Mining and tailings
Geotechnical services for non-process infrastructure: building operational reliability from the ground up
While mining operations often spotlight extraction and processing, the infrastructure that supports it is vitally important. Non-process infrastructure (NPI) includes accommodation villages, workshops, warehouses, water treatment facilities, haul roads, and airstrips, and forms the backbone of daily operations.
Geotechnical services ensure these critical assets are constructed on stable, well-understood ground conditions, tailored to remote environments and demanding operational requirements.
From feasibility to construction and long-term performance, geotechnical expertise helps mining projects deliver safe, cost-effective, and resilient infrastructure that supports people, logistics, and productivity.
Geotechnical services include:
Site investigations and terrain assessment
- Borehole drilling, test pits, CPTs, and geophysical surveys to characterise subsurface conditions
- Identification of reactive soils, soft ground, and borrow material suitability
- Terrain mapping to guide layout and optimize earthworks
Foundation design and earthworks support
- Shallow and deep foundation recommendations for modular and in-situ built structures
- Ground improvement strategies for challenging soils (e.g., compaction, stabilisation)
- Level 1 supervision and certification of bulk earthworks and platform preparation
Infrastructure-specific solutions
- Design of stable platforms for workshops, fuel depots, and wash-down bays
- Pavement design for haul roads, access tracks, and airstrips
- Drainage and erosion control systems suited to cyclonic and arid regions
Accommodation and village development
- Site classification and slab design for residential buildings and communal facilities
- Assessment of groundwater and surface water impacts on living areas
- Slope stability and retaining wall design for terraced or elevated sites
Construction phase services and compliance
- On-site inspections, compaction testing, and pile verification
- Support during tendering and contractor engagement
- Independent reviews and value engineering to optimize cost and performance
Tailings storage facility (TSF) design, monitoring and audits
- Geotechnical design of tailings dams, embankments, and containment systems
- Seepage analysis and liner compatibility testing
- Risk profiling and critical controls management for dam safety
- Instrumentation and real-time monitoring for deformation, pore pressure, and seepage
- Scheduled TSF audits to review against applicable regulatory frameworks, guidelines, and site-specific licensing conditions
Mine Closure and Rehabilitation
- Stability assessments for final landforms and pit walls
- Design of post-closure drainage and erosion control systems
- Tailings capping and long-term containment strategies
- Support for environmental approvals and community engagement
Geotechnical services ensure that these essential facilities are built on solid ground and by tailoring solutions to the unique challenges of remote, high-load, and environmentally sensitive sites, geotechnical input helps deliver infrastructure that is safe, durable, and ready to support the full lifecycle of a mining project.
With this approach, mining and tailings storage operations are grounded in rigorous science, proactive risk management, and long-term sustainability.
