BGC is involved in numerous open pit mining projects representing a diverse range of rock and deposit types in North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. Open pit slope designs typically involve site investigation programs, rock testing and characterization, dewatering and depressurization studies, structural geology assessments, and stability analyses. Support for operating mines includes pushback and optimization studies, the design of monitoring systems and ground control management plans, risk assessments, regular inspections and reviews, and management and mitigation of instabilities and rockfalls. Our team members also design and provide operational support for rock storage facilities and perform subsidence monitoring and assessments where infrastructure interacts with underground openings or naturally occurring voids.

BGC carries out a wide range of projects that manage the risk of natural and excavated rock slopes in the mining, pipelines, transportation, and community sectors. Typical activities include rockfall and rock avalanche investigations and assessments, remote sensing and change detection studies, and developing and maintaining risk management systems for linear infrastructure such as highways, transmission lines, railways, and pipelines. Our team is also involved with the design of mitigation systems to protect infrastructure from rock hazards. Our projects are typically located in steep and hazardous terrain or otherwise challenging environments.

Our rock mechanics experts are involved with the design of a variety of underground openings including tunnels, portals, stopes, drifts, and underground infrastructure. This work includes the design of ground support such as rock bolts and anchors, shotcrete, mesh, cribbing, and backfill. We also design bulkheads to close off underground openings and manage seepage. Our team members provide operational support as needed, including the development and review of ground control management plans, annual geotechnical reviews, and emergency response for ground falls.

BGC’s rock mechanics experts provide support for numerous civil and infrastructure projects. Many of these projects involve the design of foundations for a range of applications including buildings, towers, and wind turbines. We also design rock anchors and artificial support for retaining walls in soil, weak rock, and strong rock. Our team provides support with stability and seepage assessments for dam abutments and foundations, scour assessments for spillways, and the design of specialized grouting programs to mitigate seepage.