On a country road west of Rives on a hot but beautiful morning in mid-June, the occasional passerby craned to see two men in hard hats flying drones in the nearby fields.

The duo – Power Utilization Engineers Grayson Chandler and Phil Taylor – are part of the TVA West Region Comprehensive Services Program (CSP) staff, a technical support initiative that helps local power companies improve safety, efficiency, and reliability.

It’s the second year Gibson Electric Membership Corporation has utilized CSP’s drone services, but the cooperative has a longstanding relationship with CSP. Gibson Electric, like other local power companies, allocates money for CSP that TVA then matches dollar for dollar. In addition to helping ensure the safe and reliable delivery of electricity to members’ homes and businesses, Gibson Electric also uses CSP funds to provide engineering support and assistance with energy efficiency upgrades to the member-owners.

With aerial drones, CSP performs thermal and visual inspection of transmission, distribution, substations and components. Especially in areas that are difficult for bucket trucks to reach, the drones help Gibson Electric identify problems and potential issues so lineworkers can schedule maintenance to avoid outages.

“Safety and reliability are important to any utility provider, and this service touches on both,” Chandler said. “Scheduled maintenance is safer and more efficient than fixing a problem during a power outage.”

Aerial inspections

Before drones, aerial inspections were conducted using helicopters—a method that, while effective, came with its own challenges. Typically, the pilot would take up two Gibson Electric personnel to inspect electric poles for potential problems. They were in the air from four to five hours. Helicopters were an improvement on the small Cessna airplanes previously used.

“Even with the pilot flying as slowly as possible without stalling, those electric poles went by like fence posts,” Gibson Electric Vice President of Engineering and Operations Barry Smith recalled.

Helicopters were far more efficient, with pilots able to easily return to and/or hover over a pole for closer inspection. Restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and new safety regulations, however, cleared the skies for drone services.

Gibson Electric and Gibson Connect President and CEO Dan Rodamaker was an early proponent for TVA wrapping drone services in its Comprehensive Services Program, making Gibson Electric one of the first local power companies to utilize TVA drones.

High-tech reports

Personnel operating the drones must complete training and obtain a license as required by the FAA. Chandler has been licensed for just under a year and Taylor for about three months. Working for Gibson Electric in Obion County in June, they inspected transmission lines, 294 poles and all pole components in two days.

Transmission lines carry high-voltage electricity long distances, serving hundreds up to thousands of Gibson Electric members.

Each drone flight lasts about 30 minutes, but pilots land with at least 25% battery remaining as a safety measure. When the drone reaches its range limit—about half to three-quarters of a mile—they reposition and continue the inspection. Pilots take at least six photos per electric pole to give Gibson Electric multiple angles of their lines and components.

Returning to the office, pilots use software to generate a report of the photo and thermal images taken by their aerial drones. They inspect the images and add notes to identify any issues and assign severity levels. The comprehensive report and all images are sent to Gibson Electric for review.

“Ultimately, this technology helps us serve our member-owners better,” Smith said. “By identifying issues early and preventing outages, we’re not just improving reliability—we’re protecting the comfort, safety and productivity of the people and communities we serve.”

By embracing drone technology, Gibson Electric is taking proactive steps to enhance service and reliability for its members.