Alstom is a company located in Switzerland that develops autonomous inspection robots. These robots are used in dangerous and/or difficult situations in power plants and (petro) chemical facilities. The autonomous robots are designed to perform service and maintenance tasks and thus taking work out of human hands. This will not only result in decreasing costs, by reducing downtime for maintenance, but also improved workplace safety and work with pinpoint precision.
The inspections the robot can be rechecked at any time and the data can be verified with the data of previous routes to see if any changes have occurred. The robots itself are designed to be able to move on a large number of different surfaces and structures, such as pipelines. It can then perform numerous tests, as well as the inspection of an area, cleaning a surface or picking up something. These robots are also very well suited to work in small spaces like the insides of pipelines, where they can carry out measurements and other tasks.
The strategy of AIR (Alstom Inspection Robotics) is to develop custom-made robots that suit all the client’s special needs. These robots can be adjusted or adapted, if needed. Alstom works closely together with its partner, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, to keep renewing and coming up with other products and services.
