Geoscience software company Seequent has announced the release of GeoStudio Core, a new, completely reformulated SIGMA/W product.

These upgrades allow geotechnical engineers to understand and tackle major engineering challenges for infrastructure and mining projects – from dams and levees to tunnelling and the stability of cuts in underground and open-pit mines, the company says.

Paul Grunau, President of Seequent’s GEOSLOPE, says GeoStudio Core 2021 is the most significant GeoStudio release in the past five years.

“SIGMA/W has been completely redeveloped from the ground up, delivering new levels of confidence and capability for geotechnical engineers needing to assess ground deformations and stability,” Grunau said. “The new strength reduction stability analysis in SIGMA/W complements the industry-trusted solutions in SLOPE/W to provide a rigorous understanding of slope failure mechanisms, allowing the engineer to design effective stabilisation measures. These products integrate with SEEP/W to include the impact of changing groundwater conditions, providing a comprehensive solution for stability problems.

“The combined GeoStudio Core solution runs in a single integrated environment, speeding up the project workflow and easily scaling with the user’s needs. All project data and analyses can be combined into a single project file, enabling smooth data exchange and simpler data management.”

GeoStudio Core, with SIGMA/W’s expanded material model library and new analysis types, allows for comprehensive modelling of a wider range of soil and rock behaviour, according to Seequent. For example, simulating the strain-softening behaviour of brittle clays enables stability control of a tailings dam or roadway cut.

The new GeoStudio multi-physics solver enables SIGMA/W to offer improved solver performance and enhanced modelling of rapid reservoir drawdown, open-pit mine dewatering effects on highwall stability, and solute transport from tailings ponds.