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34 Spring 2019 Man-less entry to the tank A further project saw Cyberhawk conduct an internal inspection of a large water tank for a major oil and gas company in the east of England (Figure 2). The quality of several pipe support fittings was inspected, along with the entire internal surface of the storage tank. This project was particularly significant in that the interior of the asset was fully inspected by a team that did not enter the tank, remaining on the outside to fly and control the drone. Man-less entry to this tank required a great deal of precision to ensure that inspection data was not compromised, since there was no GPS signal and little light inside the tank. The team had to draw upon experience to complete this complex workscope and ensure a successful end result. This type of inspection would have previously been conducted by rope access technicians and would have taken at least a week to complete. The company was able to safely and efficiently undertake a first audit of the structure, which allowed further inspection and maintenance to be prioritised. The project was completed in one day, which further emphasised the cost and time benefits of drones for internal tank inspection. Creating value from data Drones have the ability to capture terabytes of data which can be used for much more than just viewing the status of an asset at one specific point in time. Based on years of inspection experience and through working closely with customers, Cyberhawk developed a cloud-based software that allows asset integrity data to be hosted as an intuitive, visual, digital inspection report, rather than the traditional paper-based equivalent. This is particularly useful for internal tanks, which can be difficult to access and to visualise. Users can log in and view the inside of the tank in a 360˚ view with the ability to pan round the tank, from different levels and viewpoints, and navigate directly to areas of interest. From there, high-definition imagery of defects and problem areas can be accessed and analysed (Figure 3). As further inspections are conducted, a visual database of the tank can be built up and allows known problems and defects to be monitored, tracked and compared over time. This enables temporal analysis and the identifi cation of any trends and patterns. This solution is benefi cial to asset teams as it allows them to see the full tank, as well as any defects in the context of the tank, without having to be physically present. Not only does this mean a complete asset record is available at the touch of a button, but also that fewer site mobilisations are required, thus lowering costs. Communication between asset teams and contractors is also improved, no matter their geographical location. Working from one central source of data, visual inspection results can be easily accessed, shared, interrogated and used for activities from contract tendering to maintenance and repair planning. The future of drone inspection The pace of development in robotics, drone technology and software is rapid and contributing towards some major effi ciency gains across multiple industries. However, while these unmanned aircraft have enabled the visual inspection industry to advance leaps and bounds, non-destructive testing (NDT) technicians are still required to perform certain tasks. For instance, in tank inspection, technicians are still required to conduct thickness measurements using conventional techniques such as ultrasonic testing (UT). Once again, however, drone technology is progressing quickly to address this limitation, with solutions being developed that will enable drones to take thickness measurements. Cyberhawk has already trialled a prototype on a live project which demonstrated that with further development, this is a feasible solution. A future phase of development is also man-less entry to the tank. As highlighted in the previous case study, it is possible to perform man-less entry, however varying conditions within different tanks means offering this as a standardised solution is diffi cult at present. Again, with the R&D efforts happening at present, this is expected to become more common in the future, which will mark a massive shift in the fi eld of confi ned space and internal tank inspection. The industry has experienced a major growth in the use of drones for tank inspection, which will only increase as the technology matures. Tank and terminal owners have demonstrated a real desire to adopt new technology to work safely and more effi ciently. Unmanned aircraft are expected to become a regular fi xture at terminals over the coming years. Figure 3. iHawk tank software.

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