TenneT inspects high-voltage grid using a helicopter
TenneT recently inspected six high-voltage connections in northern Netherlands, using helicopters equipped with special cameras and sensors.
Image for illustration purposes.
The Netherlands, Arnhem: TenneT recently inspected six high-voltage connections in northern Netherlands, using a helicopter equipped with special cameras and sensors.
TenneT inspected six high-voltage connections in Drenthe, Groningen and Overijssel last week. During the flight, the helicopter took aerial photos and scans of high-voltage connections using special cameras and sensors. It is the first time the company used a helicopter for this purposes. Siemens Energy carried out the work.
To properly map the high-voltage connections, the helicopter flew at a speed of 25 kilometres per hour and at a height of 40 to 50 metres along both sides of the high-voltage connection.
Thanks to the rich and detailed data, better insight was gained into the above-ground part of the electricity grid, meaning that the company can now organise management and maintenance more efficiently, and keep high-voltage connections in optimal and safe condition. TenneT also announced plans to map the rest of the high-voltage connections in the Netherlands in this way, if this approach proves successful.
Gathering information about high-voltage grid and the immediate surroundings is often done manually. These measurements are time-consuming and costly. With this new approach, fewer measurements are necessary, which allows for the deployment of technical personnel on other projects.
The data generated by the helicopter flight is uniform and enters a special management environment. This allows the company to advise local residents and landowners in the vicinity of high-voltage connections more quickly about the possibilities for activities and construction.
Besides the connections, the immediate surroundings of the connections are also analysed. For example, an effective management plan for vegetation can be created based on the data gathered.
Source: TenneT