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In February 2014, the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi is to host the Winter Olympic Games. Prior to staging the Olympics, an extensive programme of construction works has to be completed. In addition to the construction of new sports venues and numerous hotel complexes, the construction of new road and railway links has over the past two years turned the city into one large construction site. BAUER AG, based in the Bavarian town of Schrobenhausen, is actively involved in Sochi‘s construction programme through several of its subsidiaries. New sports facilities and bridges need solid foundations and specialist foundation engineering. As a result, BAUER Technologie, the Russian subsidiary of BAUER Spezialtiefbau GmbH, is carrying out various projects in Sochi. Particularly notable, however, is the large number of rotary drilling rigs of BAUER Maschinen GmbH that can be seen at the various construction sites around the city. At times, up to 64 heavy-duty Bauer drilling rigs have been in operation concurrently, primarily BG 28s, but also several rigs of the BG 36 series. Five of these rigs have been operated by BAUER Technologie, whilst the other 59 machines were owned by a whole range of important Russian construction companies who had come to Sochi from many different regions. The difficult local geology, comprising rather heavy soils, makes serious demands on specialist foundation engineering technologies. Piles had to be drilled to depths of 30 m and even 40 m.
Construction for the Winter Olympics includes eleven new sports facilities which are to be completed by the end of 2012. Along the coast of the Imeretinskaya Bay, the Olympic Park is under construction featuring five stadiums for different sporting activities and the Central Arena with Medals Plaza for the opening and closing ceremonies and the medal ceremonies. A further cluster of completely new facilities high up in the mountains at Krasnaya Polyana features a Biathlon and Ski Complex, a Sliding Centre for Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton, a Freestyle Skiing and Snowboarding Park, an Alpine Skiing Resort and a Ski Jumping Centre. As a result of staging the Olympic Games, the entire Greater Sochi area, with its numerous small spa towns burdened with inadequate regional traffic infrastructure facilities, will now receive a completely new infrastructure. The most far-reaching project is the nearly 50 kilometer long combined railway and highway from Adler to the Alpika-Service mountain resort, which will not only provide the main passenger transport artery for the Games but will also help to improve regional infrastructure after the Olympics. As the combined railway and highway routes approach the center of the city they are elevated over a length of 1420 meters at a height of 5 to 6 meters and founded on in-situ concrete piles. This elevated section runs along the bank of the Mzymta River. Given the mountainous conditions along the route, the line also required the construction of twelve new tunnels with a total length of 26 kilometers and 46 bridges. This solution provides the most streamlined route possible. The overall infrastructure programme also allows for the construction of three new railway stations.
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BAUER Drilling Rigs on the Construction Site for the Winter Olympics in Sochi
Sochi is Russia’s largest holiday and seaside resort with a subtropical climate where snow-capped mountains can be seen from the beach. In summer, temperatures in the resort climb as high as 42° Celsius; in winter “real winter“ prevails high in the mountains, whilst the mean temperature in the lowlands is still plus 10° Celsius. For the Russians this means: “We stage the 2014 Winter Olympics where the entire country spends their summer holidays.“ The whole vast country looks to this gigantic project in the South with great expectations. The Games are also an opportunity to give visitors a taste of the renowned Russian hospitality and let them experience and enjoy the diversity of culture and the beautiful nature of the region. In order to protect the natural environment, new traffic routes are not being advanced through forests along the mountainsides, but along the river valley.
