This Rezatec demonstration explores ground motion data using Mangla Dam in Pakistan as a worked example. As a 134-metre-high earth-fill, clay-core embankment, its size and mass make it an ideal case for showing the breadth of movement Rezatec’s technology can detect. The demo focuses on the rate and extent of motion across the structure, using 3D visualisation to reveal that the crest is experiencing the greatest overall vertical settlement, while some uplift appears towards the foot of the dam and in other areas. By applying filters to isolate the most significant movement, managers can view the full extent of motion across years of monitoring, both retrospectively and on an ongoing basis as new data is added.
A central theme of the demonstration is putting movement in context. Over several years, parts of the dam have settled to around minus 40 to 50 millimetres from the monitoring base point, a level that would be alarming on a smaller asset but is relatively modest given the scale of a structure this size, even as the technology remains sensitive enough to detect it. Comparing hexagons across the dam shows much lower movement and slight uplift elsewhere, and viewing individual measurement points reveals clear seasonal variation. This is often driven by environmental change through the year, and appears in a more pronounced form on concrete surfaces due to thermal expansion in climates with large summer-to-winter temperature swings, a pattern Rezatec has observed across multiple sites and had verified by on-site engineers.
The platform also supports rich comparison within a single site. Data from any number of hexagons can be brought onto one unified, normalised graph, making it easy to contrast a clear subsidence trend, over 30 millimetres of displacement in one highlighted feature, against areas showing only around minus 1 millimetre. Users can compare different time periods and configurations, layer in environmental datasets such as water level, vegetation vigour and moisture, and add annotations to bring the data to life for their specific needs. To learn more about Rezatec’s ground motion offering, get in touch with the team.