The tunnel boring machine's final breakthrough at Settlers St Park, Carindale (October 2018)
Rock chippings extracted during tunnelling (August 2018)
Inside the tunnelling control cab at 110 Scrub Rd (August 2018)
Extracting the 45 tonne borer from a 48m deep shaft at Ewer Street (April 2018)
It's a long way down!
The exit shaft on the corner of Ewer Street and Scrub Road Carindale is now complete and awaiting the arrival of the tunnel boring machine.
Channel 9 news ran a story about Queensland Urban Utilities' underground highway of sewer and water infrastructure.
Meet Sewey the Tunnel Boring Machine!
We invited the Easts Mt Gravatt Junior Rugby League Football Club under 12 members to design and name our tunnel boring machine. Caitlin Gamble is seen here with her winning design.
Sewey the Tunnel Boring Machine was launched on 25 November 2016.
Sewey is a 14m long, by 1.8m diamter wide tunnel boring machine that weighs more than 45 tonnes - the equivalent of six elephants. It has finished its first tunnel section from the Allen Innes Field to the Edwards Reserve exit shaft.
Sewey pictured here in the launch position in the Allen Innes Oval shaft.
The shaft on the corner of Pine Mountain and Scrub Roads is now complete and ready for the Tunnel Boring Machine to be brought to site around mid-2017. The site will be made secure and remain inactive until then.
This graphic shows the tunnel boring machine in place and the sewer pipe being lowered into the sewer shaft. Tunnel boring is a trenchless technology that significantly reduces the impact of constructing a sewer on the community and the environment.
Caissons shafts are constructed using a hydraulic ram and concrete segments.When we hit rock and can no longer use the 'caisson' method of constructing the shaft, a digger is lowered by crane into the shaft and a hydraulic pick is used to break up the rock. Concrete (or shotcrete) is then sprayed onto the walls of the shaft.
A panoramic view of the Edwards Reserve construction site from the bikeway/footpath.
The temporary access road has been constructed to allow construction vehicles to enter the Allen Innes Oval site. The access road goes around the outside of the Rugby Club's football fields to minimise impacts on the Club.
Construction of the shaft on the Pacific Golf Club corner of Pine Mountain and Scrub Roads is well underway.
A shaft construction worker being taken out of the shaft by a craned cage. The worker operates the digger down the bottom of the shaft.
Where tunnel boring is not possible open trenching will be used. Open trenching involves digging a ditch then laying the sewer pipe. The ditch is then back filled and rehabilitated.