In Munich, which is striving to play a pioneering role in the field of renewables, the expansion of the already 900 km long district heating network is being driven forward. As part of this, the geothermal power plant in the town of Waldkraiburg is now also being connected.
To ensure the safe, time- and cost-efficient laying of pipelines, the construction company carrying out the work is relying on setting boxes from Vp Groundforce to support the side walls of the trenches excavated for pipe laying. This protects workers, materials and the surrounding infrastructure from landslides.
Energy generation from geothermal energy
Starting from geothermal power stations, two boreholes are drilled into the ground. The temperatures in the thermal water fields contained therein are between 40 and 100 °C. The water is transported to the power plant via pipes. The water is pumped into the power station via pipes, where it transfers the heat to the supply network via a heat exchanger, before it is then fed back into the thermal water field via the so-called reinjection borehole. There, the cycle begins anew.
Positioning boxes should offer more safety for people and infrastructure
Setting boxes are used on construction sites to minimise the risk to workers in excavations from sliding earth or collapsing cavities. These can be used to safely support trenches and excavation pits. The risk of damage to the infrastructure - for example due to landslides, water ingress or erosion - can also be minimised with the shoring boxes.
According to the manufacturer, they are easy to handle and quick to install and remove: ‘As soon as the setting box has been assembled from two large-format steel plates, the system, which weighs just 875 kg, is simply placed in the excavated trench. Thanks to the quick installation, an above-average number of metres of pipework can be installed every day. The resulting time efficiency also makes this approach extremely attractive from an economic point of view. The boxes consist of a simple, robust, two-sided mechanical excavation support system. This is designed as a temporary earth retaining structure so that the side of the excavation can be placed vertically or even almost vertically. The majority of the boxes from Vp Groundforce, each 3 metres long, 2 metres high and 60 mm thick, have already been delivered to the construction site in Waldkraiburg. These are always relocated on site after successful pipe laying. The adjustment boxes can be adapted to a trench width of 0.66 to 2.23 metres. This allows a pipe clearance height of 0.94 metres. They are expected to be in use on the construction site until November of this year.’
Munich: ambitious plans until 2040
Stadtwerke München plans to cover 100% of its district heating needs from renewable energies and the utilisation of waste heat by 2040. The city has set this out in a transformation plan. With an investment volume of around 9.5 billion euros, Stadtwerke München is thus playing a leading role in the heating transition for Bavaria's state capital.
