Author(s): A. Schmidt

Linked Author(s): Andreas Schmidt

Keywords: Waterways; Modelling; River Engineering; Ecological Connectivity; Hydraulic Structures; Navigation

Abstract: The German Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration (WSV) is responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of the German waterways, with inland waterways of a length of 7,350 km. The WSV is in charge for some 290 weirs, 450 lock chambers, 500 culverts, 1,600 bridges, 15 canal bridges, 11 barrages, 4 ship lifts and numerous other structures, such as groynes and riprap designed to support inland navigation. In the expansion, operation and maintenance of federal waterways, all sectors of waterway engineering are in demand. The new construction of a lock, such as the currently planned lock Luneburg at the Elbe side channel, requires expertise amongst others in the fields of construction engineering (construction, structural engineering, building materials, hydraulic steel construction), geotechnical engineering (subsoil, groundwater), hydraulic engineering (filling and emptying systems) and driving dynamics (entry and exit conditions). In all these areas, modelling, especially in the planning phase, is a central and indispensable method of investigation. As waterways engineering consultant and expert, the Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW) supports the WSV and the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) in the development and construction and the operation and maintenance of the waterways in Germany. In order to maintain and improve the quality of its consulting services, the BAW conducts research and development projects (R & D) in the entire spectrum of waterways engineering, including across disciplines.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15142/T3XH18

Year: 2018