drones for wind, solar and electricity

5 Ways Drones Are Changing the Solar, Wind & Electrical Industries in Canada

Despite being relatively new technology, drones are growing in their presence in industrial work, specifically in the energy sector. The solar, wind, and electrical industries in particular are seeing a huge growth in drone usage.

And, though the benefits of drones are immense, let’s talk about the six main ways drones are a changing the game for these industries.

1) Drones Make Equipment Inspections Easier & Less Expensive

Drones allow for easy inspections of equipment. Depending on the industry, equipment likely needs to be inspected regularly over the course of a year. This ensures all pieces are running as safely as possible.

Both wind and solar farms tend to be very spread out. When using traditional ways of inspecting wind turbines, solar panels, and other pieces of equipment, this means leveraging a lot of time, resources, and money.

Drones reduce this strain on company resources. Implementing drone usage in inspection means examining a large amount of equipment in less time and with fewer people. Wind turbines, in particular, benefit from drone usage as it reduces the need for in-person inspections, which can be difficult and expensive.

2) Drones Measure Performance of Equipment

With the right drone, you can easily measure the performance of your equipment, as well as the health. Evaluating the equipment’s performance with a drone has several benefits.

First, it can reduce downtime. Normally to inspect a wind turbine, the turbine needs to be turned off. With a drone, inspection and performance evaluations can usually be completed while the equipment is running, drastically reducing the downtime.

Secondly, equipment measured for performance with drones can be done accurately and quickly. Thermal readings are generally completed on solar farms, for example, to evaluate performance. Drones complete this thermal reading more quickly and just as – if not, more – accurately than traditional methods.

Lastly, since the equipment is being assessed by drone, it takes fewer workers to complete. For a business, this translates directly into saved revenue.

3) Drones Ease Surveying For Solar, Wind & Electricity Sites 

Solar farms, in particular, benefit from drone surveying. Thermal imagery adds greater insights into the process than traditional methods. Drones also provide business owners with the ability to survey remote or hard-to-reach areas.

Like with most other drone benefits, using a drone for surveying also decreases the number of workers needed to complete a particular project.

Like surveying, using drones can also give you an edge on creating plans and assessments of solar farms, wind farms, and electrical sites. Specifically, this is useful when companies are scaling their business. Leveraging the right drone can greatly streamline this process.

4) Drones Can Monitor Construction of New Sites

While drones can be used prior to construction to survey and plan, drones have also been used successfully to monitor construction of new solar farms, wind farms, and electrical sites.

Having drones on-site can provide peace of mind that the project site is secure. Drones can be used as a part of the security by monitoring equipment left on-site after hours. With thermal imaging, these drones can also be used to monitor for trespassers.

5) Drones Gather Reliable Data

Drones cover vast and remote areas with ease. In terms of data collection, this is ideal. Since drones can collect data without needing trucks, heavy-duty equipment, scaffolding, and more, these devices are not limited by terrain. Similarly, drones can also collect data from large areas without taking up too much extar time.

With drones, companies can collect data that would have been nearly unattainable otherwise due to the difficulty of doing so or the expense. For solar, wind, and electricity companies and businesses, the data collected is invaluable.

When you choose the right drone for a project, you can collect a variety of data and tailor it to the needs of your specific project with ease.

Find the Right Drone for Your Needs

Drones are valuable to the solar, wind, and electricity companies throughout British Columbia and all of Canada. Contact our team today to learn more about how drones could assist in making your business more profitable, more efficient, and safer.