Case Study: Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) reduces tunnel boring machine downtime with AnyLogic

Optimization in a Construction Project Minimize Tunnel Boring Machine Downtime

Researchers at RUB, Ruhr University Bochum, faced a tunneling logistics challenge: they needed to reduce tunnel boring machine downtime in a crowded inner-city construction project where fixed calculations couldn’t account for disruptions, limited storage, or growing transport distances. They turned to AnyLogic simulation software to better plan excavation, maintenance, and support logistics under uncertainty.

Using AnyLogic, RUB built a process-focused, agent-based model of the tunneling operation and tested multiple scenarios with Monte Carlo simulation. The optimized setup cut average construction time from 194 to 169 days, reduced TBM downtime by 40.5%, increased advance rate by 15% to 17.78 m/day, and lowered spoil-transport traffic from 103 trucks per day to 30.

RUB

Judith Berns

RUB