Hamburg
HafenCity (Creative Blocks)
Hamburg, Germany / 01.2019 - 12.2020
On construction sites 82 a+b in the eastern part of Hamburg’s HafenCity, a mixed-use quarter combining residential and commercial functions has been developed. As part of a consortium, PORR special civil engineering was responsible for the construction of the turnkey construction pit as well as the installation of the pile foundations. The ground conditions in the project area are characterised by fill consisting of cohesive and granular soils, underlain by soft organic layers (clay). Foundation work was carried out on the underlying load-bearing sand layers.
Facts & Figures
Company
PORR Spezialtiefbau GmbH
Type
Turnkey construction pits
Runtime
01.2019 - 12.2020
Turnkey construction pits and pile foundations in Hamburg’s HafenCity
Construction pit and pile foundations for the Creative Blocks
A total of 506 Partial displacement bored piles were constructed for the building foundations. In addition, 78 large-diameter bored piles were used for the shoring. The drilling depths reached up to 24 m. The pile diameters were 61 cm and 78 cm respectively. The piles were designed to withstand loads of up to 3,300 kN.
Shoring without rear anchoring in the vicinity of the underground railway
The U4 underground railway line runs along the northern side of the construction site. Due to the proximity to the track, the shoring in this area could not be rear-anchored. The excavation enclosure was constructed as a spaced set of bored pile walls with plug-in beam shoring. Jetcrete was also used in the lower section. For stability, the shoring was braced inwards via the floor slab above the first basement level. This shoring concept was also applied on the eastern side, where a deep-founded bridge abutment is located.
Work in the area of historic harbour structures
To the south of the construction site lie the Versmannkai and the Baakenhafen. In this area, the construction pit was carried out with sloping sides. Remains of a historic quay wall were also encountered within the construction site. Existing anchors from the old quay wall were cut free and removed. The design of the new foundation elements took into account the existing structural remains and anchoring systems.
Pile foundations under challenging ground conditions
The pile foundations were constructed whilst taking into account numerous obstacles in the subsoil. These included the remains of former buildings, brickwork, reinforced concrete elements from old quay walls, as well as existing timber and reinforced concrete piles. The construction pit was handed over to the shell team in October 2019. In spring 2020, the horizontal bracing was installed as well as the remaining specialist civil engineering works were completed.
The foundation for the neighbourhood development in Hamburg’s HafenCity
By excavating the construction pit and installing the pile foundations, PORR Spezialtiefbau laid the groundwork for the development of building plots 82 a+b in Hamburg’s HafenCity. The special civil engineering works were adapted to the geotechnical conditions, the existing infrastructure as well as the existing harbour structures.