The Sydney Metro City & Southwest Tunnel and Station Excavation (TSE) Works has won the 2022 Australian Construction Achievement Award (ACAA).
Delivered as a joint venture in the heart of Sydney’s CBD, the project includes 15.5kms of fully lined tunnels between Chatswood and Sydenham, along with 57 cross-passages and two permanent dive structures, seven underground stations and numerous rail corridor widenings, shafts and caverns.
Technically complex with challenging logistical and geotechnical conditions, CPB Contractors, along with joint venture partners, used many sustainable solutions to deliver an array of Australian construction “firsts”, including:
- The first rail tunnels under Sydney Harbour
- The largest spanning rail cavern
- The operation of five TBMs simultaneously
- Multiple high-rise demolitions and four CBD mined tunnelling sites
- Heritage excavations which recovered the oldest European-style boat built in Australia
Throughout delivery, green initiatives were adopted, which saw the Sydney Metro City & Southwest TSE project receive the highest ever ISCA Infrastructure Sustainability rating. Some of these initiatives included:
- Recycling of more than 95% of construction waste
- Water use reduction of more than 26% as well as the reuse of water where possible (e.g. tunnelling support activities and dust suppression)
- 4.0-million tonnes of dirt was re-used across Sydney on over 100 approved roads, housing and airport projects
Engineers Australia CEO Dr Bronwyn Evans AM congratulated the winning team for delivering a masterpiece of engineering innovation.
“CPB Contractors, Ghella and John Holland in a Joint Venture have given a masterclass in using innovative engineering solutions and teamwork to overcome the most complex environmental and logistical challenges imaginable. In doing so, they have delivered an iconic addition to Sydney’s DNA that will provide enormous benefit to everyone in the community.”