Munich Airport’s new Terminal 1-Pier is now open, adding approximately 100,000 square meters (≈1.08 million square feet) of new space to one of Europe’s major aviation hubs. Using NavVis, Munich Airport documented the expansion from shell phase to operational go-live, creating a single source of truth for the building as it evolved.
Construction began in 2019, during which thousands of small decisions accumulated into the finished space. Many of the most important ones are now out of sight, sealed behind walls and ceilings. Cable routes, technical runs, structural details, and the handoffs between trades were visible for a moment, then disappeared as the terminal took its final shape.
That’s exactly how construction is meant to work. It’s also why reliable documentation matters.
Because even though something is hidden, it still needs to be accessible. Teams still need a way to revisit earlier construction states, check what sits behind finished surfaces, and understand how the terminal came together at any given stage.
What makes this project stand out is how Munich Airport chose to preserve that history, not as a set of scattered files, but as a consistent, navigable record of the building as it evolved.
Munich Airport has worked with NavVis technology for over a decade. Over that time, dynamic laser scanning has become part of how Munich Airport documents, verifies, and manages its facilities.
For the Terminal 1 expansion, NavVis VLX was used to capture the project at key construction milestones:
Each capture preserved the terminal at a specific moment in time. Instead of relying solely on revised drawings or isolated photo documentation, Munich Airport created a structured, time-aware dataset of how the building progressed from structural shell to finished environment.
All captured data is accessible in NavVis IVION, the enterprise-grade spatial twin platform where teams can navigate the site virtually, take measurements, and connect observed conditions to BIM and CAD workflows.
In projects of this scale, critical systems are installed early. Mechanical services, cable trays, fire protection, and structural details are positioned carefully before ceilings close and surfaces are finished.
And once enclosed, direct visibility disappears.
By preserving scans from the shell phase onward, Munich Airport was able to revisit earlier construction states whenever needed. Technical teams could review concealed installations without reopening surfaces. They could confirm routing decisions, verify clearances, long after those areas had been closed up.
Construction across 100,000 square meters rarely unfolds without adjustment. Installations shift. Details are refined. Interfaces between trades require coordination. With multiple milestones accessible inside NavVis IVION, Munich Airport could compare different phases of the same project within a shared spatial twin environment. Built conditions could be reviewed alongside BIM and CAD data, and deviations assessed in context.
This supported structured coordination meetings, quality assurance workflows, and cleaner handover processes during project delivery. Discussions were grounded in measurable site reality rather than recollection.
Now that the building is in regular operation, this continuity is especially practical. Questions can be resolved using captured data rather than fragmented documentation.
The Terminal 1 expansion reflects a broader strategy at Munich Airport.
Since 2015, NavVis dynamic laser scanning systems and NavVis IVION have supported Munich Airport across mission-critical use cases including:
Over time, dynamic laser scanning has become embedded in how the airport maintains alignment between physical infrastructure and digital plans.
It’s part of the operational toolkit.
As digital construction processes mature, captured reality increasingly feeds directly into modeling environments.
Through integration with QBITEC, point cloud data from NavVis IVION can be streamed directly into Autodesk Revit. This supports structured Scan-to-BIM workflows without the need to download, crop, and reprocess full datasets externally.
Modeling teams can work selectively with the portions of the building that matter for a given task, maintaining context while reducing manual file handling. This creates a more efficient path from captured site conditions to updated digital models.
For a complex facility like an airport terminal, that continuity between physical capture and BIM refinement supports both project delivery and long-term facility management.
Now that Terminal 1-Pier is open, passengers can experience expanded capacity and new spaces designed for movement and connection.
Behind that visible expansion lies a detailed digital record of how the building was assembled. Structural shell. Installed systems. Progressive refinements. Each stage preserved.
For Munich Airport, this record supports operations today and future modifications tomorrow. It reduces uncertainty when renovations are planned and provides continuity as teams change and infrastructure evolves.
As airports grow more complex and more digitally connected, maintaining a trusted spatial twin becomes part of responsible infrastructure management.
With the expansion of Terminal 1, Munich Airport continues to build not only new space, but a disciplined way of understanding it over time.