September 9, 2015
Compressors from Atlas Copco are playing a vital role in the £500 million upgrade of London’s Tottenham Court Road underground station.
G 132 Oil-injected rotary screw compressorAircooled
As Ben Thomson, Taylor Woodrow BAM Nuttall tunneling engineer explains: “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. Guaranteed air quality was the primary deciding factor – oil and concrete are not a good mix!
Early phases of the Tottenham Court Road project saw utility diversions completed, buildings on the site purchased and demolished and, by 2010, the main excavation and construction work under way to create space for the upgraded station complex. This stage was followed by an eight month closure of the Northern Line platforms at Tottenham Court Road to allow tunnels to be reshaped to make room for new escalator and platform access. The current phase involves construction of new underground structures that include tunnels, the new ticket hall and an interchange ‘box’.
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.
Written by Ian Clay