A Robbins 4.6 m (15.1 ft) diameter crossover tunnel boring machine (TBM) holed through in the Andes Mountains of Chile in the last quarter of 2021. The XRE TBM bored a 3.3 km (2.1 mi) long tunnel for Chile’s Los Condores Hydroelectric Power Project (HEPP) and project owner Enel. A dedicated team, including three Robbins Field Service personnel, guided the machine to breakthrough in conditions including tuff, sandstone, breccia, and conglomerate with sections of high-pressure water inflows. Ground cover reached up to nearly 450 m (1,500 ft) above the tunnel with rock strengths maxing out at 60 MPa UCS. “Robbins Field Service was an important part of the success of the excavation, evaluating continuous improvements in the machine and correcting faults,” said Ricardo Riveros Puratic, project ...
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