CUTTING EDGE SOLUTIONS FOR TUNNEL RESTORATION

Baubot, a construction robotics company, developed the MRS15 Hollow Drilling Application, which was deployed for the Engelberg Tunnel Restoration project. Fischer Baubot Services, a key partner, aimed to demonstrate the value of integrating robotics and automation into tunnel restoration.

The project required drilling approximately 8,960 holes across four stages over six months, with each hole measuring 20 mm in diameter and 220 mm in depth, located at varying heights along the tunnel wall, from 50 cm to approximately 700 cm.

The first stage involved drilling around 4,110 holes in a section of the tunnel with heavily reinforced walls with steel rebar. To avoid damaging the rebar, fischer BauBot Services used the Baubot Planning & Simulation Environment (PSE), a drag-and-drop robot programming solution for mission planning, to create a flexible operation workflow that allowed real-time adaptation of the drilling program, eliminating the need for new programs on-site.

The working conditions in the Engelberg Tunnel presented significant challenges for manual drilling, including the need to keep the tunnel operational for the 100,000 cars passing through daily, which created a noisy and uncomfortable environment for workers. While the MRS15 system is not fully autonomous, its implementation drastically reduced the need for manual labor and the amount of time spent on-site, greatly enhancing project efficiency and safety.

MRS15 in a pilot project in Engelberg Tunnel

Baubot operated for over 8 hours a day, while human construction workers can drill for a maximum of 90 minutes per day due to hand-arm vibration. The MRS15 replaced a 5-person crew, automating positioning and reducing the need for surveyors at every stage of the project.

This pilot project demonstrated the effectiveness of robotics in handling complex tasks. MRS15 boosted productivity, reduced health and safety risks, and provided a cost-effective solution for tunnel restoration and other infrastructure projects.

Project Details

This project aimed to drill precise holes in existing tunnel infrastructure in preparation for the installation of steel reinforcement, facilitating the installation of precast concrete elements.

MRS15 was the perfect solution for this task, as its capability to drill multiple holes from a single robot position significantly increased efficiency and precision. Below are the key details of the project.

Hole Diameter Ø	20 mm
Hole Depth ↧	220 mm
Hole Count #	8960 Holes

The project was executed in two distinct phases.

In the first phase, a traffic lane was temporarily closed to facilitate the construction operations. During the second phase, MRS15 systems were deployed overnight to ensure minimal disruption. 

	Phase 1	Phase 2
Working Time	May 6 – July 18	Oct 23 – Nov 24
Holes	4677	4283
Drilled Meters	791	784
Robots in Operation	1-2	2-3
Average Shift Length	10	6

Approximately 48 holes could be drilled from each drilling position, meaning some of the longer processes, such as lifting up on hydraulic posts and driving, only needed to be done every 48 holes.

Using a data-drive estimation tool developed by Baubot, one can see that the MRS15 would be drilling for approximately 77% of the time during operation. The remaining time is spent on tasks such as driving, positioning, measuring the distance from the wall, and retracting from each hole.

This metric, the Drilling Share, is helpful for determining the product’s use case fit for different projects. A 77% drilling share is generally excellent, meaning that this use case offers an opportunity to significantly enhance productivity compared to traditional methods.

Project Results

Overall, this project was an ideal environment to test the MRS15 system’s capabilities at scale, and also improve key features to make it an even more reliable machine.

MRS15 is available for purchase or rental for projects such as this one, as well as almost any large project involving a high volume of drilling for anchors. Baubot is excited to offer a market-ready product that clearly demonstrates its value from the perspective of operators, site managers, and executives, and also welcomes dialogue related to tasks which its current offerings don’t already satisfy.

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Contact sales to find out more about how Baubot robotic solutions can help you with your next project.