Power Station Inspections in Hong Kong with the Elios
Key Benefits at a Glance
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Speed Many power plant structures, such as turbine halls and exhaust pipes, are extremely tall. Traditionally, setting up scaffolding for inspections could take days. The lightweight Elios drone has enabled inspection teams to complete tasks in just one or two days without needing scaffolding, significantly speeding up the process. |
Cost Savings CLP Power now operates an in-house drone team, eliminating the need for costly scaffolding. By using the Elios, they can gather LiDAR, visual, and thermal data in a single flight, enabling more comprehensive and efficient analysis of critical infrastructure while saving millions annually. |
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Safety The use of drones has completely eliminated the need for workers to perform inspections at height, reducing the risk of accidents and minimizing scaffold erection on site. |
Access The Elios 3 allows CLP Power to inspect high-rise assets like boilers over 30 meters tall, as well as confined spaces such as silos and underground pipes that were previously difficult to reach. |
Founded in 1901, CLP Power Hong Kong Limited (CLP Power) is a leading provider of electricity to over 80% of Hong Kong’s population, serving around 7.4 million people. The company manages a full range of power generation, transmission, distribution, and customer services, ensuring reliable energy supply across the city.
Maintaining the smooth operation of power generation units and auxiliary facilities is a top priority for CLP Power. However, traditional manual inspections in complex and hazardous environments have long posed challenges. In 2016, the engineering team began exploring innovative technologies, eventually adopting drones for indoor inspections. Over the past five years, they have been working closely with Elios drones to improve efficiency, safety, and data collection at their sites.
This partnership has helped reduce the need for work at height and in confined spaces, making operations safer and more efficient. Let’s dive into how CLP Power transformed its inspection processes with the help of the Elios drones.
Exploring Drones for Indoor Inspections at Power Plants
Power plants are complex environments filled with large, high-rising structures, underground elements, and hard-to-reach areas. As the technical hub of CLP Power, the Generation Engineering Department continuously seeks advanced technologies to enhance inspection and maintenance practices.
Ng Ki-on, Director of Generation Engineering at CLP Power, recalls that in 2018, his team sought alternatives to reduce reliance on scaffolding during high-risk inspections. They aimed to find a more efficient and internally manageable solution.
While CLP Power had used outdoor drones for inspections since 2016, these relied on GPS, which was ineffective indoors. Collisions could also cause damage to both the drone and the facility. Recognizing these limitations, the team began evaluating indoor drone options.
Image: Director of Generation Engineering Ng Ki-on. All images in this article are credited to CLP Power Hong Kong Limited.
After discussions with Dronesurvey Asia, the team discovered the Elios drones, which offered stable, contact-free inspections even without GPS. Inspired by this, they envisioned using the drone to inspect critical indoor assets like boilers, turbine halls, and exhaust pipes.
Building a Drone Program for Power Plant Inspections
When the Elios 2 was introduced, Ki-on’s team saw its potential. They developed detailed workflows for integrating the drone into their inspection processes.
The Elios 2’s collision tolerance allowed safe operation in complex environments, from measuring stockpiles to inspecting boilers reaching 30 meters in height.
In 2022, the Elios 3 was launched, offering enhanced capabilities with simultaneous LiDAR and visual payloads, further improving inspection efficiency.
The Elios 3 in action at a CLP Power site.
Ki-on shared, “At first, some thought we were looking for recreational drones. But with the Elios, we proved that drones are powerful tools that make indoor inspections faster and safer.â€
Drones Have Found Their Permanent Place in Power Plant Inspections
With established workflows, the Elios drones are now regularly used for inspecting:
- Boilers
- Indoor storage areas
- Pump pits
- General site inspections
Previously, boiler inspections required scaffolding and took a long time. Now, the Elios 3 can inspect them inside and out in just a day, allowing quicker access for maintenance. Similarly, pump pit inspections once required draining water and erecting scaffolding, but the Elios enables quick scans without disrupting operations.
An Elios 2 drone in action inside a boiler.
The team has used the Elios 2 for thermal and visual inspections, and the Elios 3 for LiDAR and visual data collection. This has led to faster, safer, and more detailed inspections, improving data quality and operational insights.
What’s Next for Drones in Inspections?
Ki-on sees a bright future for drones in power plant inspections. “I believe AI will soon be used to analyze the vast amounts of data collected, helping us save time and improve decision-making,†he said.
Recently, CLP Power hosted a media event highlighting the use of Elios drones and other tools to boost safety and productivity. The coverage sparked interest from local government agencies and organizations eager to learn more about the technology’s real-world applications.
Explore more about the Elios 3 and its advanced LiDAR capabilities.
All images in this article are credited to CLP Power.
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