Stantec halves a landmark bridge inspection with autonomous drones
Engineering and infrastructure consulting · Bridge inspection · Vendor published
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The job
Stantec inspects bridges, tunnels, and highway structures where traditional access meant snooper trucks, rope access, and lane closures over live traffic. The firm now pairs its own inspectors, who are subject matter experts rather than professional pilots, with autonomous Skydio drones and 3D Scan to capture columns, arch segments, and tight girder spaces from the air. On the Mike O'Callaghan Tillman Bridge project spanning the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona, the drone-based approach halved the inspection schedule and cost.
The operation
Over 30,000 employees operating out of more than 450 locations (published-by-vendor); about 170 drone pilots operating in North America, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK (published-by-vendor)
The equipment
Skydio autonomous drones with Skydio 3D Scan software; autonomous drone docks referenced for remote operations
The published numbers
Inspection time reduced from ten days to five days for the Mike O'Callaghan Tillman Bridge project, reducing cost by 50% (published-by-vendor); over 170 drone pilots (published-by-vendor); over 30,000 employees and more than 450 locations (published-by-vendor). Dollar cost: not published. Payback: not published.
Where a source did not publish a figure, this entry says so rather than guessing.
What we would check before believing it applies to you
The 50% figure comes from one signature structure with favorable drone geometry, a high concrete arch over open water, flown by an experienced reality capture team; a plate girder bridge over live traffic is a harder win and may still need closures for takeoff and landing even when the flight avoids them. National Bridge Inspection Standards still require hands-on work for certain elements, especially on fracture-critical members, so verify with your state DOT what drone imagery is accepted for before promising crew reductions. GPS-denied performance under decks is the differentiating requirement; test the specific aircraft under your deck type before committing. Stantec's staffing model, inspectors first and pilots second, is worth copying because the deliverable is an engineering judgment, not footage. Budget review time for the large image sets these flights generate, since that labor offsets some field savings.
Sources
Is your job like this one?
Describe the inspection you are facing. Amelia will give you an honest preliminary assessment, and if a drone is the wrong answer, she will say so.