DRONE SURVEYS AND INSPECTIONS
IMAGING SERVICES

DRONE-BASED INSPECTIONS

NextWave is an advanced drone inspection company that services the maritime, energy, oil & gas, petrochemical industries, and real estate industries with asset inspection drone technology solutions. Our aerial and underwater inspection service delivers unmatched results using drone and ROV technology together with thermographic imagery, ultraviolet measurements, and visual imaging. Our inspections service provides a comprehensive report including multiple measurements, high-resolution imagery, and/or videos along with geolocation to identify potential failure points. Our industry experience and use of innovative technology provide cost-effective, close-in high definition imagery, which is the focus of our company. With our services, companies can reduce their inspection costs, improve efficiency, reduce maintenance costs, and potentially eliminate failures when using our innovative inspection solutions. NextWave Hellas is the first certified company in Greece by the classification societies RINA and INSB Class for remote inspections.

We FLY, We CRAWL, We DIVE!

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Our Services

Case-by-case operations

VESSEL TANK INSPECTIONS

Flying application-specific drones inside the ballast tank of a cargo ship can replace a traditional scaffolding method for better data captured much quicker. Get up close and inspect near 100% of your tanks with high-resolution images and video. By enabling remote visual inspection in any indoor environment, the drone prevents the need for workers to enter hazardous places or face dangerous situations.

POLLUTION MONITORING SHIP EMISSIONS

Air pollution monitoring has recently become an issue of utmost importance in our society. NextWave is a pioneering technology company dedicated to advancing solutions for monitoring emissions using drones and manned aircraft. We offer to monitor concepts, technology, and expertise to operators, industry, and authorities looking to understand the nature and impact of emissions, document compliance, and enforce environmental limits. Our approach is anchored in solid science, validated methods, and proven technologies.

CONFINED-SPACE INSPECTIONS

With entry and egress limitations as well as human inhabitant unsuitability, the drone inspection of a confined space is key. The remote visual inspection eliminates any gas freeing operations, a human entry in a hazardous environment and of course time.

New Layer

VESSEL DRAFT SURVEYS

A draft survey is a calculation of the weight of cargo loaded or unloaded to or from a ship from measurements of changes in its displacement. The technique is based on Archimedes’ principle. The accuracy of the draft mark readings with drone surveys is crucial for the correct determination of the cargo loaded onboard especially in offshore areas where visual inspection is impossible.

UNDERWATER INSPECTIONS

Since we are using an underwater vehicle you do not have to take your vessel out of service to perform hull or propeller inspections. Deploy the vehicle at a port or lower it from the side of the vessel anywhere. Perform hull inspections with less downtime and less liability.

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STACK INSPECTION

Inspecting the towering flare stacks at petroleum refineries is a tricky business. The current method of inspection is costly, several days long processes involving inspection teams and scaffolding. Due to safety and temperature concerns, the stacks must be shut down and allowed to cool prior to close human observation. Since the stacks require regular inspections, the safest and cost-effective method is by drone.

PIPELINE INSPECTIONS

High endurance aerial drones can efficiently survey long stretches of pipeline more quickly and efficiently than traditional manned helicopter crews.

REFINERY INSPECTIONS

We provide the latest drone inspection technologies for asset inspection and anomaly detection to the oil and gas and petrochemical industries. We partner with some of the industry’s leading services and manufacturing companies to provide visual, thermal and confined space solutions.

TANK STORAGE FACILITY INSPECTIONS

Drones bring value as visual aids during the inspection process. It can give better insight to any location in question before ever deciding to build scaffolding inside the tank. It can cost over $1 million to scaffold an entire sphere tank without the certainty it even needed to be built in the first place. Even if scaffolding ultimately needs to be constructed, drones can give you confidence in knowing it was the right idea to further test this area. With features like special software, inspectors can effectively measure cracks, corrosion, and areas of concern in the post. This gives inspectors and asset owners the ability to more effectively track issues over a longer period.

WIND TURBINE & SOLAR POWER PLANT INSPECTIONS

Using aerial drones to inspect and monitor the status of wind farms and solar panel farms offers a way to maintain turbine cell effectiveness that is both cost and time-efficient. These vehicles can detect structural weaknesses and damage on turbine blades much more precisely than the human eye. Whether you need to monitor the performance of your solar PV system operator, inspect a site for warranty claims, or just want your investment to perform optimally, our drone-based solutions deliver a flexible, cost-effective way to inspect your system assets.

PACKAGE AND DOCUMENT TRANSPORT

Small airborne drones are prime candidates for mail services, delivering small-to-medium packages more efficiently and less expensively than traditional delivery trucks. An airborne drone may even work in tandem with unmanned vehicles on the roads or in central waterways that would serve as hubs for several small aircraft to retrieve packages from while on delivery routes

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INSPECTIONS

Traditionally the inspection of tall buildings and structures required the use of scaffolding and incredible amounts of time to complete quality and in-depth inspections. With the use of the drone inspection of buildings and structures of great height can be accomplished in significantly less time and without any need for scaffolding. Utilizing the drone allows us to provide images for detailed facade analysis of buildings and structures. The drone is flown in a predefined pattern capturing images of every inch of the structure

AGRICULTURE INSPECTIONS

Drones are being used in agriculture to provide regular monitoring of crops, livestock and to create 3D maps of farmland to better understand irrigation conditions and related issues. A drone can provide a regular snapshot of crop conditions in far-flung locations on a large farm, giving the owner quick insights into failing crops so that issues can be addressed before they become worse.

AQUACULTURE

Inspect your fish cages, mooring lines, and anchors points. The full HD camera allows you to analyze the growth of the fibers on your nets and help you determine the best time to schedule nets cleanings. Fish escapes affect your bottom line, increase your transparency by using secure data.

Drone Inspections and Surveys Our Great Partners

Frequently Asked Questions

Get your questions answered. Do you need more information? Please contact us.

What is a drone?

The word “drone” has taken on a few different meanings over the years. Some people think of a drone as a bee, others might think of those predator drones that the military uses. The drones that most people talk about today are simply radio-controlled aircraft that have some level of autonomous features. A drone can be a plane, a helicopter, a quadcopter, or any combination in-between. Most of the drones sold today are quadcopters. They have 4 rotors and a flight controller that is used to stabilize the lift from each propeller.

What is the benefit of using UAV to contact a survey?

NextWave uses UAVs along with a certified surveyor to conduct 3D volumetric analysis and other land surveys which are equivalent and with better accuracy than traditional methods. UAV can gather data much faster minimizing time on location and is safer because it does not require a survey crew walking the site

How long does it take to conduct unmanned robotic inspections?

This varies greatly with the area to be inspected and the type of NDT inspection that needs to be conducted. In some cases, robots can be faster than human inspection, but in general, robots are slower at completing the inspection task itself. However, factoring the time it takes to prepare, mobilize, and permit a confined space entry (CSE), robots will be faster. This means less downtime. Finally, while being faster considering the total scope, robots are safer. Eliminating CSE is a major reason to use unmanned drones.

Are robotic technologies utilized by NextWave intrinsically safe?

NO. However, our aerial systems technology allows us to fit outside of classified boundaries while maintaining the ability to gather detailed inspection data.

Can NextWave fly UAVs to conduct internal inspections?

YES. We have specific UAVs that can fly in challenging indoor environments such as tanks, vessel, boilers, and stacks

How is inspection data from the drones used?

We use industry professionals, industry certified inspectors, and NDT technicians to analyze the data, create actionable reports, and follow up as needed. All raw data are provided as well.

Is there a procedure in place to bring UAVs into the facilities?

YES. Our documentation guides the permitting process so that operators and robotic work crews consider the circumstances at each unique operating environment.

Why don’t you have any photos of your work on the website?

As much as we’d like to show you all of the great things we’re doing, the NDT information we gather at client facilities is confidential and we cannot share it. We hope to get a few photos and promotional videos released in the future.

I have some applications where I think UAVs could be used to make inspection safer and more efficient. Can NextWave help make this a reality?

YES. NextWave is an integrator of UAVs and ROVs of air, land and sea technology for inspection. We have relationships with UAV and ROV manufacturers to customize or build solutions to meet your needs.

You don’t have a location near me, can you still help us?

Absolutely! We are expanding rapidly with plans for multiple regional locations. In the meantime, we will travel to any site in the country for a personal demonstration of our unmanned drones.