Case Study: Rheticus achieves millimeter‑accurate, automated subsidence monitoring for underground infrastructure with Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division

Building a Simple Answer to a Complicated Subsidence Problem

Rheticus faced the costly, technical challenge of locating leaks and subsidence in underground water and sewage networks, where millimeter‑to‑centimeter ground movements (piping) can cause leaks, erosion and sinkholes. To turn freely available Sentinel‑1 SAR data and complex InSAR analysis into simple, actionable intelligence for non‑experts, Rheticus partnered with Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division and adopted the Hexagon Smart M.App and M.App Portfolio to ingest, process and visualize radar displacement data.

Using Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division technology (M.App Chest, M.App Studio and the Hexagon Smart M.App), Planetek delivered the cloud‑based Rheticus service that automates InSAR processing, cross‑checks results with utility network graphs and presents prioritized, visual monthly dashboards. The Hexagon solution produced a working prototype in two weeks, delivers millimeter‑accurate subsidence monitoring with monthly updates, and enables utilities to target inspections, reduce emergency repairs and prevent larger infrastructure failures.

Rheticus

Giuseppe Forenza

Business Development Manager