CASE C24 · CA · 2020
Ontario Power Generation: one-day indoor-drone inspection of a hydro turbine runner
Ontario Power Generation used an indoor drone to inspect the underside of a turbine runner at its Saunders hydro station. A job that would have needed about a week of scaffolding was done in a day. No cost figures were published and coverage was limited to the blade undersides.
| Owner | Ontario Power Generation (OPG) |
| Provider | — |
| Location | R.H. Saunders Generating Station, Cornwall, Ontario, Canada |
| Aircraft | Flyability Elios 2; LiDAR drone (with Mohawk College) at Waba Dam; ROVs underwater |
| Sensors | video camera, LiDAR (Waba Dam) |
Before
Scaffolding to reach the underside of the runner blades, about a week to set up; divers for underwater work.
With drones
OPG's in-house inspection division flew an indoor drone under the runner; LiDAR drones and ROVs were used at other sites.
Outcomes
| Metric | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| runner inspection | 1 day instead of about a week of scaffold set-up | Reported |
| cost | not published | Reported |
Caveats & limits
- Only the underside of the blades was covered; no cost data were published.
- Drone inspection of the Otter Rapids penstock was only planned at the time.
- Location city inferred from the station name; article date January 2021, work year approximate.
Sources
- OPG's innovative inspection techniques (Water Power & Dam Construction)International Water Power & Dam Construction Full text read
Sources checked: 2026-10-22