Linemen can use the PD digital wood inspection drill to perform pole inspections. These drills inspect a diameter of 19.7 in., and if linemen have larger poles, they can inspect these by drilling at either side of the pole.
The WoodInspector software (on the drill) from ILM North America can be set to automatically tell the operator whether the pole is a pass, marginal or fail pole based on the predetermined values of what rot/cavity % is set (0-10% pass, 10-30% marginal, 30%+ fail).
The operator usually conducts three drillings, one at 90 deg to get the diameter of the pole for the software and two at 30 deg (perpendicular from each other) angled into the base of the pole drilling underground where there is a higher chance of rot. This information that is stored in the drill automatically uploads to a computer via Bluetooth when it is synced at the end of the day. This is then stored in PD Tools Pro (on a computer) where it is possible to view the graphs and export them all or export just the data in Excel to filter them by their status.
The general pole inspection kit includes the drill, one-year warranty, pole software, handle strap and case.
Advantages:
- Each pole inspection takes under five minutes.
- Linemen can inspect the pole prior to climbing to increase safety.
- All the records are in-house
- This procedure provides measurement/data results for your records
- Budget friendly by cutting out a third-party inspection company
More resources:
- Videos: http://www.iml-na.com/en/videos/
- Wood Inspection Drills: http://www.iml-na.com/en/wood-inspection-products/
- WoodInspector Software: http://www.iml-na.com/en/software/iml-woodinspector/
