Steinmüller Africa has expanded its intelligent engineering services with the addition of the Elios 3 caged inspection drone to its fleet, enhancing inspection capabilities and reducing costs for coal-fired power stations, for instance, by reducing the need for human inspection services.
Equipped with LiDAR and advanced stabilisation, Elios 3 captures reliable 3D data in complex environments.
“The drone is designed for inspections in dangerous, cluttered, and confined spaces. It’s a safer, more accurate way to gather information in hazardous areas,” says Carel van Aswegen, Group QC/NDT Manager at Steinmüller Africa.
“Using this drone enables us to cut downtime for inspections – in some cases by as much as 50% – as a result of the accessibility and the accurate data it provides,” says van Aswegen. “We can inspect damage in boilers once they cool down to around 50°C, without waiting for permits required for human entry or installing scaffolding and sky climbers. The drone also locates damages with greater accuracy.”
The Elios 3 is the first indoor mapping and inspection drone that can transform asset data into digital insights. Its carbon fibre protective cage (18.9" wide by 13.8" high) provides 360-degree collision tolerance, allowing it to navigate tight, complex environments without risk of damage. The drone’s advanced stabilisation system ensures smooth, stable flight even in turbulent conditions; this is crucial for capturing high-quality visual and thermal data.
Equipped with a 4 K camera, flight control sensors, inertial measurement unit (IMU), magnetometer, barometer, thermal imaging sensor, three computer vision cameras, time-of-flight (ToF) distance sensor, and LiDAR technology, the Elios 3 delivers high-resolution imagery and enables precise 3D mapping, even underground. This allows for the creation of accurate digital twins of inspected assets, with intuitive reporting on a 3D model and real-time situational awareness built into the piloting app.
The Elios 3 also features advanced flight path detection, enabling it to navigate complex, GPS-denied environments autonomously and with precision. Real-time data transmission enables inspectors to monitor live feeds and make quick, informed decisions, and the drone’s modular payload capabilities offer additional flexibility.
Steinmüller Africa has also used the drone for post-incident investigations. Van Aswegen cites the case where a client recently experienced an explosion on site. “We quickly mobilised the drone to assess the damage for safe entry, providing the team with exact locations and live footage of the surroundings, enabling faster, more targeted care,” he explains.
Beyond benefitting current clients, the Elios 3 opens new opportunities for Steinmüller Africa. “The drone can be used almost anywhere that would be unsafe, impractical, or financially unviable for a person to go,” van Aswegen adds. It can be used, for instance, in coal storage tank facilities, grain silos, underground mines, manufacturing plants, warehouses, boilers, tunnels, cell phone towers, railway transport tankers, and on bridges.
Steinmüller Africa began using Elios drones in 2017, becoming the first company in South Africa to acquire the technology from Swiss manufacturer Flyability.
For more information visit: https://steinmullerafrica.com