Drones Safety in the Power and Water Utilities
The engineering industry was shocked when an award-winning safety engineer died while he was doing statutory inspections at Telent Technologies Services in Warwick last October 2016. James Merritt, Engineer Surveyor of the Year by the Bureau of Engineer Surveyors in 2014, fell off a 9-meter lift shaft which ended his 20-year career at Zurich engineering.
Utility linemen are also susceptible to Merritt’s fate. They are exposed to risky situations to ensure that certain areas will have sufficient power supply. Unknowingly, they have saved the lives of many people whose businesses or health conditions are reliant on electricity while they were busy risking their lives up above the poles.
But these hazards can be avoided. Innovation, being the face of the engineering industry, is not only applied to create new equipment, machines, and tools but is also used for the betterment of operations. The culture of safety should be promoted in every workplace that’s why engineers seek new ways to respond to the increasing numbers of fatalities in the industry worldwide.
One solution that engineers adapted to solve the hazards in power and water utilities inspection are the drones which are also called unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The sector of power and water utilities have seen the potential with this technology as it enables engineers to inspect, detect and record quantifiable data without deploying people on-site. Moreover, it is said that this can cut costly inspection expenses and can trim down the time consumed in doing so.
These drones can be maneuvered to collect information on areas that are impassable by humans. They can also be exposed to certain amount of chemicals and still function well. They could capture the scenario real-time which is faster and more efficient than sending people on the field.
Although there are companies who have adopted this on their operations, further studies are also required as to produce better AUV systems that are suitable for every kind of engineering work. But nevertheless, this breakthrough is now playing a vital role in the utility sector which, later on, will be practiced by all field not just in engineering.
In this feature, we will discuss how drones changes the game in the sector of power and water utilities and how it continuously shapes the trend in the engineering industry today and to the future.
I bet you that drones have a cool story to be told. And as a bonus for this month’s release, we are to give you a peek featuring different facets of the life of an engineer—starring hard facts in the professional work environment, life hacks and useful leadership guide.
You wouldn’t also want to miss tips on crafting the most effective engineering resume while finding out and landing one of 2018’s highest paying tech jobs. Get ready as well to learn the secrets of workplace coaching and its benefits for a better and more proactive leaders inside your firm.
All of that and more from this issue. Cheers to you, engineer!
