Visual examination of crucial locations on onshore and offshore structures using an unmanned drone is a quick and efficient inspection technique. Drone inspection offers quick action as an alternative to more traditional, time-consuming, and expensive inspection methods like rope access, sky lifts, sky cranes, and scaffolding. Drone inspection enables access to otherwise inaccessible structures and details.
Anywhere, both inside and outside of buildings, can benefit from drone inspections. It is necessary to consider any restrictions imposed by municipal or national legislation. Additionally, all safety regulations set forth by the facility owner must be followed.
UAV Drones for Flares and Offshore Oil and Gas Tower Inspection
The offshore environment is frequently thought of as being difficult and demanding, and it is crucial to limit failures and output loss at both the installation and the inspection equipment.
Drone inspection makes it feasible to safely check high-risk regions by allowing the pilot and NDT personnel to remain outside of the danger zones. Furthermore, without shutting down or interfering with the production process, comprehensive photographs of important components can be obtained.
One task that includes these components is the inspection of the flare and flare tower on an oil/gas platform with an active flare. While production is unaffected, the drone here takes photos or thermographic data of crucial flare and flare tower components.
While the drone operator, inspector, and staff are kept safely away from the inspection area, data collection is taking place amid turbulence and flames.
Bridge inspection with UAV Drones
The inspection drones from Airbotics , Applus , Intertek , FORCE Technology and Mainblade (Aircraft drone inspections | Fast, Safe, Easy | Mainblades) can view an object from any angle between +45° up and 90° down. When examining bridges offshore, the drone’s ability to look up is quite helpful. Aerial inspection is a desirable solution since it allows you to fly below the bridge and check for corrosion and other issues without having to pay for things like a rope access crew.
Inspection of Oil and Gas Refinery Storage Tanks by UAV Drones
At power plants, refineries, and other industrial facilities, drone surveillance of boilers, fuel storage tanks, and restricted areas is becoming routine. As setting up scaffolding is frequently too expensive, time-consuming, or dangerous for physical inspection, visual examinations are helpful in this situation.
However, operating drones in restricted locations presents a number of difficulties, including poor lighting, color subtleties, radio signal reflection, and propeller turbulence.
We overcome these obstacles by utilizing strong LED lighting, which ensures excellent picture quality with real, natural colors, as well as specialized equipment and skilled pilots who can identify locations that are likely to experience turbulence.
Drone inspection is perfect for time-sensitive inspection because of its short deployment time and capacity to quickly gather details of selected areas or screen an entire area.
The information obtained from the drone inspection can considerably enhance maintenance planning by lowering costs and downtime associated with maintenance.
Confined Spaces Inspection by UAV Drones
Confined spaces are a relatively recent addition to the drone inspection field, but they are gradually becoming more prevalent. Examples include boilers at power plants, fuel storage tanks, etc. If setting up a scaffold is too expensive, time-consuming, or dangerous for a physical examination, visual inspections are helpful in this situation.
However, operating drones in restricted places presents a number of difficulties, including poor lighting, subtle color differences, radio signal reflection, and propeller turbulence.
We overcome these obstacles by utilizing strong LED lighting, which ensures high picture quality with accurate, natural colors, as well as specialized equipment and skilled pilots who can identify locations that are likely to face turbulence.
Thermal Imaging
Using thermal imaging, leaks, defective construction, and energy loss can be found in a fraction of the time it would take to manually evaluate a building. A location that might be vulnerable to malfunction in the future can be found using drone thermal imaging.
The Benefits of UAV Drones
Drones can inspect systems such as wind turbines, boilers, cable trays, cooler towers, electrical equipment, flare stacks, pressure equipment, solar panels, storage tanks, and other infrastructure while they are in operation. Drones are used to speed up production and decrease downtime. Additionally, they lessen the need for operating in dangerously high places and small, difficult-to-access areas that are frequently dangerous. Drones also help to increase quality and safety while minimizing any unfavorable environmental effects.
