Gulf Power Begins Using Drones To Inspect Equipment Along Local Power Lines

March 12, 2020

Gulf Power is embracing technology by using drones to perform equipment assessments on overhead power lines .

Drones are being used in Escambia County to take photos of equipment along power lines in neighborhoods to proactively identify potential areas of concern before an outage occurs.

“Using drones to patrol our power lines will provide additional visibility into potential issues that may be undetectable to the naked eye, allowing our team to identify issues and make repairs before an outage occurs,” said Mike Spoor, vice president of power delivery for Gulf Power. “Taking advantage of this technology will help Gulf Power improve reliability for our customers in a less intrusive and more efficient manner.”

Drones are ideally suited for inspecting equipment because they can safely and quickly deliver high-quality photos and videos of our power lines in a way that can minimize environmental impact and inconvenience for customers along power line routes. Drones can also collect thermal images using infrared technology and assess vegetation encroachment.

Following a severe weather event, drones will also help us assess damage in areas that are flooded or impassable due to fallen trees and debris. The ability to gather damage assessments from areas that are otherwise inaccessible will help Gulf Power restore power safely and as quickly as possible.

Gulf Power’s program is taking lessons learned from a similar program employed by Florida Power & Light Company, Gulf Power’s sister company. The drones will survey power lines throughout Gulf Power’s service area, from Pensacola to Fort Walton Beach to Panama City, in advance of storm hardening and reliability improvement projects. Gulf Power will be using Federal Aviation Administration approved drone pilots, who follow all FAA privacy and flight regulations.

The contractors will patrol power lines during normal business hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday), will wear Gulf Power safety equipment and will display signs in the neighborhood where they are working. In addition, customers will be notified by a call to the phone number on file with Gulf Power with an automated voice recording days before the assessment takes place.

Pictured top: The drone will be able to view equipment on Gulf Power lines closer to determine if there are any issues. In this photo, a woodpecker hole is near the top of the pole. Pictured inset: This is an example of the infrared camera showing an issue with a piece of equipment on the power line. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.

Comments

8 Responses to “Gulf Power Begins Using Drones To Inspect Equipment Along Local Power Lines”

  1. Ron Hardin on April 2nd, 2020 12:16 pm

    I got a statement saying my bill doubled in one month. NO WAY that happened. Y’all really need to get your stuff straight especially now when people are losing money because of the pandemic affecting our country and the world.

  2. Ace on March 15th, 2020 9:19 am

    GULF POWER your new website SUCKS….your old website was great!!! You no longer can see what your daily usage is….cannot see your current bill as it progresses…..etc.

    YET …YOU BRAG HOW GOOD YOUR NEW WEBSITE IS……

  3. Cantonment Resident on March 12th, 2020 7:31 pm

    Just curious…can those drones take pictures of overgrown trees in the power lines and report it back to Gulf Power? I’ve called to get this done numerous times with no response, so I gave up. A Gulf Power employee told us not to attempt to cut the limbs back ourselves because they are in the lines, so I guess we’ll just keep waiting. Have you cut the orange truck tree service out of the budget and replaced them with drones? If so, can you tie a chain saw on them and send ‘em up. Sorry G.P., I.m not trying to be unfair, I just want these tree limbs cut out of the lines so they won’t spark during high winds or storms.

  4. Kat on March 12th, 2020 12:39 pm

    My animals on the farm dont like when helicopters fly over.. so pretty confident that they wont like the drones either.. since my long driveway has power lines running down it and horses and cows on either side of said driveway.. yall better hope nothing happens to them when they get spooked..

  5. Sammie on March 12th, 2020 11:44 am

    Somebody’s going to shoot one right out of the sky…. watch

  6. frank on March 12th, 2020 10:48 am

    @Sedition that’s a good one, not sure if you are being serious or not but the drone will go down way before any equipment goes down lol.

  7. Sedition on March 12th, 2020 9:25 am

    How long before one of those flies into the lines or a transformer and poofs out the power?

  8. Tabby on March 12th, 2020 1:23 am

    …….and report any “suspicious activity” to BigDaddy Government. And remember, that could mean having more cash in your pocket than the average person. No thank you Gulf Power.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News