A construction ‘industry first’ partnership between the HS2 project and equipment supplier Finning to streamline earthmoving work is said to have begun yielding multi-million-pound savings.
EKFB’s DIGital Graphical Earthworks Reporting programme, also known as DIGGER, makes use of data from 700 machines, which are fitted with electronic weight sensors to monitor the millions of cubic metres of earth moved across the line’s 80km central section.
The line, running between the northern edge of Chiltern Hills and the east of Leamington Spa, is engineered with a series of embankments and cuttings to blend the new railway into the landscape.
Some 53 million cubic metres of rock and earth must be moved, with over 27 million cubic metres having been shifted to date.
Utilising the Finning CUBIQ digital platform and the latest on-machine and site technologies, HS2 Ltd’s collaboration with Finning and EKFB joint venture – the main works civil engineering contractor for the railway’s central section – delivers real time digital insights derived from telematic data from the machines delivering the earthworks.
If, for example, live data fed back to EKFB’s Brackley site base shows one of the 60 excavators idling with a load because it is waiting for a dump truck to arrive, the team can shuffle the fleet so it can continue to operate. Similarly, the system enables the on-site team to identify and resolve any ‘pinch points’ on site roads which may slow down haulage operations.
Rob Cairns, HS2 Ltd senior innovation manger, said, “Delivering HS2 remains a huge task. Most of its constituent parts are major, multi-year projects that provide both the testbed for development of innovative technology and subsequent deployment to enable benefits to be reaped. Once innovative, efficiency-enhancing technology has been developed and proven on HS2, it’s ready to be deployed on future projects anywhere across the UK and abroad.”
Mark Harrington, EKFB’s earthworks director, added, “DIGGER is a game-changer for EKFB’s earthmoving operations. By providing data that enables us to identify where inefficiencies are occurring in real time, we can implement immediate improvement measures to ensure we maintain optimum efficiency across our operations. This has meant that we’ve been able to reduce costs by around £25million. A significant slice of that saving comes from reduced fuel consumption – so it’s enabled a cut in carbon emissions too.”
Tim Ferwerda, Finning UK & Ireland MD, commented, “Working closely with HS2 Ltd and EKFB we’ve successfully demonstrated how our technology-led and digitally enabled operational approach supports the delivery of large infrastructure projects in the safest, most efficient and sustainable way possible. We are proud to be spearheading this type of transformative and collaborative approach to planning and delivering earthworks.”
