Mumbai Monorail on Track

Large infrastructure projects call for meticulous planning at the drawing board. Mumbai Monorail projectwhich is countrys first rail project on the mono platformis a `2,460 crore project by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, a consortium led by Larsen & Toubro with Malaysia based Scomi Engineering Bhd. It is currently in the process of implementing this in Mumbai.

Monorail Demystified

Sources say that unlike conventional rail systems where the train runs on dual tracks, the monorailconsidered amongst the worlds most modern urban transport systemsallows cars of the rail system to operate on a single beam (also known as a guide beam) in an elevated corridor. In an urban settingin a city like Mumbai where land resource is scarce, the monorail assumes significance as it occupies the smallest footprint, is eco-friendly, low cost and free of noise pollution. The straddle type monorail system, equipped to carry 2 lakh passengers per day, complies with the highest international standards of safety and reliability besides allowing high maneuverability by negotiating sharp curves and handling curves upto 6%. It is expected to decongest the highly crowded areas of Jacob Circle, Wadala and Chembur of Mumbai and link the West and North East corridors. The 19.54 km-long monorail project will have 18 stations in its route and will also connect the existing suburban railway system and the forthcoming Metro Rail in the city as part of a multimodal transport system.

Design Challenges

Given this backdrop, the construction team needed details to not only cast these beams, but also to erect them in the required actual and ultimate line profile. Moreover, construction teams were not able to get the geometric profile of individual components of this entire line of guide beams from the design partner.

The L&T-led consortium needed a software that would help meet the challenge of building this first-of-its-kind monorail project in the country within the stiff timelines and standards and to also help bridge the multi-pronged simultaneous collaboration between teams and stakeholders. The consortium chose AutoCAD Civil 3D software, a comprehensive product for the design, drafting, and management of a wide range of civil engineering project types including challenging transportation projects.

Solution

The construction teams found the solution in AutoCAD Civil 3D software. Says Jayant Keswani, head, marketing, Autodesk India and Saarc, Using the AutoCAD Civil 3D softwares building information modeling helps project teams deliver higher quality transportation, land development, and environmental projects faster. The model based approach helps keep the project information coordinated while delivering higher-quality documentation and visualizations.

Shrikanth G
shrikanthg@cybermedia.co.in