News

Two years ago, the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) launched the Green Points initiative to make the public more aware of the contribution traveling by rail makes to protecting our environment and to reducing our carbon footprint. This initiative allows people, who use ÖBB trains for their business trips to collect green points, which are dedicated to specific environmental projects.

By advocating rail travel, ILF has managed to cut down CO2 emissions by 53.7 tonnes in the past year and to join the ranks of Austria’s most frequent train travellers. This marks a 30 % improvement in comparison to last year’s figures.

ILF highly appreciates the ÖBB initiative, as the sustainable protection of the environment is of utmost importance to our company both when designing structures and facilities and when performing day-to-day project works. We are delighted that by continuing to use ÖBB trains for business trips, we can make a valuable contribution to ensuring sustainability in Austria in years to come.

Legend: Bruno Mattle and Kathrin Klingler (both ILF), Günther Feuchtner (Vertrieb/Business-Travel ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG)

ILF Consulting Engineers will be represented at the 9th International Conference “Tunnel Safety and Ventilation” in Graz, Austria from 12 to 14 June 2018.

Bernhard Kohl will give a presentation titled “Discussing the influence of congestion on tunnel safety – using the example of the Waterview Tunnel in Auckland“ on 13 June 2018 at 10:15 am in the “Graz” hall.

Furthermore, Oliver Senekowitsch will talk about the “Reproduction of human behaviour in risk models – validation of the relevant risk parameters based on proband tests“ also on 13 June 2018 at 09:25 am in the “Graz” hall.

In the afternoon (02:35 pm, “Graz” hall”) Reinhard Gertl will share his practical experience on the “Installation of the escape way ventilation system of the Dalaaser tunnel“ with you.

The speakers will be happy to receive questions or feedback. Let us know how we can help you tackle your challenges (bernhard.kohl@ilf.com or oliver.senekowitsch@ilf.com or reinhard.gertl@ilf.com)!

We look forward to also welcoming you at our booth no.16. For further information please go to the website at: https://lampx.tugraz.at/~tunnel2016/

The MEED Awards celebrate excellence across the GCC – one of the world’s fastest moving, most disparate and vibrant markets – and recognize each winning company for the success of its business achievements.
At this year’s ceremony, which took place on 2 May 2018 in Dubai, ACWA POWER and ILF received the esteemed awards of National Winner and GCC Winner for the category “Power Project of the Year” by virtue of the value, the quality, and the success of the SHUAA Energy 1 – Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum 200 MW PV Solar Plant project.
The project is a part of the “Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030” initiative and the plant is the second phase of the 1 GW Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park which will be the world’s largest single-site solar park based on the Independent Power Producer model (IPP).

• Legend from left to right: Mr. Richard Thompson (Editorial Director MEED), Dr. Abdel Kaher El Zaemey, Dr. Corrado Sommariva and Mr. Klaus Lässer (all ILF)

ILF Consulting Engineers pronounces its participation in the “4th International LNG Congress” held in Berlin from June 4 to June 5, 2018 as a Session Sponsor.

During this year’s congress, our experts will present our technical expertise in Small-Scale LNG Technologies and host the corresponding session (Mr. Bernhard Pürzer).

You are most welcome to visit us or schedule a meeting (Mercure Hotels MOA, Berlin, Germany) to learn about our competences and experience in the field of LNG. Let us know how we can help you tackle your challenges (info.muc@ilf.com)! We are looking forward to your visit.

For further information, please visit the website at http://lngcongress.com/ or read the interview with Mr. Pürzer using this link.

The overall goal of “SIC!” is to develop methods for an energy-optimized operation of industrial facilities, for their energy conversion, distribution and storage, and the investigation of their interaction with the framework conditions of the energy industry.

To this end, the University of Technology in Vienna, the Montanuniversität Leoben and AIT have jointly launched an initiative for a cooperative PhD program. ILF Consulting Engineers makes a significant contribution to the PhD topic “design optimization and dynamic component modeling for load flexible industrial energy supply facilities”. On the one hand the PhD position of the successful applicant will be sponsored by ILF and on the other hand an intense transfer of know-how is planned, which shall also include a market-oriented product innovation.

After the application procedure, the employment of the PhD candidate could start in June 2018. For details regarding the PhD position, click here.

One of the most challenging structures of the Koralm Railway Line, the Untersammelsdorf Tunnel near St. Kanzian (Austria), was officially completed with the breakthrough of the top heading in late April.

The Untersammelsdorf Tunnel is the most complex of six tunnel structures and has a total length of 665 m and a maximum overburden of 30 m. Large parts of the tunnel were excavated adopting the cut-and-cover method, while in the portal areas the top-down construction method was used. A tunnel rescue site for emergency services is being built at the tunnel’s western portal.

Together with partners of ÖBB Infrastruktur AG, ILF Consulting Engineers has been working on the design of the tunnel structures in the “Mittlern–Althofen” section since 2006.

On May 4, 2018, COWI North America took over part of ILF-USA’s projects and workforce. ILF is restructuring its business in North America and will continue to serve clients in the USA in the sectors oil & gas, transportation, tunneling, energy and water. Whilst partly cooperating with COWI on a case-by-case basis, ILF has plans to expand its US presence from the ILF Denver office.

Chaleun Sekong Energy Co. Ltd. has recently awarded ILF Consulting Engineers and partners with the site supervision services for the Nam E-Moun hydropower project. This important plant has an installed capacity of 129 MW and is located in Southern Lao PDR. The project consists of a gated concrete gravity dam with a maximum height of 25.6 m and more than 15 km of tunnel structures.

The construction works are expected to take 42 months. In addition to the site supervision and commissioning services, ILF Consulting Engineers, together with partners, has also been requested by Chaleun Sekong Energy Co. Ltd. to assist with the selection of the electro-mechanical equipment.

Legend: Mr. Litsamy Latsavong, Managing Director & CFO of Chaleun Sekong Energy Co.,Ltd and Dr. Matthias Beisler, Managing Director of ILF-THA, Mr. Chanthanom PHOMMANY (background, 2nd from left), ChairMan President of Chaleun Sekong Energy Co.,Ltd and Mr. Viraphonh VIRAVONG (background, 4th from left) former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Energy of Mines in Lao PDR

In early April 2018 the EPC contractor Mapa Construction and Trade Co. Inc. commissioned ILF Consulting Engineers to carry out the detailed design for the Rabigh-Jeddah/Makkah Water Transmission System in Saudi Arabia. It is one of the largest drinking water transmission systems ever tendered by the client and owner SWCC.

The overall system comprises two independent pipeline systems (Rabigh-Jeddah/Makkah and Rabigh-Mastorah) which are both supplied by the new Rabigh desalination plant. The total throughput amounts to 1.3 million m³/d and is transported from Rabigh to Makkah and Briman respectively via a 200 km long 80” twin line. In total 684 km of pipeline will be laid and 8 pump groups will be installed. 12 reservoir stations will be erected along the pipeline. The total storage capacity of the steel tanks in the different stations is 3177 m³.

ILF’s scope of work includes hydraulics and process, all stations and buildings including housing compounds for the future operating personnel, and the entire pipeline system. Furthermore ILF supports the EPC contractor in the design of the mechanical equipment, the commissioning of the transport system on site and prepares the operating manual for the overall system.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Railway Development commissioned ILF Consulting Engineers, together with partners, to provide design services for a railway line from Kumasi to Paga.

The 595 km long greenfield railway line shall link up Ghana with neighboring Burkina Faso with a design speed of up to 160 km/h. The project will improve railway and logistics infrastructure as part of an integrated transport network in Ghana and help to improve services to customers and reduce the cost of transportation.

ILF and its partners are in charge of the feasibility study to determine the economic, financial, social and environmental viability of the proposed railway corridor. clomid online, acquire clomid.

After an intensive design and approval phase the groundbreaking ceremony for the GroAYinzersdorf Wind Farm (Lower Austria) took place in early April this year.

The EUR 17 million project is meant to supply 7,500 households with clean electricity as early as this year. The wind farm consists of three wind turbine facilities with a total of 9.9 MW and is an important step towards renewable energy and climate protection in Austria.

ILF Consulting Engineers was commissioned by WindLandKraft GmbH to carry out the design and project management services for the wind farm including roads and crane hardstand areas as well as cabling to the substation.

After a construction period of approx. 10 years, the new Limmern pumped storage power plant (Switzerland) of “Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG” was commissioned with a ceremony at the end of March 2018.

With an output of 1,000 MW, the new power plant is the largest pumped storage power plant in Switzerland and has a height difference of 620 m. The dam, located at 2,470 m above sea level, is the highest dam in Europe.

For Switzerland and the international electricity industry, the power plant is a huge battery that can be used in an environmentally friendly way to stabilize the grid and to ensure peak coverage.

Together with partners, ILF Consulting Engineers had already been entrusted with the design of the underground facilities (powerhouse, transformer cavern, pressure tunnel, surge tank, access tunnel, energy discharge tunnel) in 2009.

Legend: Representatives of the engineering companies in front of a disassembled impeller

ILF is excited to announce the brand new book “SUSTAINABILITY – A Way to Abundance” by Dr. Corrado Sommariva. The book covers sustainability from various perspectives and presents a very promising vision of abundance based on the conclusion that profit can also be associated with sustainability and environmental protection. The book is a “must-read” for all who are interested in the super important topic of sustainability and is available at CRC Press as hardback or eBook.

Dr. Sommariva is a world-class expert for desalination and as Managing Director of ILF in the UAE in charge for the energy and water business. Moreover, in his function as Group Director Sustainability, he promotes sustainability advisory across the globe.

Engineers Without Borders Austria is a non-profit association which has set itself the task of implementing projects in the field of technical development cooperation. The members and contributors are of different age groups and fields of study/professions. Everyone works on a voluntary basis. Since 2015 there is a regional group in the Tyrol with currently about 40 members, among them architects, civil engineers, physicists, psychologists, linguists and many more. The regional group is currently working on the “EduZapa” project, which aims to rehabilitate a school in rural, poverty-stricken Mexico. The first implementation phase took place in the summer of 2017, with a further phase being planned for 2018. This project is financed exclusively by donations.

ILF supported the association with a donation at the end of 2017 and now intends to work more closely together. In particular, ILF plans to contribute to the technical project and design by making in-house expertise available to the project team.

If you would like to learn more about the project, please follow this link: http://www.iog-austria.at/iog_project/eduzapa-mexico/.

Already in 2014 the National Water Company (NWC) commissioned ILF Consulting Engineers to provide design services for the “South Dhahran Residential Project” of the Saudi Aramco national oil company. Scope of services for this new “Residential Housing Complex” is to ensure the necessary water supply as well as wastewater treatment and disposal for the future 70,000 residents.

The project encompasses a seawater desalination plant (100,000 m³/day), a 20 km long drinking water supply pipeline and a 17 km long wastewater collector pipeline to the new wastewater treatment plant (70,000 m3/day). The project furthermore envisages reusing the treated sewage effluent (TSE) for irrigation purposes via a 17 km long pumping main. A new 10 km long transmission pipeline DN 1,200 for wastewater between an existing and the new wastewater treatment plant is included in the project.

After the feasibility study ILF also carried out the EPC tender of the mentioned system components, provided support during contract negotiations and compiled contract documents. Currently the project is in the implementation stage where ILF carries out design review and site supervision.

All over the world changes in the climate are observed resulting in conditions that are too hot, too wet, causing a rise in sea levels, and an increase in the number of extreme events, such as storms, floods, droughts or landslides. Given the ever increasing importance of the topic, ILF has now published a White Paper titled “Climate Change challenges and solutions in infrastructure planning and adaptation”, which gives an overview of the topic and outlines solutions to cope with the challenges involved.

You are highly welcome to read the document that can be downloaded here.

ILF Consulting Engineers will be represented at the “Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Water Resources and Renewable Energy Development in Asia” in Danang, Vietnam from 13 to 15 March 2018.

Florian Nagel will give a presentation as part of the “Finance and risk” session: “Development of Bankable Hydropower Projects in South-East Asia using Monte Carlo Simulation” on 13 March 2018. Furthermore, Lochan Devkota will present on “Sedimentation management: Impact of the Koshi Barrage & Embankments on River Morphology and Dynamics” on 15 March 2018.

The speakers will be happy to receive questions or get feedback. Let us know how we can help you tackle your challenges (florian.nagel@ilf.com or lochan.devkota@ilf.com)!

We look forward to welcoming you also at our stand (095). For further information please go to the website at: http://www.hydropower-dams.com/asia-2018-conference.php?c_id=303

Here you can find further information on our presentation at HYDRO Asia 2018.

ILF Consulting Engineers announces its participation in the annualA�Pipeline Technology Conference (PTC) held in Berlin from March 12 to March 14, 2018 as a Gold Sponsor.

During this years PTC, our experts will present our technical expertise in emergency response concepts (Dr. Michael Kasch).

You are most welcome to visit us at stand 42 in exhibition hall 1 (Estrel Convention Center, Berlin, Germany) to learn about our competences and experience in the field of pipeline engineering. Let us know how we can help you tackle your challenges (info.muc@ilf.com)! We are looking forward to your visit.

For further information, please visit the website at http://www.pipeline-conference.com

Together with partners, ILF Consulting Engineers has been involved in the site supervision of the Koralm tunnel KAT2 contract section on behalf of the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) since 2010. After the start of the construction works in 2011 and the start of the TBM drive in 2013 the completion of the excavation works was celebrated on 18 Feb 2018. This means that over a period of 59 months of tunnelling some 17,145 m of tunnel were excavated for this contract section.

Forming part of the Baltic-Adriatic Axis, the Koralm tunnel shall, after its completion, contribute to significantly reducing travel times in passenger traffic and to improving the conditions for environmentally friendly railway freight traffic. The 32.9 km long single track railway tunnel was divided into three contract sections, with the 19 km KAT2 section being the longest one.

ILF is both in charge of the site supervision and of the technical management of the joint venture for the site supervision.

In January this year the official ceremony for the Deutschlandstipendium 2018 was hosted by the Technical University of Munich. More than 150 donors and 650 scholarship holders of the Deutschlandstipendium took part in the festive event. The scholarship program launched by the Federal Government in 2011 promotes students who are expected to achieve high both at University and in their professional lives.

Together with the Adolf Feizlmayr Foundation ILF participates in the program by funding a total of twelve scholarships that cover a broad spectrum of different engineering disciplines. These range from electrical and information technology engineering to mechanical, civil and environmental engineering. Besides Germany and Austria, the scholarship holders come from Canada, Venezuela, Iraq, Syria, Hungary and Italy.

Through the ILF-internal ai???Club of Young Engineersai??? the scholarship holders get in direct contact with ILF employees and are given the chance to participate in various ILF events. Individual assignments as working students, interns or prospective graduates are meant to provide the scholarship holders an opportunity to get to know each other in a direct working environment at ILF.