News / Events

Newsletter - January 2010

29/01/2010: The fourth issue of NFM Technologies newsletter is available.

SOTIELLO Tunnel: New record for NFM Technologies

The NFM Technologies "Via Carisa" tunnelling machine working on the high speed railway line between Madrid and Gijon in Spain has set a new progress record, having bored through 1,140 metres in a single month (progress record for single shield machine in Spain). This performance was achieved as part of the Pajares-Sotiello project (lot 5 of the Pajares project). The NFM hard rock tunnelling machine with a diameter of 9.90 m made its breakthrough last september, having bored through 5,900 m of tunnel in less than eight months.

Newsletter October 2009

19/10/2009: The third issue of NFM Technologies newsletter is available.

NFM Technologies TBM will carve the Cairo metro

NFM Technologies has signed a contract to supply a 9.46 m diameter Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) tunnel boring machine for the second phase of Cairo Metro line 3.
The contract, signed with the Joint Venture made up of Vinci (project lead), Bouygues, Arabco and Orascom, includes the conception and design of the TBM, as well as the manufacture, assembly, tests in factory and on-site, plus part of the transport. The machine will be manufactured at the NFM Technologies Le Creusot Plant in France. 
The TBM will excavate the 5138 m linking the stations of Cairo Fair, Stadium and Kolleyet El Banat. The soil is made up mainly of clay, sand and sandstone.

Breakthrough on line 2 of the Wuhan underground

The NFM Technologies tunnel boring machine finished excavating the section between the stations of Fanhu and Qingnianlu on line 2 of the Wuhan underground (China) in June. 
The machine bored 1,068 m in just 3 months in a water-satured clay-ground. The customer B1 is particularly satisfied with the performances of this 6.28 m diameter EPB tunnel boring machine, the efficiency of on-site teams and the co-operation with NFM.
The TBM is currently re-assembled at the starting point to extend the tunnel for 1,200 m in the opposite direction.

Launch event for the Kazan TBM

20/07/09. NFM Technologies has organised a launch event on Friday 17 July 2009 for the tunnelling machine destined for the Kazan subway. The launch took place at the company’s Le Creusot plant and was attended by Mr. BURGANOV (leader of the Executive Committee for Kazan), Mr. RAKHIMOV (Director of KAZMETROSTROY, the authority in charge of the construction of the subway), Mr. ANCIAUX (MP for the Saône-et-Loire region of France) and Mr. BILLARDON (the mayor of Le Creusot).

This 5.89m diameter Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) TBM was designed for the subway line 1 extension in Kazan. The order is proof of a renewal of the client’s trust in the French company. An original machine was supplied for line 1 of the subway in 2005. "The first machine was chosen quite by chance... This machine was chosen from experience" confirmed Mr RAKHIMOV, having expressed his satisfaction with the boring performance and robustness of the first TBM supplied by NFM Technologies.

The machine, which has been given a Tartar girl’s name meaning "as beautiful as the moon" will leave Le Creusot at the beginning of August to begin its journey to the work site, arriving at the end of September.

A new NFM Technologies office opens in Shenzhen (China)

17/06/09: NFM Technologies has just opened a branch in Shenzhen (China) for its service provision business. This office, set up with SHMG (Shenyang Heavy Machinery Group), will manage the provision of services on sites in the Southern part of the country, between Shenzhen and Wuhan.
Thanks to its team of over 10 European and Chinese technicians, the NFM SHMG TBM SHENZHEN SERVICE CENTER will enable us to provide better support at each stage of our site work, to ensure that machines are operationnal and to reduce lead times. A local office has become essential for a region in which our business has continued to grow. NFM Technologies is currently overseeing 18 projects in Guangdong province.

New spare parts sale

NFM Technologies is storing a large quantity of spare parts (hydraulic, electrical, mechanical) in a very good state. Those elements (new parts), originally from underground projects, are now proposed to be sold at very competitive prices and can be delivered very quickly.

Different types of components:

• Cutting tools for every kind of mining conditions (cutters and associated spare parts, cutting tools for EPB and hard rock technologies, scrappers...)
• Seals (O’ring, rotary seal, for articulation, scrapper seal...)
• Cylinders for the main functions (thrust, articulation and others...) and associated spare parts (seal set, sensors...)
• Mechanical spare parts for key components (as motors and reducers...): pinions, rings, springs, various bearings...
• Conveyor belt spare parts: drums...
• Electrical material: power supply, fuses, sensors, transformators, circuit breaker, electronical cards, various products for Programmable Logic Controller...
• Hydraulic and pneumatic components: distributors, valves, electrovalves, sensors, pressure relief valve, pressure gauge...
• Electrical motors and hydraulic pumps...
• Hoist with different maximum load capacity (with the corresponding trolleys)
• ...

Originally designed to ensure all the TBM functions, those components adapt to different end uses : excavation, mortar injection, lifting loads, load displacements, electronical and hydraulic supply and control, ventilation, dewatering, grease injection, lubrification...

For any further information, do not hesitate to contact us. Thanks to fill in the necessary blanks in order for us to contact you then.

Newsletter - April 2009

Let’s read our news on our April newsletter.

NFM Technologies enters Indian market

30/03/2009: NFM Technologies has just signed a Memoramdum of agreement (MOA) with the Indian company BEML(Barath Earth Movers Limited.), which has a major role in the country’s underground system projects. At a time when infrastructure requirements are rapidly increasing, the MOA seals an exclusive partnership with a view to becoming the principal supplier of tunnel boring machines in India and the countries of South-East Asia.
Due to its dense urban population undergoing rapid growth, India aims to develop its underground infrastructures: new underground lines (Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi pase 2 etc.), irrigation canals, hydroelectric tunnels, etc.

Newsletter January 2009

28/01/09: The first issue of  NFM Technologies newsletter is available.

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Two NFM Technologies TBM for Beijing underground.

14/01/09 : NFM Technologies has just signed a contract for two 6.28 m diameter earth press balance (EPB) tunnel boring machines for line 10 of the Beijing Underground system.

The two machines are scheduled to be delivered to the client China Railway Construction Co. (B12) in July and August 2009. They will undertake a twin tunnel connecting three underground stations. They will bore under a dense urban area (under the third ring road and under significant historic buildings) along a total length of about 8,000 m.

Happy new year

01/2009 : Everyone at NFM Technologies wishes you all the best for 2009.

Shenzen Underground - NFM Technologies tunnel boring machines begin service

26/11/2008 : As part of the project to build line 3 of Shenzen’s Underground system, NFM Technologies has manufactured 3 earth pressure balance tunnel boring machines (TBM) with a diameter of 6.28 m.

The first two machines began service on 14 and 19 November 2008 and all went well. The first TBM will carry out the 2,535 m of twin-tube tunnel between Hong Ling and Lao Jie stations. The second machine will dig out 2,400 m between Cui Zhu and Tian Bei stations. The third machine should put its first loop into place in December 2008 in order to bore 1,085 m between Tian Bei and Shui Bei. This new Underground line should begin service in 2011.

A tunnelling machine for the Kazan subway

NFM technologies has received an order to supply a tunnelling machine in the context of the expansion of subway line 1 in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan. This machine, ordered by the authority in charge of the construction of the Kazan subway, KAZMETROSTROY, is similar to that delivered by NFM technologies in 2005 for this same project: they are both 5.89 meter diameter Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) machines with foam injection.

The second tunnelling machine, scheduled for delivery in June 2009, shall dig over a distance of 2000 metres, between the "Kozya Sloboda" and "Moskovskaya" stations at the west of the city. It shall be entirely manufactured and tested in our Le Creusot workshops.

Adhesion to the Bourgogne Nuclear Cluster

NFM Technologies becomes a member of the Bourgogne Nuclear Cluster (Pôle Nucléaire Bourgogne - PNB). This competitiveness cluster represents the metallurgy and mechanical engineering sectors for nuclear energy in Bourgogne. It counts, amongst its members, some major clients, SMCs, schools and training institutes and associate partners.

With its world-unique concentration of nuclear mechanical engineering skills, the PNB develops its members’ activity over a range of fields (R&D, training, collaborative tools) enabling them to enhance their expertise and strengthen their competitiveness.