The Benefit of Using Drones for Industrial Chimney & Smokestack Inspections

Inspections on industrial structures can be tedious, time-consuming, costly, and disruptive. Location, surrounding buildings or structures, and ease of accessibility can all affect the means by which an inspection team performs critical inspection services. Rope access has proved to be a great solution for performing quick and accurate inspections at height or in tight quarters, but new technology has brought about an even better & faster alternative especially for that initial first look to gain close-up data on the conditions at hand. Drone inspections of structures like industrial chimneys & smokestacks save time by identifying the problems areas, allowing our crew to get right to action during the hands-on aspect of inspection and maintenance services.

On many occasions, parts of a plant will need to be taken out of operation in order to perform inspections. Interruptions due to lengthy downtimes can cause higher costs and restrict important operation tasks. At Industrial Access, we have invested in incredible drone technology called the ELIOS drone to perform quick and uncomplicated preliminary inspections, many times while the stack is still in operation so we can reduce downtime.

The ELIOS drone proves to be a valuable inspection tool. Designed to be collision-tolerant and easy to navigate, the ELIOS drone features on board LED lighting, HD & Thermal Imagery cameras for crystal clear video recording, a live video feed, as well as a post-mission data review. Our crew can use the ELIOS drone to gain pertinent information on areas that are not easily accessible.

The Benefits of Using the ELIOS Drone at Industrial Inspections

Reduced Downtime – Rope access methods have been the quickest and most effective way to provide accurate inspection services, and when combined with a preliminary drone inspections, is the fasted method to complete and accurate and efficient inspection. The ELIOS drone is deployed and ready to gather crystal clear visuals and inspection data within mere minutes. An entire visual inspection can be performed with a drone in a matter of an hour or so. The data collected during the flight inspection helps us identify what area of a structure needs attention so we can get right to work, eliminating wasted downtime.

Safety – Drone inspections improve site safety by cutting out the need to send workers into hazardous places or dangerous situations that may pose a risk to health or physical safety. The ELIOS drone is incredibly responsive and an experience pilot can steer and navigate the drone easily from the ground station with live feed technology.

Lower Costs – Scaffolding, cranes and traditional techniques are no longer needed to perform simple visual inspections at height. The ELIOS drone gathers visuals of the most complex and cluttered spaces while being controlled with the Ground Station and an experienced pilot.

Using the Data to Design Custom Engineered Solutions

The visual photos, live videos, and thermal imagery collected by the ELIOS drone can be used to create a perfectly tailored, custom engineered maintenance & repair solution for problems found during the inspection. Equipped with an SD card, the ELIOS drone allows our crew to access and review the data collected during the inspection flights right away, no special software or equipment needed. Our engineers and project managers use frame-by-frame images, thermal sensor videos, and flight information to create a more accurate and efficient solution for repair, maintenance, and/or demolition, cutting out time typically wasted poking around to find deficiencies inch by inch.

Industrial Access has always been committed to providing fast and effective solutions which is why we have added the ELIOS inspection drone to our arsenal of tools using in our industrial services. Contact us today to learn more about how our ELIOS drone can help complete inspections accurately and without risk of harm to inspectors or factory & plant workers.