Wollongong-based Soto Consulting Engineers has developed the drone with Sydney-based Coptercam that largely eliminates reliance on people, rigging and scaffolding, cutting down much of the time usually takes for inspections of plant and equipment.

A Coptercam pilot operates the drone from the ground alongside a Soto engineer viewing a monitor. Coptercam is licensed and authorised by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.

The camera is mounted on a three-axis gyro-stabilised gimbal that is controlled independently of the drone, can pan through 360 degrees and has a 110 degree tilt capability and has remote record and shutter control.

This gives the owners more control, saves costs and eliminates shutdowns.

Soto Group managing director Frank Soto said the drones would particularly benefit audits in the coal mining sector.

He said the coal industry had annual statutory structural audits to detect vibration, stress fatigue and corrosion hazards, which took up valuable man hours.

“Often difficult access and terrain preclude many structures from complete inspection and the true condition of the structure or plant remains unseen and unreported possibly for years, thus giving rise to hazardous issues and expensive consequences,” Soto said.

He said heavy industrial and mining environments were harsh on both personnel and equipment, and combined with downtime, audits could be expensive. Work which could take a week could now be done in a day with the drone.

The drone could also be used in other industries, such as civil engineering, mining, bulk handling and forensic engineering as well as for services to the manufacturing and minerals processing sectors.

Coptercam technology has already been used to inspect bridges, exhaust stacks, roads, elevated conveyors and handling towers.

Coptercam NSW state manager Glen McGarry said traditional methods of site inspection always took lots of people and lots of time – and Coptercam overcame these challenges, particularly in confined or elevated areas.

“For example, the legal height limit for us to fly a drone is 122m (400-feet), so to inspect a smoke stack we simply fly the drone straight up from the ground 122m high (legal height limit), whereas before it used to involve personnel on ropes coming in from the top which is slow and is putting lives at risk,” he said.