Drone Application for the Oil and Gas Industry
Our vast suite of drone capabilities offers significant advantages for oil and gas companies in various aspects of their operations. Here’s an overview of how RESOURCE’S drone technology can be applied:
Asset Inspection and Monitoring
Drones can be used for inspecting and monitoring oil and gas infrastructure, such as pipelines, pads, and storage tanks. High-resolution imagery captured by drones assists in the maintenance of on-site inventory. It also enables visual inspections, facilitating the identification of defects, corrosion, leaks, and other issues—supporting or even replacing ground-based inspections.
Facility Planning and Construction
Prior to the construction or expansion of facilities, photogrammetry can be employed to create detailed 3D models and high-resolution maps of the project site. Photogrammetric modeling also allows accurate calculation of cut and fill volumes during earth working activities. Drones can capture aerial imagery and terrain data, allowing engineers and planners to assess site conditions, plan infrastructure layout, and optimize construction processes. These visuals are also helpful in monitoring site layout progression, such as assessing the condition of containment structures between oil and gas well development stages.
Pipeline Route Planning and Monitoring
When planning new pipeline routes or monitoring existing pipelines, drones play a crucial role. By capturing aerial imagery and terrain data, drones enable engineers to assess terrain conditions, identify optimal route options, and monitor pipeline integrity over time. As the pipeline continues to develop, drone mapping is utilized to create aerial maps of the pipeline, including points of interest.
Emergency Response Management
In the event of pipeline leaks, spills, or other emergencies, drones can quickly assess the extent of the damage and support emergency response efforts. High-resolution imagery and live streaming captured by drones provide real-time situational awareness, helping companies coordinate response activities, assess environmental impacts, and plan remediation efforts.
Emergency Planning
Our drones can capture a snapshot of a site at a specific point in time to prepare for all possible contingencies. RESOURCE uses this detailed imagery as a reference to curate site contingency plans such as Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) or Preparedness, Prevention, and Contingency (PPC).
Environmental Remediation
Drone imagery can be used to determine ground topography and elevation, allowing us to determine factors such as slope, potential for erosion, or surface water flow direction. An understanding of the terrain aids remediation decisions such as the installation of monitoring wells. Drones enable us to create orthomosaics, which are seamless, high-resolution, orthorectified images of a project area. These orthomosaics can be used for precise measurements and interpretations that are applied to remediation and excavation plans.
Regulatory Compliance and Reporting
Many industries such as Oil and gas companies must comply with various regulatory requirements related to environmental protection, safety, and operational standards. Data collected by drones can support regulatory compliance efforts by providing accurate documentation of infrastructure, environmental conditions, and operational activities. These data points, along with sitemaps generated from drone imagery, are integrated into state and federal reports generated by RESOURCE.
Safety Inspections
Drones can enhance safety inspections of oil and gas facilities. By capturing high-resolution imagery and data, drones can be utilized to identify and minimize safety risks on site.
The integration of drone technologies offers oil and gas companies a versatile and efficient toolset for asset inspection, mapping, facility planning, pipeline routing, emergency management, environmental remediation, regulatory compliance, and safety inspections. By leveraging these technologies, companies can enhance operational efficiency, reduce costs, and improve safety and environmental stewardship across their operations.