News

Channel excavation work will be performed in street areas in July–August as part of the West Metro station contract, causing changes in traffic on Yläkartanontie and Soukantie. Channels are being excavated for the Metro station entrances and technical shaft connections for public utility services – water, wastewater, power cables and telecommunication cables will run through the channels.

On Yläkartanontie, channels will be excavated from the technical shaft on Yläkartanonkuja to the northern side of Yläkartanontie, and from the Yläkartanontie entrance along the north side of Yläkartanontie towards the west. Vehicle traffic will not be completely interrupted at any point, but the channel excavations may slow down traffic. Only one lane will be open on a temporary basis. The pedestrian and cycle routes to the east of the Yläkartanontie entrance will be cut off during the excavation. An alternative route will be marked out with road signs.

On Soukantie, channels will be excavated along the street. The traffic route may also be narrowed at this point. The passage from the yard of Soukantie 14 to the parking site and covered waste facility will be narrowed during the work. However, a road connection will be maintained throughout the work.

Channel excavations will be performed from mid-July and last for a number of weeks. Work on the site will be done from 7am to 6pm on weekdays. The transport arrangements will also be in force at night and during the evenings.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused by the work.

Further information:

Länsimetro feedback phone number, Mon–Fri 9.00–15.00, tel. +358 50 377 3700

Kalliorakennus-Yhtiöt Oy’s hotline, tel.  +358 (0)50 3422 461

www.lansimetro.fi -> Worksite areas, Soukka

The metro depot under construction in Sammalvuori, Espoo, has proceeded in parts to roof wetting.

More than 60 per cent of the concrete and framework construction has been completed. The framework includes the walls, roofs, floors, foundations etc. Work on the building services has also begun,” says Minna Alantie, who is in charge of the Sammalvuori site supervising.

“The roof of the shaft construction at Sammalvuorenportti and the first waterproofing layer have been completed. Work on the water insulation in the service tunnel walls and roof is also proceeding well. The prefab installations in the staff entrance shaft are continuing, and the walls are being installed in the first floor. In the storage hall, we are working on the tunnels under the rails,” says Alantie.

All in all, the depot is about 20 per cent ready. Once the concrete structures are ready, we can start working on the wall, roof and floor surfaces. Building services work, that is, ventilation and electricity work, may begin once the framework is ready. Work on the sewage system has been ongoing all along.

“Rooms in the depot will gradually be taking form and be given names. It’s quite different from working right after excavation in large, open halls with no intermediate walls,” says Alantie.

The depot is different from other work sites in phase two of the West Metro in that the Sammalvuori consortium (Kalliorakennus-Yhtiöt Oy, EM Pekkinen Oy, Konevuori Oy and Aro-Systems Oy) is in charge of design, excavation, construction and building technical building services. The excavation and construction began in 2016 and is expected to be completed in 2020.

“Working with the consortium has been very flexible and cooperation between, for example, design and construction has been seamless,” says Alantie.

Two underground halls are being constructed at the Sammalvuori depot: one for the night-time storage of 20 trains, the other for maintenance facilities.

“We also have to bear in mind that the depot will be a workplace for people. It will be manned round the clock, and the premises must meet the staff’s needs: the depot has, for example, showers and dressing rooms, toilets, break rooms, offices and meeting rooms,” says Alantie.

New employees have started work on the West Metro project: Ismo Penttinen as a rail line electrical supervisor and Michael Träskelin as a location manager for the Kivenlahti station.

Penttinen is responsible for supervising the quality of electrical installation work of the seven-kilometre Matinkylä–Kivenlahti section of the rail line. Penttinen has a long career behind him with different electrical and automation projects. He has, for instance, worked as a designer and project manager for a power plan unit at Siemens for 15 years, as a project manager for the Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant project and as a unit manager at Empower, and in an electrical supervising position at Areva for the Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant project.

Furthermore, Penttinen has international experience from working for a nuclear power plan unit at Siemens AG in Karlsruhe, Germany, and at Ackermann u. Schmitt in Steinheim, Germany, for a period of years at each.

“West Metro is a completely new and different kind of project for me. On the other hand, I bring my own addition to the project thanks to my long experience,” Penttinen states.

“I heard that there is a good atmosphere, and, after first days, it already looks nice. I like the fact that we all work in the same big room, because, this way, communication works better, and team spirit is improved as well,” he adds.

Construction of the Matinkylä–Kivenlahti section is about to begin in June 2018.

“I joined the project at the exact right time,” Penttinen states delightedly. After the construction work begins, his days will mainly be spent at the worksite base to be built for the Hyljetie shaft.

Kivenlahti Location Manager has experience in motorway and track construction

Michael Träskelin will begin in the position of location manager. Alongside the real estate development manager, the location manager is in charge of construction and providing the contractor with operational guidance as well as making sure that, for instance, the objectives set for schedules, costs and quality are met.

Träskelin has previously worked with the Koskenkylä–Kotka and Hamina–Vaalimaa motorway projects at Sweco PM. Träskelin is very familiar with track infrastructure due to working with the Ilmala marshalling yard modernisation project. Previously, Träskelin has also worked at Lemminkäinen Infra Oy (current YIT Infra Oy) and was involved in construction of the Bothnia Line in Sweden.

“It is great to be back working with such a large-scale and long-term project. West Metro is a unique, large and significant project, and I highly doubt that I will never be involved in another project like this in my career,” Träskelin states.

Träskelin, too, is excited about working in the same big room.

“When an organisation is as wide as this, it is important that we all work under the same roof and that the entire concept functions as one. So far, so good,“ Träskelin states.

Construction work for the second stage of the West Metro line will begin in June 2018. Excavation of the rail line was completed at the beginning of the year. The work will be carried out by Graniittirakennus Kallio Oy.

The work will begin with the construction of a worksite base at the Hyljetie shaft (Hyljetie 6, 02260 Espoo). Rail tunnel structures are being simultaneously built for three sections: Matinkylä to Kaitaa, Kaitaa-Espoonlahti and Espoonlahti-Kivenlahti.

Construction of the track will begin from the bearing courses and concrete structures of the tunnel. Structures such as supporting wall elements and various cables will be built into the tunnel later, and electrical and HVAC works will be added. The end-stage of the construction work will include bringing blocks and ballast into the tunnel and fitting the rails into place. This will be done as part of the superstructure contract assigned to the main contractor of the line.

In addition to the seven-kilometre line of the Matinkylä-Kivenlahti section, the contract will include the construction of seven shaft buildings and 32 connecting tunnels with fire barriers.

During construction, there will be an increase in construction traffic around the mouths of the shafts and access tunnels. Otherwise, construction will cause no major changes in the surrounding environment.

During the construction phase, quiet work may be done around the clock, but noisy work may be done according to the noise permit issued by the Espoo Environment Agency:

• weekdays from Monday to Friday, 7am-6pm
• weekdays 6pm-10pm and 9am-6pm on non-bank holiday Saturdays (on up to 10 Saturdays), if the noise level of the work is a maximum of 35dB in nearby residences

The construction phase of the West Metro’s Matinkylä-Kivenlahti section is scheduled for the years 2019-2021. The building phase will include five stations, the track and the Sammalvuori depot, as well as the installation of various systems. Joint use tests and official inspections will be carried out during the years 2022-2023, and the works will be handed over by the building contractor. In 2023, the line and stations will be handed over to the operator, i.e. HKL, in order to begin running passenger traffic.

Worksite areas

Further details on tunnel construction

Further information:

Länsimetro feedback phone number (Mon–Fri 9.00–15.00), +358 (0)50 377 3700

Länsimetro is applying the Kuivaketju (dry chain) method to the construction of the Matinkylä-Kivenlahti phase. This is a moisture management operating model, adopted for the construction process in spring 2017, which reduces the risk of moisture damage throughout a building’s lifecycle.

“The system was originally developed for the construction of buildings, but we have tailored it to the needs of the West Metro. Construction of the Metro has involved special features compared to buildings; this is a long-term project, with the same work phases repeated several times. The construction of different stations and shafts is highly similar,” says Design Manager Hans Wilkman Ramboll.

After a building has been commissioned, the internal conditions tend to be warm and dry, while those on a railway are very humid.

“Special attention must be paid to the protection of sensitive service equipment and to ventilation and heat control. Stations have very high moisture management requirements, because they have even more technical equipment than the track. A station is a cold, segregated space where conditions vary as you move underground from the surface,” says Lead Consultant Leif Wirtanen of Ramboll.

Moisture is controlled by protecting machines and equipment with the help of protective coverings, for example, but the key issue is ensuring good ventilation. In an operational metro, moving trains change the air naturally, but ventilation has to be based on means such as fans when a metro is still under construction. Humidity is measured continuously.

The Länsimetro project is a pioneer in using the Kuivaketju10 method, since this is the first time that it has been used in a project combining building technology and infra on this scale.

“The City of Espoo’s building inspection authorities require that the West Metro ensure moisture management, and Kuivaketju10 is a good way of doing so. The overall process is still under development, but we already have many good experiences of using Kuivaketju10. Kuivaketju10 resembles the cold chain principle from the food sector; steps are taken to ensure moisture management at every stage from procurement to commissioning,” says Wirtanen.

More information on the Kuivaketju10 method

The Länsimetro Board convened on 23 May.

A status update on the second phase, Matinkylä–Kivenlahti, was presented to the Board. Excavations, planning, application for building permits and procurement are proceeding on schedule and in accordance with the adjusted cost estimate.

Status updates of May 2018 on the maintenance and servicing of the first phase of the West Metro, the Ruoholahti-Matinkylä section, were presented to the Board. HKL shall report to Länsimetro Oy on the use of the track and stations and the related service and maintenance tasks as agreed.

The Board was presented with a training programme for the Länsimetro project, the objective of which is to ensure that the special expertise of those involved in the second phase of the project is available throughout the construction. Expertise will also be developed during the long project. The training is systematic, continuous and will be developed as the project goes on. The trainers will mostly be our own experts who distribute information about their own special field in the construction of the West Metro. The training mainly concerns the project’s Piispanportti staff, that is, the big room staff.

The next meeting will be held on 28 June.

Further information:

Ville Saksi, CEO, Länsimetro Oy, tel. +358 (0)40 823 2086

Olli Isotalo, Chairman of the Board of Länsimetro Oy, tel. +358 (0)50 593 3359

Media contacts: Satu Linkola,Communications Director, tel. +358 (0)46 877 3392

The Länsi-Uusimaa Department for Rescue Services is practicing at the Sammalvuori depot construction site on 14.5 and 23.5.2018 starting at 9:30 AM for about two hours. In both training exercises the accident situation is a small fire.

From four to seven Rescue Services units will participate in the exercises, and because of this emergency vehicles will be moving about in the vicinity of the depot. The drill will involve the use of harmless light grey smoke that is not hazardous to health. No calls to the Emergency Response Centre should be made concerning the smoke used in the rescue drill, unless the smoke originates from a source other than the drill.

The public are requested, as far as possible, to avoid the area where the exercise is taking place so as not to disturb the exercise.

The Länsi-Uusimaa Department of Rescue Services is preparing itself with the exercise for rescues during construction. The excavation work at the Sammalvuori depot has ended and construction begun. Pouring of concrete and building infrastructure work is being done at the worksite.

Further information on the drill:

Länsimetro Oy, Satu Linkola, Communications Manager, tel. +358 (0)46 877 3392

Fire Chief Janne Räsänen, Länsi-Uusimaa Rescue Department, tel. +358 (0)45 130 8573

The excavation of the Yläkartanontie entrance will start in the Länsimetro Soukka worksite. Yläkartanontie is one of the two entrances to the completed Metro station.

Making a sheet pile wall will begin the week starting on 21 May in conjunction with the ground construction, which will cause noise pollution.

The pile driving will last an estimated five days, and it can be done on weekdays from Monday to Friday from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. The working hours are based on a noise permit granted by the Espoo Environment Centre.

Reinforcement work, including injection drilling and bolt drilling, is estimated to be done from the end of May to the middle of October. In the beginning of July the actual open excavation of the entrance will start, which will last to the end of September, and the entire shaft will be ready by the end of October. Excavation work can be done on weekdays from Monday to Friday from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. The working hours are based on a noise permit granted by the Espoo Environment Centre.

The excavations of the tunnels at the Soukka worksite were already finished at the end of the Summer of 2017.

Further information:

Kalliorakennus-Yhtiöt Oy, Site Manager Meeri Kaartinen, tel. +358 (0)50-3411970

Länsimetro feedback phone number (Mon–Fri 9:00 AM –3:00 PM): +358 (0)50 377 3700

See map in larger scale

 

Toni Paananen (builder, B.Sc.) has started as the supervisor of the Länsimetro rail line’s building project.

Paananen will supervise the rail line project starting in early summer, which includes, among other things, concrete work and installation of elements. The supervisor functions as an important link between the contractor and the customer, and the work also includes following up on the schedule and checking invoices.

Paananen has had a long career in renovation; the last seven years he worked at Lemminkäinen (now YIT) in hotel and business location projects. His career has included, among others, the Cumulus Hotel (now Scandic) in Töölö.

“Länsimetro was attractive because this provides completely new challenges after renovation construction. There are a lot of similarities in construction principles – the same laws of nature work in concrete work and installation of elements, either above ground or under it. I also get to learn completely new things. Another Metro project will hardly come along in a career, so this is certainly a unique project,” says Paananen.

Get to know the phases of the Metro-tunnel’s construction