A Landmark Project in Geotechnical Monitoring: 20 Years of Experience, Safety and Innovation
Chuquicamata is one of the world’s largest open-pit copper mines, operated by Codelco and located in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile.
For over 20 years, Sisgeo has supported this prestigious and iconic project in the field of geotechnical monitoring, supplying hundreds of instruments to monitor ground, structural and underground and deep behaviour.
The instrumentation supplied includes heavy-duty piezometers with armoured cables, vented piezometers, MPBX, MEXID extensometer systems, OMNIA multichannel dataloggers, wire crack meters, toroidal load cells, inclinometer casing, DEX-S inclinometer-extensometer columns, and portable CRD-400 and MIND readout units. These solutions provide reliable data to support early warning systems, risk assessment and the identification of potential anomalies, helping project teams make informed decisions. As the project continues to grow and evolve, geotechnical monitoring remains essential not only for risk management but also for the long-term Operations and Maintenance of the infrastructure.
Sisgeo has done more than simply supply instruments: for over 20 years, it has accompanied the evolution of the project’s monitoring system, contributing to an activity that is essential for the long-term management and maintenance of this landmark infrastructure.
As mining operations advance, changes in excavation geometry, slope configuration and subsurface conditions continuously affect the geotechnical behaviour of the mine and its associated risk profile.
In addition to open-pit operations, underground mining introduces further challenges related to rock mass deformation, stress redistribution and excavation stability. Geotechnical monitoring provides essential field data for geomechanical analyses, helping engineers assess ground response, validate and refine numerical models, understand deformation mechanisms and evaluate the effectiveness of ground support systems.
The continuous comparison between measured data and analytical predictions supports the identification of potential anomalies, the assessment of evolving geotechnical risks and the optimisation of monitoring and mitigation strategies. Over the years, the monitoring system has been progressively expanded and adapted to meet changing operational requirements, supporting early warning, risk management and informed decision-making throughout the mine’s ongoing development.
Sisgeo would also like to express its sincere appreciation to its exclusive partner and distributor in Chile for their unwavering professionalism, technical expertise and commitment to the management, supervision and delivery of specialised services for the mining sector.
For over 20 years, Sisgeo, together with its distributor in Chile, has continuously supported the evolution of Chuquicamata’s geotechnical and structural monitoring system, combining proven instrumentation, local technical expertise and dedicated services to meet the mine’s changing requirements and ensure long-term monitoring continuity.
