Spectacular New Building For Titlis
According to the Titlis mountain railways, the outdated mountain station from 1967 is reaching its capacity limits and a breath of fresh air is needed. The architects from Herzog & de Meuron are planning to convert the old directional tower from the 1980s, which will remain as an antenna, into a modern observation tower with a bar and restaurant for 250 people.
Not far away, the new mountain station is being built. It will be built on the old foundations and will incorporate much of the existing technology. Transporting material to 3,000 meters above sea level is a major undertaking. Not only because of wind speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour, but also because of the snow.
For the entire project, Titlis Bergbahnen expects construction to take six years and completion in 2029. The company says operations will be guaranteed throughout the entire period.
800 meter long wash bore through the mountain
We at Schenk are also able to contribute our part to this prestigious project. To this day, the mountain station is supplied with electricity by an overhead line. The water and waste water are even transported by gondola. Since the planned mountain station also requires an intact, reliable infrastructure, an underground tunnel is being used. In this area, we can play to our strengths with the controlled directional drilling technology. Last summer, the first installation and preparatory work was carried out, as well as various material and construction
machinery transports. Due to the weather, the installation site at 2,850 meters above sea level was covered with a marquee so that everyone, whether human or machine, would be a little protected. Despite the geological report, the drill head hit a fissure formation after the first three hundred meters. This meant a fresh start with a new drilling line that leads deeper through the rock. In addition, there were the measurement disturbances caused by the transmission mast. By taking counter measurements with the gyro module and the ParaTrack, we were able to master this challenge too.
In the future, the Titlis mountain station will be supplied underground
After long and tough months, the precise drilling breakthrough took place in March. In the tunnel under the Titlis observation tower, a small drill head peeked out for the first time. It worked its way up through the limestone inconspicuously and does not seem groundbreaking at all. But it is an immensely important step for the entire project. The 800-meter-long bore connects the station of the Ice Flyer chairlift with the 3,028-meter-high mountain station on Klein Titlis. As soon as the supply pipes are completed at the end of May, they will carry fresh and waste water, as well as power and data cables to and from the mountain station.
