# Port of Brisbane Seawall (QLD) ![Kurloo Logo Lines 1](https://www.kurloogeomonitoring.com/wp-content/uploads/Kurloo-Logo-Lines-1.svg) CIVIL CASE STUDY – STRUCTURAL MOVEMENT MONITORING ## Project Overview The Port of Brisbane seawall was constructed to support long term port expansion by containing reclaimed land and providing a stable interface between the port and the marine environment. As the permanent outer boundary of the Future Port Expansion area, the seawall protects the reclaimed platform from wave action, tides, and extreme weather events in Moreton Bay. Over time, the seawall has required targeted maintenance, including the removal of existing armour rock and placement of new rock to reinstate the finished surface level. These works are complicated by the offshore, hard to access nature of the structure, introducing safety risks and making it difficult to collect frequent, high quality deformation data. ## The Challenge Complex Geotechnical and Environmental Risks The northern reclamation area at the Port of Brisbane presented a demanding combination of geotechnical complexity, environmental sensitivity, and safety exposure. While the objective was straightforward — maintain seawall integrity and prepare the land for future development — the conditions introduced significant risk. - **Hazardous access conditions:** Data collection required working on unstable ground in an active marine construction zone, with heavy machinery, tidal movement, and exposed rock armour creating a high risk environment for personnel. - **Highly compressible soils:** Soft Holocene clays extending up to 30–35 metres below seabed level posed substantial primary and secondary settlement risks. - **Structural performance uncertainty:** Monitoring was essential to manage the risk of bearing failure and mud waving during seawall construction and subsequent maintenance activities. - **Safety exposure:** Traditional monitoring methods depended on frequent site visits to hazardous locations, increasing the potential for incidents. - **Environmental sensitivity:** Protecting marine ecosystems and maintaining water quality remained a critical constraint throughout the works. - **Data continuity challenges:** Storm events, ongoing construction activity, and difficult terrain disrupted consistent data collection, with access constraints further compounded by weekend and public holiday scheduling. ## The Solution Kurloo Autonomous, Accurate Monitoring To meet these requirements, Kurloo collaborated with a local surveying firm Land Solution Australia to deliver an IoT-enabled, remotely managed surveying solution that integrated: - GNSS Machine Control for precise rock placement and digital constructable models. - Kurloo devices installed on settlement plates along the seawall to capture daily 3D millimetre-accurate displacement readings. - UAV technology for monthly QA and surface verification. This innovation allowed continuous monitoring 7 days a week, 365 days a year without exposing surveyors to hazardous conditions and set a new benchmark for marine infrastructure monitoring. ![Port of Brisbane Seawall](https://www.kurloogeomonitoring.com/wp-content/uploads/Port-of-Brisbane-Seawall-PXL_20220315_014946181-1200x1600.jpg)## The Results Quantitative impact Kurloo shifted the monitoring paradigm by delivering automated, millimetre-accurate readings every day, unaffected by weather, tides, or site access restrictions: 35 Metres Holocene clays to 35m below seabed Soft compressible soils posing substantial settlement risks, monitored continuously by Kurloo. 90% Less Survey labour hours Remote monitoring reduced survey labour from two full-time surveyors to monthly site visits only, representing an approximately 80–90% reduction. 365 Days a year Daily automated readings captured year-round, unaffected by weather, tides, or site access restrictions. For the seawall, real-time data on settlement and lateral movement during and after rock placement enabled proactive adjustments and reduced reliance on assumed deformation rates. “We get the data quick, it’s reliable. It informs us as the asset owner if there are any problems in real time, and we can act accordingly.” **Project Manager,** Marine Infrastructure ![Port of Brisbane Seawall Kurloo dashboard](https://www.kurloogeomonitoring.com/wp-content/uploads/Port-of-Brisbane-Seawall-Screenshot-2026-03-06-104529-1600x757.jpg)## Setting a New Standard for Marine Infrastructure Kurloo's deployment at the Port of Brisbane replaced assumption-based checks with a proactive, data-driven approach. Continuous six degrees of motion measurements provided engineers with validated movement intelligence within minutes, supporting timely decisions and improving safety. Clinton Chan also noted that for displacement monitoring in high-risk areas where frequent, precise data is critical, he would “100% recommend Kurloo,” highlighting the team’s responsiveness and the quality of the data captured. ## Outcome A new benchmark for geotechnical monitoring — delivering predictive insights, reducing safety exposure, and accelerating compliance across large-scale reclamation projects. ## Download the Full Technical Case Study Access the full case study, including the geotechnical context, monitoring approach, and before-and-after performance comparison. Download Full Technical Report