Dam Wall & Spillway Inspection

Dam safety runs on condition evidence. Wall integrity, spillway condition and embankment movement all depend on regular, repeatable inspection.

Dam and spillway inspection with an automated drone lets operators capture that evidence far more often, without putting crews on the wall or at height for every survey.

Traditional inspection programs struggle to keep pace. They are slow, compliance-burdened and unsafe for foot access, so cadence is limited by inspection capacity.

What is Dam Wall & Spillway Inspection?

Dam wall and spillway inspection is the use of automated drone systems, remote operations technology and automated data workflows to perform routine photogrammetric and visual inspection across dam infrastructure.

Rather than operating drones manually, missions are pre-planned and automatically executed on a schedule.

For example:

• Photogrammetric surveys of the dam wall can run on a fixed cadence.
• Spillways can be inspected without working at height.
• Embankments can be monitored for movement and erosion.
• Impoundments can be scanned for volumetric change.
• Catchments and reservoirs can be surveyed for compliance.

Captured data is automatically transferred into the compliance and asset-management systems operators already use, building a defensible dam-safety record.

Common Dam Wall & Spillway Inspection Workflows

Dam Wall and Spillway Survey

Photogrammetric capture of the wall and spillway detects cracking, movement and deterioration without foot access.

Embankment Monitoring

Regular capture tracks embankment condition, erosion and movement over time.

Impoundment Volumetrics

Volumetric scans of ash and tailings impoundments support capacity and compliance management.

Catchment and Reservoir Survey

Broader catchment and reservoir capture supports water and environmental management.

Compliance Evidence Capture

Repeatable surveys build the evidence trail required for dam-safety reporting.

These workflows can be scheduled daily, weekly, or on-demand.

The Role of BVLOS

Most major dams are remote and extend beyond what a pilot can survey within visual line of sight (VLOS).

Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations allow drones to survey dam infrastructure and portfolios while maintaining compliance and safety.

BVLOS capability enables:

• Coverage of remote, fenced sites
• Greater survey efficiency
• Reduced personnel exposure
• Increased survey frequency
• Centralised management of a dam portfolio

For water utilities and asset owners, BVLOS is a key enabler of automated dam inspection.

How Dam Wall & Spillway Inspection Is Delivered

Effective dam inspection requires more than a drone. It combines automated flight hardware, remote operations, governance controls and automated data delivery into a repeatable workflow.

At Sphere, dam wall and spillway inspection programs combine:

• HubT for permanent deployments at major dam infrastructure for daily and weekly surveys.
• HubX for portable or relocatable deployments supporting itinerant programs across smaller dams and short-term campaigns.
• The Curo software suite to govern, run and deliver every flight: CuroRPA for compliance and governance, CuroROC for remote operations, and CuroInsights for data delivery.

Together, these technologies help operators scale dam survey beyond occasional crewed inspections.

Benefits of Dam Wall & Spillway Inspection

Operators adopting automated dam inspection can achieve benefits across safety, compliance and cost.

1. Higher Compliance Cadence: Survey more often without growing the workforce.
2. Improved Safety: Remove foot traffic from embankments and spillways.
3. Defensible Evidence: Maintain photogrammetric records for regulators and dam-safety reviews.
4. Reduced Inspection Workload: Cut survey time from tens of hours to a fraction.
5. Consistent Data: Reduce variability between surveys and operators.
6. Scalable Operations: Manage a dam portfolio through a centralised operating model.

Assess Your Dam Portfolio's Automation Potential

Every dam portfolio is different. The right mix of HubT and HubX depends on your asset count, your compliance cadence, and how survey evidence feeds your dam-safety record.

A Sphere team member can assess your portfolio, identify the workflows worth automating first, and model autonomous survey against your current manual inspection costs.

Book a dam-portfolio assessment to see how automated inspection fits your operation.