Drone inspections are being done in a variety of industries that require inspections with visual data. For instance, maintenance inspections of infrastructure like bridges no longer have to be climbed to be inspected. The drone collects the visual data while the team is on the ground. Falls from heights are the number one cause of death among construction workers. Reducing injuries will eventually drive down insurance costs for employers. Below we will delve into what you need to know about drone inspections.
Why Is a Visual Inspection Important?
Visual and drone inspections are important as they can help identify issues or faults with an asset that may not be noticed by the naked eye. With advances in drone technology inspectors have the ability to assess assets using high-resolution images collected by the drone. Implementing a drone program for asset inspection is an efficient way to stay on top of asset maintenance and improve the safety of workers and the public. Some industries like solar use thermal cameras to inspect the solar panels, which allows inspectors to identify the output of the panels and which are not working efficiently.
Helps Speed Up Project Timelines
Inspection programs can take months or even years to complete, so ensuring they are run efficiently and safely is a top priority. Drone imaging will also help drive budgets down as it reduces the time required to inspect each asset.
The steps and protocol that have to be carried out for a traditional asset inspection is much more lengthy, so drone inspections help cut down the time here too.
More Benefits of Drone Inspections
Keeping inspectors safe is the number one benefit although there are quite a few more. Drone inspections can help identify potential problems that can be addressed before a bigger issue arises. The drone data can help companies identify issues by severity and send out maintenance crews to priority locations. Below are just the highlights of the benefits of drone inspection:
- Reduced risk and lack of need to build structures to reach inspection areas save money/time. Building these structures for inspection can be the bulk of the costs in a number of cases.
- Inspections being able to be done quickly will decrease downtime in certain industries. A nuclear power plant is not going to run without inspections as the result could be catastrophic.
- Savings will also be due to insurance as the less injuries on a specific job, the less in monthly fees that need to be paid.
Drone inspections are the future as they can help save lives and money simultaneously. Technology will continue to make jobs safer around the globe. Drones are just a great tool for inspections of all kinds that span industries.