Right next to the Gisborne Airport, a solar facility is quietly doing its job — converting sunshine into clean energy. But like any large-scale solar operation, it relies on regular monitoring to keep things running efficiently. That’s where Onsite came in.

Our team was engaged to carry out a UAV-based thermal imaging survey across the entire solar array. Using our UAV, fitted with thermal sensors, we captured detailed imagery designed to detect temperature anomalies — early warning signs of potential faults like hotspots, damaged cells, or underperforming modules. What sets this method apart is its ability to pinpoint exactly where something’s off — without shutting down the site or putting anyone at risk.

The output from the survey provided a full map of the solar facility, clearly showing the location of each anomaly, as well as the measured temperature of the fault and the baseline temperature of unaffected panels nearby.

This thermal data supports the facility’s operations team in fault diagnosis, repair planning, and ongoing performance optimisation — helping to keep energy output high and downtime low. At Onsite, we reckon that when it comes to solar, spotting a problem early is half the solution. And with the right tech in the air — like our Matrice 350 — we’re helping clients do just that.