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TBM DiGs 2021 from 29.11. to 01.12.2021 in Leoben, Austria

The 5th International Conference on Tunnel Boring Machines in Difficult Grounds (TBM DiGs 2021) will be held at the Montanuniversität Leoben, Austria. The conference is aimed at the diverse community of all those who are involved with the use of tunnel boring machines in difficult ground, including academic researchers, industrial scientists and engineers, government scientists, and policy makers. All are welcome to this conference, ranging from those just beginning to those with substantial expertise.

TBM DiGs 2021 is jointly organised by Montanuniversität Leoben and OEGG (Austrian Society for Geomechanics). The international conference series provides a specialised technological forum for discussing and exchanging knowledge related to TBM works in difficult ground conditions. This series covers a wide range of topics, including characterisation of difficult grounds, field observations and case studies, physical and laboratory tests, numerical modelling and techniques, treatments of difficult grounds, TBM design and installation, tunnel support design, monitoring and risk management.

TBM DiGs 2021 is the fifth conference in this series. The conference aims to bring together all who are interested in the use of tunnel boring machines in difficult ground, to review developments in the field over the previous two years, and to attempt to extrapolate for the near-term future. We anticipate that the conference will explore a great variety of topics. Presentations in the following areas are invited:

  • Rock - Very Hard and Abrasive rocks
  • Rock - Squeezing ground
  • Rock - Long and deep tunnels
  • Soil - Sticky soil and Clogging
  • Soil - Abrasive sand and wear problems
  • Soil - High water pressure – hyperbaric challenges
  • Mixed Ground conditions
  • Innovation – New Technology (construction chemicals, sensory systems, big data, operational simulation)
  • High Groundwater inflow / Gassy tunnels
  • Extreme TBM tunneling (very small/big TBMs, remote areas, outer space construction)
  • Manufacturing challenges and new developments
  • Logistics and Site Management for challenging TBM tunneling


The second ATC² Symposium will follow on 2 December and will have a focus on Digitalisation in Tunneling. ATC² stands for Austrian Tunnel Competence Center and represents a platform for innovation and know-how transfer in the field of tunnel construction. In addition to developments in the field of the traditional cyclical tunnelling method NÖT, continuous tunnelling and special measures of underground special foundation engineering will be discussed. Special challenges and innovations from deep rock tunnelling, but also from urban (shallow) loose rock tunnelling, will be discussed. The ATC² Symposium will be organised instead of the previous Südbahntagung and was first held on 29.11.2019.

From 29.11.2021 to 01.12.2021 the TBM DIGS 2021 will take place at the University of Leoben in Austria.
On 02.12.2021, subsequent to TBM DIGS 2021 , the second ATC2 Symposium of the Austrian Tunnel Competence Center will also take place in Leoben. The main topic is the digitalisation of the tunnel industry.