From June 1 to 3, the 5th Underground Space Green Development Summit Forum, co-hosted by the Professional Committee of Pipe Gallery and Underground Space of China Municipal Engineering Association and China University of Mining and Technology, was held in Xuzhou. The forum brought together numerous members from Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, industry leaders, association officials, and experts to discuss “Green Underground Space Supporting New Quality Productive Forces” and to offer ideas for the green and sustainable development of underground space.

During the forum, the awards ceremony for the 5th National Underground Space Innovation Competition was held. UCI participated with its technological achievement “Low-Cost Wireless IoT Key Technologies and Equipment for Utility Tunnels”. After rigorous initial and final evaluations, online voting, and an online defense, UCI won the Underground Space Four New Elements Award.

The Underground Space Innovation Competition has been held for four consecutive years, receiving enthusiastic response from underground space professionals nationwide and generating significant interest among research institutions, universities and companies. Numerous researchers and engineers have eagerly participated, leading to a steady increase in both the number of participants and the quality of submissions. This competition has enhanced industry communication and collaboration and also effectively addressed critical technical challenges, thereby advancing the development and utilization of underground space to further support national key projects.

UCI’s technological achievement utilizes advanced ZigBee wireless transmission protocol and Mesh networking technology, and enables wireless deployment that significantly reduces construction and maintenance costs, minimizes failure points, and shortens construction periods. This technology addresses the high costs, maintenance difficulties, and functional limitations of traditional wiring solutions. It provides comprehensive monitoring of utility tunnel equipment, environment and operational status, thus making utility tunnel management more intelligent and efficient and achieving cost reduction and efficiency improvement.

Currently, this technological achievement has been applied to several utility tunnel projects in Xiong’an New Area and has achieved the expected results. Its implementation ensures effective monitoring and management of utility tunnel facilities, thus improving the efficiency and safety of the utility tunnel network and strengthening lifecycle management of the tunnel construction projects. Enabled by virtual models and advanced technology, inspection efficiency has increased by 65%, equipment failure rates have decreased by 30%, and investment costs have been reduced by 40%. These improvements significantly enhance the management of the utility tunnel system and allow its more efficient operation.

This award recognizes UCI’s research achievements in underground space and strongly encourages future innovation and development. Moving forward, UCI will continue to advance research and development in underground space and bring more innovation and creativity to urban construction.