Water and Effluent Treatment Magazine
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/487468
1 2 WET NEWS APRIL 2015 quantifying of processes such as creep and landslides. As with any project of this nature, there are always practi- cal issues for the team manag- ing the ins and outs of the daily tasks. Poor weather is the main enemy of the UAV. Drone tech- nology faces certain restrictions as inclement weather condi- tions can drastically hinder the quality of footage produced. High winds, in particular, can prevent flying so careful plan- ning is a must to ensure suitable weather conditions. Seasonal weather will always have to be factored in and the typical British weather that is associated with winter months will mean that flyover surveys are not always going to be an option. Thankfully, the lengthy dura- tion of the Swaledale pro- gramme enabled the operations team to pick and choose suita- ble days for the surveys that took place during the investiga- tion and initial design process of the project. However, pre-planning and consideration of forecasted weather conditions was para- mount in getting the best quali- tative and quantitative images and footage for the team. Man Vs Drone The automatic assumption with new technology is that it should mean better, faster, further – otherwise, what is the point? Well, experience will o„en tell us otherwise and history can throw up countless examples of new technology that has not quite delivered what it says on the tin. Although Morrison Utility Services will have to use UAVs across the end-to-end process of a scheme before the company is able to fully assess and under- stand the outcomes and perfor- mance saving opportunities of the technology, evidence gath- ered from the Swaledale trial suggests that drone technology can play an extremely influential and beneficial role in projects of similar size, scale and nature. So who wins the battles when it comes to man versus drone? Here is the verdict in four key areas – safety, access, practical- ity, quality. Safety: What about safety? With no walking or climbing across sometimes difficult terrain required, the use of UAV mini- mises the risk to personnel. Verdict: Drone wins Access: Walkover surveys are both costly and labour intensive. However, in just moments a UAV can access the air and feedback real-time images to qualified personnel safely located on the ground. Accessing otherwise unreachable locations, and doing so at speed, cannot be underestimated, as time is inev- itably money. Verdict: Drone wins! Practicality: Weather conditions will always be a consideration with drone technology and the practicality and effectiveness of using UAVs can be diminished during the winter months. Verdict: Score draw! Quality: Again the UAV has its advan- tages because it is not limited to only one way of seeing things. A range of sensing equip- ment can be mounted onto a UAV from an ordinary camera (equating to a manual visual survey) to thermal imaging equipment (heat hotspots, change in temperature), as well as multispectral cameras and LIDAR equipment for mapping areas of concern. Furthermore, as data is cap- tured, it can be manipulated safely on the ground in a variety of ways, ultimately improving overall knowledge. Verdict: Drone wins! ONSITE PRe-constRuctIon suRveyIng the technology uses a range of optical sensors for aerial photography and videography work Flight plans can also be programmed to repeat any number of times, enabling accurate quantifying of processes such as creep and landslides With no walking or climbing across sometimes difficult terrain required, the use of uAv minimises the risk to personnel