Europe accelerates drone and robot use to slash risks and emissions in tunnel construction

7 articles·5 sources·updated 7 days ago·View in graph
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Europe accelerates the deployment of drones and autonomous machinery to revolutionize tunnel and road construction, slashing risks and emissions on high-risk sites. A pan-European project led by Spain now tests drones and self-driving excavators in the most hazardous zones of motorway and tunnel projects, aiming to cut worker exposure, carbon output, and build times, according to reports from Romanian broadcaster Digi24.

The initiative targets the Transylvania Motorway in Romania, where 98 % of the Nădăşelu–Zimbor section is already complete, CNAIR director-general Cristian Pistol announced on Saturday. Autonomous drones map unstable rock faces and inspect tunnel bores, while robotic excavators clear debris without human operators entering collapse-prone areas. Early trials show a 30 % reduction in accident rates and a 20 % drop in CO₂ emissions per kilometre built.

Parallel efforts extend beyond Europe: the UK, US, and Australia are co-developing underwater drones to protect subsea cables and pipelines, with the first units expected by 2027. Meanwhile, Turkish defence contractor HAVELSAN has rolled out BLUEVISION, an AI-powered maritime surveillance system that fuses camera feeds and sensor data to detect small vessels and people in the water—gaps that conventional radar often misses.

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