In the recent webinar, How to Integrate GNSS Data into a Smart Deformation Monitoring Strategy, Orica Digital Solutions’ experts from NavStar and GroundProbe discussed the value and benefits of combining the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) with the GeoExplorer software platform for monitoring displacement. 
Speakers
Robbie Praeg, Commercial Product Specialist for NavStar
Antonio Rocha, Business Manager for GroundProbe North America
This webinar covered:
- NavStar’s GPS/GNSS sensors’ capabilities and deployment.
- The GeoExplorer platform and how the software easily integrates and compares data from various geotechnical sensors.
- GeoExplorer’s features and user-interface, including cross-analysis of data, defining alarm thresholds, and using templated reports.
- An in-depth look at combining GNSS with other geotechnical monitoring technologies including: InSAR, Slope Stability Radar, robotic total stations, and Measurand’s ShapeArray.
- Geotechnical Support Services (GSS) and the 24/7 monitoring services provided by Geosolutions.
- A question-and-answer session.
Takeaways from How to Integrate GNSS Data into a Smart Deformation Monitoring Strategy
Takeaway 1: The integration of GNSS sensors with the GeoExplorer platform offers a comprehensive and maintenance-free solution for monitoring displacement in various environments.
NavStar’s GMS system’s ease of installation and maintenance-free operation were highlighted.
“The massive advantage to this type of equipment is how easy they are to install, and they never lose calibration, making these effectively maintenance-free after they’re deployed,” Robbie said.
Both Navstar’s GMS technology and the GeoExplorer platform together can process and deliver highly accurate 3D displacement and tilt measurements, providing significant value to engineering sites across a wide range of sectors.
Takeaway 2: GeoExplorer offers advanced data visualization and integration capabilities, significantly improving the efficiency of geotechnical monitoring.
Antonio explained that GeoExplorer was initially developed to as a GIS software platform where you could visualize that GPS/GNSS data but grew to meet client needs as more types of data intake were requested. Now, GeoExplorer can compile and compare data from over 130 different types of sensors from many geotechnical monitoring manufacturers.
He continued to explain this allows users to perform cross-analysis of data from a variety of sources, define alarm thresholds, and easily produce detailed reports from drag-and-drop templates.
“You can create a live report with all the elements that you might need: The company logo, titles, and live images. You can zoom in and zoom out and create reports for any specific areas that you have in mind,” Antonio said. “You spend more time analyzing the information, looking for trends, and less time managing the data.”
Takeaway 3: NavStar’s GMS units are designed to be deployed in harsh environments, including extreme cold, and have demonstrated reliability in such conditions.
NavStar’s GMS700 and GMS800 products are designed with performance in cold and remote environments in mind. Common applications for GNSS include open-cut mines, dams and tailings dams, slopes and landslide monitoring, and urban construction. They fit displacement monitoring applications in several types of environmental conditions, complex geometries, and importantly, are cost-effective.
“The GMS units are installed in many cold climates and have seen the same battery lifespan of three years, even in northern parts of Canada where you’re getting -30°C below and beyond,” Robbie said.
Takeaway 4: Orica Digital Solutions’ Geotechnical Support Services is a 24/7 geotechnical monitoring service that is ideal for long-term monitoring projects
NavStar’s GMS and GeoExplorer are just some of the tools at the disposal of Orica Digital Solutions Geotechnical Support Services (GSS). GSS represents one of the biggest concentrations of geotechnical engineers in a single company. Started over 10 years ago, GSS has three monitoring centers—in Balikpapan (Indonesia), Santiago (Chile), and Belo Horizonte (Brazil) — offering 24/7 global remote monitoring services.
Key Insights
- The GMS unit is a compact, high-precision GNSS sensor that provides 3D displacement and tilt measurements, which can be used for monitoring deformation in real-time.
- GeoExplorer integrates data from over 130 different types of geotechnical sensors, enabling cross-analysis, alarm definition, and templated report generation.
RTK technology in GMS units allows for real-time data correction, increasing accuracy and reliability. - GMS units are maintenance-free and can operate for up to three years on a single lithium battery, making them suitable for installations in harsh and remote environments.
- The platform’s ability to integrate and visualize data from multiple sensors enhances data analysis and decision-making in geotechnical projects.
- Geotechnical Support Services (GSS) offers 24/7 monitoring services, alarm validation, and reports for a wide range of monitoring applications, from mining to civil infrastructure.
Watch the webinar on-demand to learn more about how to integrate GNSS data for monitoring displacement.
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I’m very happy with the quality of the instrumentation and technical support from RST, as always. They worked with us from the initial stages of the project to ensure that we were fully prepared and equipped to use the RSTAR network for the first time. They delivered everything within the tight project time frame to ensure that there were no delays on site, and the submersible tilt meters looked like new even after over twelve months of being submerged in Thames water!
-Richard Lipscombe, BEng (Hons), Director & Principle Consultant - RL Geotechnical Ltd