How we use choppers to keep our network safe and reliable.

We’ve used helicopters over the past 3 years to replace our ground inspection of powerlines and the vegetation surrounding them, saving us time and money, and getting a more accurate picture of our network.

We can now, down to the centimetre level, determine how close the vegetation is to our powerlines, and with more data collected each year we can anticipate where we’ll need to spend more time cutting in future years.

“We are the first of the distribution businesses in this country to go to a fully LIDAR based inspection program,” says Ayce Cordy, Head of Vegetation Management.

“Previously we were just able to complete the inspection within 12 months, now we are able to complete the entirety of our network within 8 months.

“The efficiency gained via these helicopters and through our inspection methodology allows us more time to plan and more time to cut the vegetation required.”