29 September 2021 – Elop Technology has entered into an agreement with ICM (International Climbing Machines) that secures Elop the rights to combine its ultrasound scanner for inspection of concrete infrastructure with ICM’s suction-held climbing robots.
“ICM’s patented, suction-held and remote-controlled robots has radically changed how elevated height work is performed. By combining Elop’s ultrasound scanner with ICM’s market leading robots, we will be able to provide an unrivalled inspection and monitoring technology to inspection companies and owners of concrete infrastructure,” says Øivind Horpestad, executive chairman of Elop.
Elop Technology’s rolling ultrasound scanner will use an ICM climbing robot designed for concrete structures, to create the “InsightCrawler” – a tool that will be able to climb vertically on concrete infrastructure such as buildings, dams, cooling towers and bridges to provide an efficient mapping of its internal condition.
By coupling this unique data with Elop’s cloud-based system, infrastructure owners can see interior cracks, air pockets, voids and delamination, allowing them to identify issues that must be addressed at an early stage.
ICM is a US-based company that develops, manufactures and sells climbing robots. Its current climbing robots climb walls, tanks, ships, buildings, dams, towers, piping; virtually any surface.
“We have a history of developing and delivering products that challenge conventional methods of performing work on elevated heights, including robots for challenges such as decontamination, coating removal and inspection. By combining our climbing machine technology with Elop technology’s ultrasound scanner, we are upping the inspection game for concrete infrastructure dramatically. We look forward to collaborating with Elop,” says Samuel Maggio, president of ICM.
The rolling Elop Insight ultrasound scanner helps to identify issues that owners of concrete infrastructure must address. It is designed to quickly inspect and assess large surface areas. The live 3D visualization of the concrete structure on the scanner screen, provides a real-time interpretation of the concrete’s internal state, including elements and defects such as cracks, air pockets, voids, delamination, and rebars.
DEKRA Visatec GmbH, part of DEKRA, the world’s largest unlisted expert organisation in the TIC (testing, inspection, certification) industry, entered into a LOI with Elop in June 2021. Dekra Visatech will be a partner in the development of the interface connecting the two technologies. DEKRA Visatech will together with ELOP and ICM offer a new, unique and effective way of doing ultrasound inspection on concrete constructions.
