One of the world’s most high-profile tunnelling projects, the Brenner Base Tunnel (BBT) connects Austria and Italy at the heart of the Scandinavia–Mediterranean TEN Corridor. VMT supports the project with a comprehensive portfolio of navigation, assistance and data management systems, ensuring precise, efficient and transparent excavation across multiple construction lots.
The BBT is a 55 km underground railway link from Innsbruck to Fortezza, scheduled for completion in 2032. It forms the core of the Scan–Med Corridor from Helsinki to La Valletta. By providing a flat, straight alignment, the BBT will reduce travel times for freight and passenger trains by up to 70 %, increase freight capacity from 1,400 to 2,000 tonnes, and shift heavy traffic from the Brenner motorway to the rail network.
Two 8.1 m wide single-track tubes run 40–70 m apart, connected every 333 m by cross passages and supplemented by four access tunnels. A 6 m wide exploration tunnel located 12 m below the main tubes provides key geological data, serves as a logistics tunnel during construction and will later function as a maintenance and drainage tunnel.
A range of Herrenknecht TBMs are in operation on the project. For construction lot H53 Pfons–Brenner, the PORR/MARTI consortium excavates 15 km of tunnel using two Double Shield TBMs.
VMT solutions for precise and connected tunnelling
The BBT demands millimetre precision and maximum safety under complex geological and logistical conditions. Multiple excavation methods, from drill-and-blast to Gripper, Double Shield and Single Shield TBMs, require flexible navigation and monitoring solutions that deliver reliable data at all times and across all interfaces. To meet these requirements, VMT provided various systems that support TBM navigation, ring sequencing and digital shift documentation:
- TUnIS Navigation Gripper ensures precise alignment of the Gripper TBM along the tunnel axis and minimises steering corrections, maintaining accuracy even under strong vibration.
- TUnIS Navigation Double Shield determines and calculates all navigation data for Double Shield TBMs, using optical measurement components to provide continuous positional feedback.
- TUnIS Ring Sequencing assists TBM operators in planning the optimal ring build sequence in advance, improving precision and efficiency during segmental lining installation.
- TUnIS.moving station allows the total station to travel with the machine. This simplifies positioning, avoids repeated wall installations and enables remote position updates via Wi-Fi for uninterrupted operation.
In construction lot H41 Sill Gorge–Pfons, VMT’s Shift.ON module within the Herrenknecht.Connected platform enabled real-time documentation and analysis of shift activities. It replaces manual recording with a smart, digital workflow, configurable to each project’s requirements.
Driving precision and progress forward
The Brenner Base Tunnel represents VMT’s largest contract to date and a milestone in tunnel navigation and data integration. With its combination of proven technology, on-site expertise and innovations, VMT helps ensure that one of Europe’s most ambitious rail projects progresses safely, efficiently and precisely, from the first metre to the final breakthrough.