Winners

The Thames Tideway Tunnel is an innovative solution to modernize London’s outdated Victorian sewer system. Spanning 25 km, this tunnel intercepts 34 combined sewer overflows to prevent untreated sewage from flowing into the River Thames.

Costing £4.5 billion, the project employed six TBMs operating simultaneously in a dense urban environment. Extensive use of the Thames for transporting materials reduced environmental impacts such as carbon emissions and heavy vehicle traffic.

Once operational, the tunnel will have a 120-year lifespan and reduce sewage discharges into the river by 95%. The project also featured technical innovations like using electric-powered drilling machines to lower noise pollution.

The Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) is a fully automated mass rapid transit (MRT) line in Singapore, covering 32 stations over approximately 43 km. This project aims to enhance connectivity and reduce travel time by 50% for densely populated areas. The section under contracts T222 to T310 spans 15 km and includes 13 stations, constructed with the help of 18 Earth Pressure Balance Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). With a total tunnel drive length of 29.4 km, the project faced challenges like complex geology and interference with existing infrastructures. Valued at €3.2 billion, innovative solutions such as ground freezing were implemented to minimize urban disruption. Once completed, TEL will significantly transform urban mobility, cutting commute times and improving residents' quality of life.

The Brenner Base Tunnel (BBT) is a key infrastructure project connecting Fortezza, Italy, to Innsbruck, Austria. Lot H52, the Hochstegen section, involved the construction of 5 km of tunnels, including an exploratory tunnel and main tunnel sections. Innovative solutions were required to manage complex water-bearing geological conditions, using specialized drilling and grouting techniques to stabilize the tunnel. The project is part of the larger Scandinavian-Mediterranean Corridor, enhancing freight and passenger rail services by significantly reducing travel time and energy consumption. This section of the BBT was completed in December 2023, contributing to a sustainable future by reducing road congestion and environmental impacts.

The SMP4 exploratory tunnel is part of the Lyon-Turin rail project, a vital element of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). Spanning 12.7 km, the tunnel serves both as a geotechnical investigation and a critical section of the future Mont-Cenis Base Tunnel. The project faced complex geological challenges, including unstable carboniferous formations, which were addressed using innovative methods like bi-component grouting and controlled yielding support systems. The tunnel contributes to the shift from road to rail transport, reducing CO2 emissions and improving the capacity of freight and passenger trains across the Alps. It was completed in September 2022, marking a significant milestone for the broader Lyon-Turin project.

The Manfreida Tunnel renovation, part of the Genoa-Gravellona Toce motorway, adopts the Tunnel Renewal Strategy (TRS), aiming to extend the service life of the tunnel by 50 years. The project involved partially demolishing the existing lining and rebuilding it with innovative materials to improve waterproofing and structural integrity. The renovation is divided into two phases to minimize traffic disruption, using technologies like prefabricated elements and high-performance sprayed concrete. By utilizing a multi-criteria analysis for optimal solutions, the project focuses on safety, minimizing impacts on traffic, and ensuring the long-term resilience of the infrastructure.

The Genoa Railway Junction upgrade is a critical infrastructure project aimed at enhancing the city's capacity to manage freight and passenger traffic. This renovation includes the construction of several new tunnels and the rehabilitation of abandoned ones, such as the San Tomaso, Polcevera, and Campasso tunnels. Innovations like widening the Facchini Tunnel for larger freight trains and reusing sections of the old Grazie Bassa Tunnel for emergency access improved project sustainability. The project is part of the broader effort to connect the Port of Genoa to the Trans-European Corridor, linking it with Rotterdam. The work ensures the separation of regional and long-haul trains, allowing for more efficient freight and commuter services.

The horizontal turning radius of a conventional TBM is about 300-500m. However, the 4km route of the 3.53m diameter drainage corridors from the first layer to the fourth layer for the Jinyun Pumped Storage Power Station in Zhejiang Province, required a TBM with a turning radius of less than 30m, about 10 times the tunnel diameter. A TBM for the purpose was designed and developed by CREG, China Railway Engineering Equipment Group, and was launched in November 2021. After boring 22 sections with a turning radius of 30m, it achieved maximum monthly advance rates of 660.5m and a maximum daily advance rate of 38.38m. In December 2022, the TBM successfully broke through, realizing the completion of the whole route six months ahead of schedule.

Real-time wireless sensor monitoring systems have been heavily applied in daily monitoring projects globally. Existing systems however, reach a limit when three critical monitoring challenges are encountered: unstable data transmissions in an underground construction environment; non-cooperated measurements when using mixed systems from various suppliers; and slow response to early warnings when wireless sensors are in deep battery saving hibernation mode. The advanced Hybrid Wireless Sensor Network (H-WSN) System, developed in China, for the first time, has systematically and structurally defined the next generation of WSN monitoring for safety risk sensing in underground construction while properly addressing the three limiting challenges. The H-WSN has complete, original, systematically embedded software designed on wireless communication protocol of Static Mesh for long term trend, Trigger Mesh for trigger event detection, and Dynamic Mesh for high volume data handling; complete, original, systematically embedded hardware design to interface all the major categories of sensors; and high quality, reliable, instant data for safety risk sensing, management and control. Since March 2021, the H-WSN has served 1,200 commercial projects in 20 countries and is credited with avoiding 300 major accidents by timely warnings in the real world. Extensive collaboration with international university researchers and industrial colleagues, has generated significant economic, social, and environmental benefits for tunnel and underground engineering community.

Newly developed technology that maximizes excavation efficiency by remotely measuring disc cutter wear using a package that consists of magnetic sensors, hall sensors, a power supply battery, a wireless communication module, an Arduino board, and an external casing. As the disc cutter ring wears, the relative distance between the ring and the magnetic sensor increases. This affects the magnetic flux density which can be detected by the sensor, thereby obtaining voltage measurements. Using these voltage values from the sensor, the relative distance of the disc cutter ring can be calculated. A deep learning-based algorithm for assessing wear conditions and predicting the remaining cutter life has been developed, which can be provided to users through the monitoring system. The innovation lies in measuring the wear of disc cutters through sensors instead of relying on man-entry interventions, allowing for data-based decisions on when to replace the disc cutter.

The innovative Advanced Tunnelling Assistance System (ATAS) implements real-time TBM data analysis and monitors data using AI/machine learning. This permits a continuous monitoring of the excavation and perform, from the measured parameters, estimates on the variation of geological conditions at the excavation face. In addition, ATAS constantly updates settlement criteria evaluations based on real-time added information and permits automatic evaluation of new excavation parameters (such as adjusting face pressure) to mitigate the risk. The system has been applied for the first time on one of four 8.78m diameter TBM drives excavated for rail node development project in the centre of the very congested city of Łódź in Poland. The ATAS takes advantage of existing data to optimize TBM excavation and reduce excavation risks. This is particularly important in urban areas, where the consequences of accidents can be extremely severe.

Enabling the re-use of the space beneath an existing cemetery, the underground cemetery is a first-of-its-kind, designed, excavated, and constructed in compliance with the strict requirements of an ultra-Orthodox community. Using state-of-the-art design and construction methods while working within the constraints of the existing urban zoning and regulations, the underground cemetery revives Jewish burial traditions that were prevalent more than 2,000 years ago. Planning and construction of the project solves an acute shortage in burial space while avoiding encroachment on sensitive open space, providing an environmentally friendly, uncomplicated, sustainable, accessible, cost-effective solution for this highly regimented community.

The Qingdao Metro Line 6 (Phase I) Project is a demonstration Project approved by the National Development and Reform Commission that spans 30.8km with 21 underground stations and about 25km of connecting running tunnels. The project has successfully developed and promoted a series of prefabrication and assembly construction technologies for urban mass transit, making it the metro line with the largest application scale of such technologies in China. The stations employ a simple decoration process using fair-faced concrete, and the decoration design in public areas effectively combines functionality with artistry. This has vigorously advanced the eco-friendly and low-carbon transformation and upgrading of Qingdao Metro construction. Furthermore, all production and installation processes have been localized, stimulating an industrial scale worth RMB 1.3 billion.