Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schr?der visited STEC: I have heard of STEC for a long time, you and Herrenknecht are the model of cooperation between Chinese and German enterprises!

2019-02-19

On June 12, 2018, Herrenknecht AG, the peer and friend of STEC and who worked shoulder to shoulder with STEC in the Wuhan project, visited STEC. Both sides reviewed the cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht, and discussed the further deepening cooperation and win-win in the future!

During the discussion, Gerhard Schr?der, former German Chancellor and vice chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Herrenknecht, said: “I am very impressed with the cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht. I have heard of STEC before I came to China. Recently, the relationship between China and Germany has developed quite smoothly, and the cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht sets up a model for cooperation between the two countries. Close cooperation in the non-political sectors is even more important for both peoples. I am very happy today to hear the high appraisal of STEC for the cooperation with Herrenknecht. I am expecting a further cooperation between both sides in the future.”

Martin Herrenknecht, founder and chairman of Herrenknecht, said: “Three projects give the most impression during the cooperation with STEC. The first is the Yangtze River Tunnel Project, which has laid a solid foundation for cooperation between both sides and has achieved great success, becoming one of the largest mud-water shield tunnels in the world at the time; the second is the North Cross Passage Project in Shanghai, which is currently moving quite smoothly. The third is the Yangtze River Tunnel Project of Wuhan Sanyang Road, which can be the best model of cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht. Now, Herrenknecht is engaging in not only R&D of innovative technologies in mechanized construction, but also the related research in Industrial Digitalization 4.0. Herrenknecht AG cooperates with universities in Europe, conducts research on tunnel quality control, segment assembly and transportation, pipeline laying, etc., and we are expecting an active communication and exchange with STECT in the field of Industrial Digitalization 4.0 in the future. In November this year, at the invitation of President Zhou Wenbo, our design engineers and follow-up service teams will summarize and discuss the experience of Wuhan Sanyang Road Yangtze River Tunnel with STEC. We also warmly welcome STEC to come to Norway and other countries to visit the tunnels under construction by Herrenknecht. In addition to soft soil tunnels, we also look forward to strengthening the closer diversified cooperation between both sides in composite formations and other fields.”

Zhang Yan, party committee secretary and chairman of STEC, said: “We welcome the distinguished Mr. Gerhard Schr?der and Mr. Martin Herrenknecht to visit STEC. STEC and Herrenknecht AG have maintained more than 15 years of cooperation, and the earliest cooperation was that we used two Herrenknecht shields in the construction of the Tianjin Metro. And now STEC has already purchased 18 Herrenknecht large shield equipment in China market only. During the cooperation with Herrenknecht, STEC has also made great progress in the field of shield manufacturing. We already have the manufacturing capabilities for small shields and sold the products in China and Asia. But for large shields, we still have a lot to learn from Herrenknecht. Wuhan Sanyang Road Yangtze River Tunnel is a model of cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht, during the process, although we encountered many difficulties, we finally completed the project with the largest diameter in China last week based on the technology of Herrenknecht and STEC. In the future, with the development of Chinese cities, more and more large tunnel projects will need to be constructed. In China's big cities, more and more urban expressways are changing from ground roads to elevated roads and finally to underground tunnels. More cities call for such excellent companies as Herrenknecht to promote urban development and engineering. We hope that, through the exchanges with Mr. Gerhard Schr?der and Mr. Martin Herrenknecht, both sides will be able to achieve closer cooperation in a wider geographical area, jointly develop China and the global market, and contribute to the progress of the tunnel industry and human development.”

Zhou Wenbo, deputy secretary of the party committee and president of STEC, said: “Welcome Mr. Gerhard Schr?der and Mr. Martin Herrenknecht to visit STEC. For more than a decade, from Tianjin Metro to Chengdu Metro, further to Shanghai Yangtze River Tunnel and Wuhan Sanyang Road Tunnel, the cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht has created many best projects both in the world and in China. For example, the Yangtze River Tunnel in Shanghai is not only the tunnel with the largest diameter in the world at that time, but also the one with the longest one-time propulsion distance and the deepest buried depth. Now the Wuhan Sanyang Road Yangtze River Tunnel is the largest diameter tunnel in China. From the perspective of the world, the future tunnel will develop in the direction of ‘Super Large, Super Long and Super Deep’. Take Wuhan as an example, at present six tunnels have been built, and there are additional 10 tunnels in the future, which are larger one after another. And Shanghai also has a development plan for constructing super-long and super-large tunnels. In the field of shield tunnels, I have a consensus with Chairman Zhang Yan that the key to the success of the tunnel is whether we choose the right and good shield. Therefore, we are eagerly expecting to strengthen the cooperation with Herrenknecht in this field, and take Wuhan Tunnel as a case to sum up experience and analyze problems, design and manufacture higher-quality shields and tunnel construction standards for the future, so as to be prepared for a wider range of cooperation later. Now with the joint efforts of Chairman Zhang Yan and Dr. Martin Herrenknecht, the cooperation between STEC and Herrenknecht has entered into the honeymoon period. We hope that both sides can put their cooperation to the global market later on and jointly create a brighter prospect and future.”

During the session, Gerhard Schr?der, former German Chancellor and vice chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Herrenknecht, and Zhang Yan, the Party Committee Secretary and Chairman of STEC presented gifts to each other to enhance friendship for a deeper and broader cooperation between both sides in the future!