Advanced aerial inspection and asset management of electricity towers

This paper describes an innovative technique for inspecting steel lattice electricity distribution towers and demonstrates how the method has been successfully adopted within two electricity Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) in the UK. In capturing critical condition information photographically from a helicopter, the technique replaces the need to physically climb the towers as well as any requirement for electrical isolation or switching beforehand. Detailed condition information is extracted from the photographs and processed in order to determine the assets' health in relation to its remaining useful life. The output can not only be used by engineers to improve the rate of defect detection and the management of routine maintenance programmes, but also by business managers to enhance high-level strategic business planning decisions and investment prioritisation through a better understanding of asset risk. This approach has now been used to successfully inspect approximately 20,000 electricity towers distributed across 6 of the 7 DNOs in the UK.