To optimise vessel inspections and survey operations, especially in hard to reach or confined spaces, special designed UAV’s (unmanned aerial vehicles) are used. Safety is everyone’s priority and using drones, especially at heights and in confined spaces, are making inspections safer and more cost effective. Inspecting and surveying tanks and confined spaces on board ships can be a risky enterprise. Some of the dangers are toxic atmosphere, excessive heat, flowing liquids or free flowing solids and oxygen deficiency or enrichment. Cargo tanks can sometimes be filled with water during a process known as rafting, which presents an obvious danger to anyone carrying out inspections inside tanks.

Before entering a confined spaces, we must adhere to the legal requirements. The first requirement states “A person shall not carry out work in confined spaces if it is reasonably practical that it can be avoided”. Be using drones we avoid entering confined spaces thus eliminating the risk of an accident. Drones are able to carry out survey tasks quickly and efficient, preventing expensive and time consuming workarounds for crew or surveyors. Tanks on ships can be over 25 meter high, and therefore require the introduction of scaffolding, hung staging equipment and other specialised solutions.

We are fully qualified to assist you and your inspection commitments on all types of vessels. Most of our inspectors, engineers and pilots have spent much of their working lives in the maritime industry on various type of vessels all over the world.

We use on our inspections drones in different applications, including tank and external vessel inspections. We combine our maritime experience with enclosed space drone technology using HD and infrared cameras. The drones we use for inspection in confined spaces are wrapped in a distinctive carbon fibre cage and are collision, dust, splash and bump resistant, meaning it can be used to safely access confined spaces.

Using drones for inspections in hard to reach area’s such as tall structures on deck, cargo tanks and confined spaces is not only safer, it is also cost saving. A recent inspection to check the integrity, corrosion, anodes and sediment of 2 ballast tanks on board a vessel took us just 4 hours, a process that would usually last a number of days. The ship didn’t suffered any down time and was a massive cost saving to the owner.