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Terra Drone Opens Chile branch, Conducts Flare Stack Inspection For State Energy Company ENAP
October 25, 2019
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Terra Drone Opens Chile branch, Conducts Flare Stack Inspection For State Energy Company ENAP

Terra Drone Chile, a newly-founded group company of Japan-based Terra Drone Corporation, has successfully conducted visual inspection of flare stacks for Chile’s state-owned energy company ENAP Aconcagua. In this pilot project, three flare stacks – each about 70m tall – were inspected in 45 minutes using drones. This proved to be significantly cost-effective and faster than the conventional method of engaging the services of a professional photographer in a manned helicopter.

ENAP inspects its flare stacks once every three years but wants to conduct more frequent inspections to ensure optimum performance during operations. Terra Drone Chile was roped in for the project after the energy company discovered black smock steaming from some of the flares. With a planned maintenance activity coming up in a few weeks, ENAP wanted a clear understanding of the current condition of the area surrounding the top rings of the flare stacks.

Terra Drone Chile used a DJI M210 RTK drone mounted with 2 cameras – a Zenmuse Z30 (zoom camera) and a Zenmuse X5S (high resolution camera) – for this activity. The drone captured the images of the flares from different angles to facilitate an inspection report that would show each part’s status in terms of crack, deformity, and integrity.

Buoyed by the quick and comprehensive results, ENAP has decided to retain Terra Drone Chile’s services for the next maintenance cycle.

Deformation is recognized on the left alert lights when compared with those on the right
One of the 70m tall flare stacks inspected by Terra Drone Chile
The areas of interest on the flare stack
 

About Terra Drone Corporation
Established in 2016, Terra Drone Corporation has quickly become one of the world’s largest industrial drone solution companies employing over 550 drone industry professionals. The company’s head office is located in Tokyo, Japan, and more than 25 branches are spread globally throughout Asia, Europe, Americas, Africa, and Oceania. Terra Drone provides innovative enterprise drone services for oil and gas, utilities, renewables, mining, construction, and GIS sectors, among others.
Previous investments include Unifly, which specializes in unmanned traffic management (UTM); C-Astral, which develops high-endurance fixed-wing UAVs; RoNik Inspectioneering, which provides wireless inspection services for confined spaces; Ventus Geospatial, which has patented gas leak detection technology; and Inkonova, which has developed SLAM technology for underground mines. Going forward, we will continue to invest in technology companies with cutting-edge solutions for drones.

 

For all the latest news and information about Terra Drone, visit the company’s LinkedIn and Twitter handles.

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