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Interview
Ongoing inspections of critical infrastructure such as high-voltage power lines, gas and oil pipelines and other far-stretched assets are critical for their uninterrupted operation and security. SwissDrones offers cost-effective unmanned solutions using market-leading cameras, sensors and software to address customerspecific needs for aerial data gathering and processing. Downtime is costly and manned inspection operations can often be dangerous to personnel. Unmanned aerial vehicles can access hard-to-reach places faster, cheaper and with less risk than manual inspections, and potentially allow the asset to remain online.
Indeed, leading energy provider, Southern Company, deploys SwissDrones’ SDO 50 flagship product to enhance aerial intelligence capabilities.“ Energy companies are dealing with a host of difficult circumstances when it comes to maintaining their critical infrastructure,” says Ulrich.“ From an increase in extreme weather events to cumbersome inspection practices, companies need new, innovative solutions. Teaming up with Southern Company will enable more efficient aerial surveillance and inspection to navigate those challenges.
“ Southern Company decided to purchase our products and is now expanding its own capability to ramp up operations. The company has obtained its own approvals with the FAA based on the use and deployment of our aircraft.”
This collaboration signifies SwissDrones’ expansion into North America and reflects a broader industry trend toward adopting advanced uncrewed systems for critical infrastructure monitoring and emergency response.
While BVLOS drone operations are increasingly permitted, they do require specific authorization from aviation authorities. Drones flown out of sight of the operator are subject to stringent safety requirements, including robust risk assessments and advanced technologies such as detect and avoid( DAA) systems.
Aviation authorities around the world are currently working to address regulatory challenges that will enable authorized operators to operate BVLOS in a scaled, sustainable way. Safety is everyone’ s priority; other airspace users need to be sufficiently protected, and the risk to people and property on the ground needs to be minimized.
The SDO 50 can be used for environmental monitoring applications including topography and vegetation mapping
“ Being able to scale responsible drone use is essential for overcoming the technical limitations of manned flights,” Ulrich continues.“ Manned flights, for example, can’ t follow the exact same flight path as previously, which means it’ s impossible to capture the exact same data set each time. That, in turn, makes it difficult to automate post-flight data evaluation for change analysis. The SDO 50 can be used for environmental monitoring applications including topography and vegetation mapping. In terms of pipeline inspections, this type of monitoring by highend sensors can detect early signs of erosion.
“ This technology enables users to build digital twins. It’ s possible to create a 3D model of the whole corridor of a pipeline. For example, you can literally walk through hundreds of miles of pipeline and zoom into every detail to spot anomalies. Changes can be detected and reported without needing to physically send teams to inspect as operators already have the highest resolution digital representation of the environment.”
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