Component transport
Laser measurements, 360-degree 3D scanning, and "point cloud" extraction were used to capture the precise topography of the two "blocking points" on the last leg of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary (rendered here: the narrow passage between two small cliffs).
The largest and heaviest loads shipped by the seven Members arrive at the French harbour of Fos-sur-Mer, west of Marseille on the Mediterranean Sea. From there, they cross the inland sea Etang de Berre on a dedicated barge before being transported along the 104-kilometre °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary to the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ site in Saint Paul-lez-Durance.
Some 250 such convoys, travelling at night in order to minimize disturbances to the local communities, will be organized to transport the largest components of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ machine and plant.
The dimensions of the largest convoys scheduled to travel along the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary are impressive: the heaviest weighs approximately 800 tonnes (including the 200-tonne, 352-wheel transport vehicle); the tallest will be 10.4 metres high, the longest 33 metres, and the widest 9 metres (these maximum dimensions will not be attained simultaneously). The largest components are the nine sectors of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ vacuum vessel from Europe and Korea, the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ magnets—the nineteen toroidal field coils from Europe and Japan, two ring-shaped poloidal field coils from China and Russia, and seven central solenoid modules from the United States—and magnet feeders from China.
The first extra-large component ("Highly Exceptional Load," or HEL) reached the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ site on 14 January 2015.
The °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary
© CEA
For the management of in-kind contributions to °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ shipped from destinations on three continents, the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Organization and all Domestic Agencies work with a global Logistics Service Provider (LSP) for the transportation, logistics and insurance needs associated with these deliveries.
For large components arriving at the port of Fos-sur-Mer, the European Domestic Agency organizes transportations services from that point to the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ site along a dedicated route called the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary.
Large-scale public works were carried out by France as Host to the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Project along the 104 kilometres of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Itinerary between 2008 and 2011 to widen roads, replace or reinforce bridges and modify intersections in preparation for the exceptional size and weight of some of the components. The cost for these road works (EUR 110 million) was shared by the Bouches-du-Rhône département Council (66 percent) and the French State (34 percent).