$780K a year, recovered from the haul roads
An open-pit mining operator put IMU-based corrugation monitoring on 45 km of unsealed haul roads, moved grading from calendar to condition, and cut tire costs 28%.
The challenge
Corrugation was eating tires and equipment.
An open-pit gold mine operates 45 km of unsealed haul roads. Corrugation was driving tire wear costing $2.8M per year, accelerating vehicle component failure, and creating safety hazards for operators.
SEC. 01 / BEFORE
Grading ran on the calendar, not on condition. Some roads were graded before they needed it while others deteriorated past safe operating thresholds between passes, and there was no objective way to measure road condition between scheduled inspections. The mine was paying twice: once for grading that was not needed, and again for the damage on roads that were.
The solution
Existing vehicles, continuous monitoring.
RoadScout went onto water trucks and light vehicles that already traversed the haul roads daily. IMU-based corrugation detection and IRI roughness scoring returned real-time road condition, with maintenance alerts triggered the moment thresholds were exceeded.
SEC. 02 / DEPLOYMENT
Corrugation detection
Accelerometer analysis at 25 Hz identifies corrugation patterns before they become severe, triggering proactive grading alerts instead of waiting for the scheduled inspection.
IRI roughness scoring
Continuous International Roughness Index scoring across every haul road segment makes condition-based maintenance scheduling possible: grade the road when the road says so.
Pothole detection
RoadScout Vision catches forming potholes and surface failures before they become hazards to loaded haul trucks.
Grade monitoring
Inclinometer data identifies steep sections exceeding safe operating grades for loaded haul trucks, flagged for the safety and haul-route plan.
The results
Condition-based grading replaced the calendar.
Grading now happens when the road needs it, verified by the same telemetry that called for it: measurable savings, and a safer road for every shift.
SEC. 03 / AFTER
- ✓Real-time corrugation monitoring across all 45 km of haul roads
- ✓Unnecessary grading reduced by 40%
- ✓Tire costs reduced by 28%: $780K per year in savings
- ✓Zero corrugation-related safety incidents since deployment
- ✓Pothole detection catches forming defects before they become hazards
“We were grading roads on a fixed schedule whether they needed it or not. RoadScout showed us exactly which sections needed attention and when. The tire savings paid for the system many times over, but the real win is that our operators feel safer every shift.”
Put a number on your haul roads.
Vehicles you already run, telemetry you do not have yet: corrugation, IRI and grade on every segment, every shift.