Drawing on decades of experience in geology and mining engineering, Marmotest provides consultancy for the study and development of dimension stone deposits in Italy and abroad.
Understanding the resource, assessing its potential and organising extraction: four complementary services to support decision-making in quarry operations.
Deposit assessment establishes the geometry, continuity and characteristics of the stone resource, relating the geological setting to extraction opportunities.
We use drone surveys and georeferenced 3D models, integrated with the geological study of the deposit, to understand its extent and continuity and identify the most suitable extraction method. The model helps assess quarry face geometry, discontinuities and possible development sequences.
Marmotest provides quarry face surveying and analysis: drone image acquisition, GPS surveying of control points to orient and georeference the three-dimensional model, point cloud and 3D model processing, and investigation of rock mass discontinuities.
Geometric data are combined with geostructural and geomechanical information to identify potential instability mechanisms and carry out stability analyses. Photogrammetric surveys also allow high or difficult-to-access areas of quarry faces to be studied.
Georeferenced 3D quarry model
An integrated assessment to establish the conditions under which the deposit can be quarried and the factors affecting the economic viability of operations.
A preliminary assessment is referred to as a prefeasibility study; the level of detail depends on the available data and the objectives of the assignment.
Planning extraction operations in open-pit and underground quarries, according to the deposit characteristics and the quarry’s operating conditions.
Support in selecting cutting, extraction and handling equipment to optimise productivity and stone recovery.
Every deposit requires a specific approach. Services can be provided individually or integrated into a programme that progresses from understanding the resource to operational decisions.