Case Study: Dr. Sauer & Partners achieves faster, higher-fidelity tunnel designs for London’s Bond Street Station upgrade with Dassault Systèmes (SIMULIA Abaqus)

Dr. Sauer & Partners - Customer Case Study

Dr. Sauer & Partners, the London-based tunneling and geotechnical firm working on the complex Bond Street Station Upgrade for the London Underground, faced tightly constrained geometry, limited clearances to existing foundations, a restricted worksite and strict settlement criteria as new Crossrail connections increased projected passenger flows. To meet these challenges they turned to Dassault Systemes’ SIMULIA solutions, using Abaqus/CAE for advanced 3D finite-element analysis and numerical simulation of staged excavation and lining sequences.

Using Dassault Systemes’ Abaqus/CAE, the Dr. Sauer team built three separate 3D FE models (roughly 450,000–1,000,000 elements) to simulate soil-structure interaction and sequential SCL construction. The simulations delivered realistic estimates of ground movement and volume loss, quantified stresses on adjacent tunnels and optimized lining and reinforcement (reducing extra rebar), improved simulation fidelity, saved planning time and helped accelerate approvals—enabling robust, buildable designs for the upgraded interchange.

Dr. Sauer & Partners

Ali Nasekhian

Senior Tunnel/Geotechnical Engineer