Winners selected in the idea competition for the recovery of ammunition
Bern, 02.12.2025 — A panel of experts has selected the three best proposals for the environmentally sound and safe recovery of ammunition from Swiss lakes. The proposals provide important approaches for further investigation; however, there are no plans to actually recover the ammunition, provided that the monitoring efforts continue to show that the ammunition is not having any negative effects on the environment.
The winner of the first prize and 30,000 Swiss francs was the proposal submitted by Dutch companies Royal IHC Defence (Kinderdijk) and REASeuro (Riel). Their idea involves an air-filled diving bell which provides a completely water-free environment in which the recovery work can be carried out in the lake.
Second place was awarded to Helbling Technik Wil AG, who also won a prize of 15,000 Swiss francs. Their proposal was a mobile system in which a modified beach cleaning machine with a cover protects against any sediments circulating in the water during the recovery process.
Sitting in third place and winning a prize of 5000 Swiss francs was Walo Bertschinger AG. Its idea focused on a sealed cube in which ammunition is recovered using a spiral conveyor.
A total of 214 proposals were submitted. A panel of experts from the government, institutes and universities evaluated the proposals on their feasibility, environmental impact, clearing capacity and quality, as well as the expected volume of silt that would need to be disposed of. The winning proposals were those that scored the highest total points in the evaluation. The technical assessment was thorough and thus required additional time.
The prize-winning concepts form an important basis for further investigation and potential future research projects focusing on the environmentally friendly and safe recovery of ammunition from Swiss lakes.
Further information on the idea competition for the environmentally sound and safe recovery of ammunition from Swiss lakes
The Federal Office for Defence Procurement armasuisse launched the idea competition on 7 August 2024 with the aim of finding new methods for the environmentally sound and safe recovery of ammunition that has sunk to depths ranging from 150 to 215 metres. The competition was put to public tender as an open procedure and was conducted anonymously. The deadline for submitting ideas was 6 February 2025.
Between 1918 and 1964, some 8000 tonnes of ammunition were sunk in Lake Thun, Lake Brienz and Lake Lucerne. Although the measurements that are continuously taken show that the ammunition has not had any harmful effects on the environment, the risk assessments that have been carried out regularly since 2005 attest to the fact that every recovery method would pose risks for the sensitive ecosystem. For this reason, the DDPS commissioned armasuisse Science and Technology (S+T) to investigate new technical solutions in 2022 – with the assistance of “DDPS innovation spaces.”
Note:
A media presentation will be held in January 2026. Any media professionals interested in attending are asked to register for this event by sending an email to info@ar.admin.ch. Should you require detailed information on the ideas, please contact the winners directly.
- Press release of 6 February 2025: Idea competition for environmentally friendly and safe recovery methods of ammunition from Swiss lakes – armasuisse has received around 100 ideas
- Press release of 7 August 2024: armasuisse launches idea competition for environmentally friendly and safe recovery methods of ammunition from Swiss waters
- Ammunition in Swiss lakes (in German)
- DDPS innovation spaces
- simap.ch: Methods of recovering ammunition from Swiss lakes (in German)