Research and development
OHL ŽS constantly tests and improves the properties of its technologies and materials, including their research & development.
The Bridges Division supplies a unique bridge construction, the supporting member of which is a steel trabeated arch with a concrete pulling rod made of pre-stressed concrete and an extremely thin bridge floor. Together with experts from the Brno University of Technology, the division participates in the testing of concrete by the application of dynamic methods. The static coefficient of elasticity is established by means of magnetic resonance and ultrasound, and changes in these values are monitored throughout freezing cycles.
In 2007, the Technology Division of the Transport Construction Branch extended its portfolio with supplies of technology for “electric pre-heating facilities” (hereinafter only EPF). It is a set of sophisticated distribution technologies used to heat or air-condition temporarily unused train units. The Division developed these specific technologies to respond to users’ demands for a supply of facilities devised to meet the latest developments that would secure a higher level of operational safety, while having minimum requirements for attendance and maintenance. A complete EPF unit was supplied and is currently operated in the railway stations in Prešov and Poprad in the Slovak Republic. The STAVIN Division participated in designing the heating system for the construction of the Service Centre used for repairs of aircraft in Mošnov, and implemented this project. Here, the heat source is a cost-saving combination of gas condensing boilers with the power output of 1765 kW and air-water heat pumps with the power output of 562 kW, serving as the major heat source until the outside temperature reaches +5 ℃. The heating of the repair shed itself is secured by means of a low-temperature floor heating system installed in a pre-stressed concrete slab with the area of 12,800 m2. The total length of the piping was 48,000 m.
OHL ŽS, a. s. actively participates in improving the state of the environment and eliminating problematic consequences related to earlier industrial production and raw materials mining. The “Mother Liquor Processing” project implemented by the Construction Engineering Prague Division makes up a part of the complex of redevelopment technologies used to clean up uranium chemical extraction hazards. The technology of mother liquor processing is an original technology which was designed and experimentally tested. In this way, the volume of implemented projects concerning the redevelopment of contaminated areas may be increased as compared to the existing technologies. The application of this technology will enable meeting the deadline set for the completion of the redevelopment without the need to increase the required financial sources which would have otherwise been necessary had the redevelopment period been prolonged.