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- Secure hold for Poland’s longest underwater tunnel
A new path under water connects people: On 30 June, the Swinetunnel was opened to traffic. Poland's longest underwater tunnel to date runs between the islands of Usedom and Wollin in the city of Swinoujscie. Product and service competence of the fixing professional fischer made a major contribution to the successful completion of the project. More than 50,000 fischer heavy-duty fixings were installed in the tunnel.
Copyright cover picture: picture alliance/dpa / Stefan Sauer
fischer fixing solutions meet all requirements
"We are proud that we were able to meet the demands and requirements for the construction of the Swinetunnel with our fastening solutions and to accompany our clients with our product and service competence from planning to on-site support to successful project completion," emphasizes Oliwer Pietrzak, sales representative of the fischer national company in Poland.
"Our involvement began with consulting and dimensioning of best-suited fastening solutions in cooperation with the planning office. We also stood by our clients as a fastening partner in all further construction phases, offering technical advice and support on site and assisting in the successful implementation of all fastening tasks."
One of the longest underwater tunnels in Europe:
The underpass connects the islands of Usedom and Wollin, which also divide the western and eastern parts of the city of Świnoujście. At the same time, the Swinoujscie Tunnel enhances the infrastructural link between the coastal region and the mainland as well as the wider world. It facilitates travel for the many commuters between Swinoujscie and Szczecin, as well as tourists. The route will ease border traffic between Poland and Germany and open up new opportunities for economic growth and job creation in the region.
It takes only three to four minutes to drive through the tunnel, including the entrance area. This significantly increases efficiency compared to the ferry, which takes 40 minutes to cross the river Swine. Especially since the crossing can be completely disrupted by bad weather, and during the summer season, waiting times of two to four hours were common.
The underwater tunnel is part of the Polish S3 expressway, which connects the north and south of Poland, running from the western part of the town of Swinoujscie on the island of Usedom to Liebau in Silesia on the Czech-Polish border.
1.8 kilometre length - 12 m diameter large main tube
In November 2019, the first preliminary work started on the tunnel, which is scheduled for completion in May 2023. On 30 June this year, Poland celebrated the opening of the Swinetunnel and opened it to public traffic.
A 12 m diameter two-lane main tube and a parallel emergency tunnel have been created. The road tunnel, including entrance sections, extends for a total of just under 1.8 km. At up to 37.5 m below the water surface and 11 m below the river bottom, it passes under the Swine.
A TBM (tunnel boring machine) was used to drive around 1.5 kilometres during the construction of the Swin tunnel. In addition, the cover construction method was used for tunnelling. Excavation and construction took place under a cover that was concreted onto diaphragm walls. The construction method allowed the excavation pit to be braced and the area above the starting shafts on the islands of Usedom and Wollin to be used during tunnel construction.
The fischer injection mortar FIS EM Plus, together with system components, was extensively used. Even under extreme conditions, such as earthquakes, in water-filled boreholes, and during fire outbreaks, the profile solution reliably transfers heavy loads permanently into concrete. As confirmed by its two European Technical Assessments (ETAs) and ICC approval, it is the dependable choice for post-installation reinforcement connections as well as fixings in concrete. Its assessed (ETA) service life of 100 years is a significant advantage in infrastructure projects like the Swinetunnel, which are expected to operate for a long time while maintaining maximum safety. The Stuttgart-based engineering firm IEA even certifies that anchorages with the fischer FIS EM Plus have a service life of 120 years.
In addition, the fischer Superbond mortar FIS SB was installed together with system components in the Swinetunnel. With its silane technology, the fixing system achieves a very high bond stress for strong performance and high safety, confirmed by the ETA for concrete as well as for seismic loads.
The variable anchoring depths of the grout optimise installation time and material consumption. In addition, mechanical anchoring solutions were also used in the Swinetunnel, such as the fischer FBN II, FBZ and FAZ II bolt anchors and the fischer UltraCut FBS II concrete screws. Significant quantities of FAZ II and UltraCut FBS II were used, for example, to install the supports for the system that feeds the TBM operation.
