Aerial NDT · Metro Vancouver
High-Temperature UT in Richmond, BC
Wall-thickness measurement on hot, in-service assets — 0 to 260 °C (32–500 °F) — without shutdown, by drone. Echo-to-echo and pulsed-echo modes with live A-scan. Flown by Transport Canada-certified RPAS pilots serving Richmond and the Metro Vancouver region — since 1999 as BC's leak detection and inspection specialists.
Free phone consult · No pressure · Mon–Sat 8am–6pm PT
Flying Richmond: local context
Directly under YVR control zones — flights here run on our standing airspace authorizations; big-box roofing and cold storage are staples.
Local asset profile: Slab-on-grade construction nearly everywhere, dyke-protected industrial parks, and extensive irrigation and drainage infrastructure.
Typical high-temperature ut work around Richmond
- Cold-storage roof thermography
- Logistics-park roof programs
- Refinery and process piping in service
- Power plant assets
- Hot tanks and exchanger shells
How the Richmond survey runs
- 1
Thermal scoping
Surface temperatures verified by radiometric camera before contact — probe selection and dwell strategy set accordingly.
- 2
High-temp contact
High-temperature delay-line probes and couplant rated for the surface take the readings; dwell time is managed automatically.
- 3
Mode selection
Echo-to-echo mode reads through coatings where present; pulsed-echo covers bare metal — A-scan verified live for every point.
- 4
Condition report
Readings mapped, trended, and delivered with the A-scan archive for the asset integrity file.
Richmond questions, answered
You can really measure a 250 °C surface without shutting it down?
Yes — that is the point of the service. High-temperature transducers with delay lines and rated couplant take contact readings on operating assets up to 260 °C. The drone removes the other half of the problem: nobody stands on hot steel at height to get the data.
What does avoiding a shutdown actually save?
Process interruptions are typically the largest line item in any inspection campaign — often dwarfing inspection fees entirely. On-stream thickness data also means integrity decisions happen on this year's numbers, not last turnaround's.
Does echo-to-echo mode work through paint?
Yes — echo-to-echo measures between back-wall echoes, subtracting the coating's contribution, so intact paint or thin coatings don't bias the wall reading. Thick or degraded coatings get flagged for our DFT or EMAT services instead.
Which industries use aerial high-temperature UT most?
Refining, petrochemical, power generation, pulp and paper, and district energy — anywhere assets run hot for months at a stretch and every offline hour is expensive. In BC that includes pulp mills, gas plants, and energy facilities across the Interior and North.
Can you legally fly drones for inspection in Richmond?
Yes — our pilots hold Transport Canada RPAS certification with advanced-operations capability, and Richmond operations run under whatever airspace authorizations the location requires. Directly under YVR control zones — flights here run on our standing airspace authorizations; big-box roofing and cold storage are staples. Flight planning, NOTAM checks, and authorizations are part of the service, not your problem.
How does Richmond weather affect scheduling?
Aerial inspection flies in defined weather windows — wind, precipitation, and (for thermal work) the right temperature differentials. Richmond sits in our standing Metro Vancouver coverage, so we schedule against the local forecast and typically land the survey within days of booking rather than weeks. Mon–Sat, 8am–6pm Pacific.
What does high-temperature ut cost in Richmond?
Province-wide pricing — no regional premium for Richmond. Single-asset thermal surveys typically start in the high hundreds; NDT campaigns and multi-asset programs are quoted by scope. The free phone consult (604-239-9934) produces a firm number in about five minutes.
Other aerial services in Richmond
Aerial Ultrasonic Testing (UT) in Richmond
Contact UT wall-thickness measurement delivered by drone — corrosion mapping on tanks, stacks, and structures at height without scaffolding, rope access, or shutdown.
View serviceAerial EMAT Inspection in Richmond
Electromagnetic acoustic transducer thickness testing by drone — no couplant, up to 4 mm lift-off, made for corroded, dirty, or coated steel where conventional UT struggles.
View serviceAerial Industrial Thermal Survey in Richmond
Heat-loss mapping on tanks and pipelines, refractory damage, stack hot spots, and district-energy networks — plant-scale radiometric surveys from the air.
View serviceAerial Pulsed Eddy Current (CUI) in Richmond
Corrosion-under-insulation screening through cladding — pulsed eddy current by drone reads wall thickness through up to 100 mm of insulation and weather jacket. No stripping.
View service← All about high-temperature ut·Aerial inspection hub·drone.leak.ca
Aerial High-Temperature UT near Richmond
Need high-temperature ut in Richmond?
Free phone consult — asset, access, airspace, and a firm quote in five minutes. No pressure.