is designed to handle the Full Span Precast girders from casting bed to stacking yard and further feeding them to Bridge Gantry for further erection. This is a tyre mounted self-propelled gantry crane having a lifting capacity of 1100MT.
Technical Parameters:
| Self-weight | 845 T |
| Dimensions | 52.5 x 37.0 x 21.9 Mtr (Length x Breath x Height) |
| Speed of Travel | 1 Kmph – With Load 2 Kmph – No Load |
| Hook Hoisting & Lowering Speed | 0.5 metres/minute with Load and 1.5 metres/minute with no Load |
| Total no of Tyres | 80 Nos (20 x 4) |
| Wheel Dimensions | Diameter – 1.82 m |
| Components Sourced from | India (85%), Germany, Spain and Austria (15%) |
More about a Girder Transporter
This equipment is designed to transport the Full Span precast girders fed by Bridge Gantry to the erection location. This is a 27 axle tyre mounted self-propelled trolley with a carrying capacity of 1100MT.
Technical Parameters:
| Self-weight | 387 T |
| Dimensions | 58.5 x 8.5 x 3.5 Mtr (LxBxH) |
| Speed of Travel | 5 Kmph – With Load 10 Kmph – No Load |
| Total no of Tyres | 216 Nos (27 x 2 x 4) |
| No of Axles & Axle load | 27 nos & 55T/Axle |
| Components Sourced from | India (85%) Germany, Spain and Austria (15%) |