South Korea's advanced road management technology to support Mongolia's infrastructure

South Korea's advanced road management technology — capable of automatically detecting cracks and deformations in road surfaces from a moving vehicle — is heading to Mongolia. The initiative aims to raise Mongolia's road maintenance capabilities by introducing a Korean-style digital management system covering everything from road condition diagnostics to pavement quality control.

The Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology announced Monday that it had donated automated road pavement condition survey equipment and a mobile quality-control laboratory to the Mongolian government to support the establishment of a digital management system for Mongolia's national road network.

At the heart of the project is the transfer of road management technology that South Korea has accumulated over more than 30 years. The initiative will build road management and road quality-control systems to improve the efficiency of road maintenance and help Mongolia develop road policy and budgets based on objective data.

The key piece of equipment — the Mobile Road Infrastructure Survey System (MRISS) — automatically surveys road surface conditions, including cracks, rutting and roughness, while a vehicle drives along the road. It enables rapid and accurate assessment of road damage, allowing engineers to identify sections in need of repair.

The mobile quality-control laboratory, also known as MAT LAB, is designed to test and manage the quality of road pavement materials and construction directly on site. It will help establish a field-centered quality management system to raise the standard of road pavement maintenance.

The institute plans to go beyond the equipment donation and support on-the-ground implementation throughout the remainder of the project period. Through this effort, it aims to accelerate Mongolia's digital transformation in road management while expanding Korea-Mongolia infrastructure cooperation and helping South Korean companies enter overseas markets.

"This donation is a case of transferring the road management technology and equipment our country has built up over many years in a way that suits local conditions in Mongolia," said Vice President Kim Hong-mok of the institute. "We will take responsibility for supporting full local adoption, and contribute not only to the digital transformation of Mongolia's road management but also to expanding Korea-Mongolia infrastructure cooperation and helping domestic companies advance into overseas markets together."