JSR, a major chemical manufacturing industry, uses drones to check plant equipment.We asked Masataka Masutani, Director of JSR Production Technology, about the benefits of introducing drones in the chemical industry and future issues.
—JSRはプラントの設備点検にドローンを導入していますが、そのきっかけは何だったのでしょう？"We want to strengthen competitiveness by introducing robot technology to the IoT of factories, as shown by Chairman Morinobu Koshiba, Chairman of the management, for this purpose.Under the policy of "Kotogen, we started a demonstration experiment in 2016. At that time, drones were not as widespread at that time, so we have been fumbling on selecting models and securing a pilot."
—ドローン以外に活用している技術はあるのですか？"I am working on robots and automatic driving cameras, but there are some fields that are working and struggling. Dorones are taking time, but I think they are steadily moving forward."
"We will entrust the inspection that humans have been performing to the drone for aging, such as piping and equipment corrosion. As a result, the burden of inspection work can be expected to be significantly reduced, and it is necessary to form a scaffold.Because there is no time and cost, it will be possible to check places that humans cannot easily approach, and the maintenance period of stopping the plant for a long time can be shorter, so you can prevent the loss of production opportunities.Even if it is necessary to make a footholded repair, there are many benefits, such as checking the status status, arranging parts, and making appropriate repair plans without redoing. "
—桝谷さんご自身が、ドローンの有能ぶりを実感したのはどんな点ですか？"It will be clearer of the shooting image. If the visual distance is far away at a high position, it will be difficult to check the equipment status, but the image is very clear and easy to see. There are various other tools besides drones., Given the usability at high places, the drone is quite effective. "
—では、課題があれば教えてください。"Is it not easy to replace equipment, such as high -performance cameras and infrared rays? There are also issues that it is difficult to maneuver in places with poor visibility, but it will be improved with drone innovation in the future."
"The possibility of a drone falls is not zero.I am doing assessment. I always have to assume the worst case, but if I take too much safety measures, the work efficiency may be reduced. So the balance between safety and efficiency is important."
—ドローンの飛行区域はどのように決めるのですか？"The chemical factory handles a large amount of dangerous goods and high -pressure gas, so" explosion -proof "is required. We business employees set an explosion -proof area.We set a flying area in accordance with the guidelines related to the detailed usage and elaborate setting methods in the dangerous area. Therefore, there are places where it is not possible to fly, that is, you can not shoot. "
—点検用途の他に、ドローンの運用を考えている分野はありますか？"I would like to focus on inspection at the moment and improve the accuracy of inspection. It is important to be inspected during driving, emergency inspection in the event of a disaster, or that chemical factories cannot overlook.It is a business. If humans do more and more, if they are replaced more and more, the efficiency of operations will be improved and competitive will lead to strengthening. "
—ドローンの活用について、他社から問い合わせが来ることがありますか?"We have an exchange meeting between petrochemical manufacturers. There are many common problems, but the biggest challenge is how far the security is possible.Sometimes we talk from a business management perspective, such as when doing. "
—ドローンの今後の可能性を教えてください。"At present, we can only fly for about 15 minutes, so we still need human support, and now we can only complement human beings.If time increases, more compact, and more operability, what you can do with drones will expand more and more. We are "fun for the future" for chemical manufacturers.