West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Canada, known as the largest shopping complex in North America, recently utilized a Flyability Elios drone during an amusement park inspection. This cutting-edge technology was employed to assess the infrastructure of the World Waterpark and the Galaxyland amusement park, showcasing significant improvements in speed, safety, and cost-efficiency.

 

Key Benefits At A Glance

West Edmonton Mall personnel, along with representatives from INTECH NDE (Flyability’s reseller and flight training partner) and Applus (the contracted inspection partner for the mall), utilized the Elios drone to conduct inspections of the infrastructure at the World Waterpark and the Mindbender roller coaster. Thanks to the Elios’ unique ability to navigate confined spaces, teams were able to examine the infrastructure supporting the park’s attractions more thoroughly than ever before, reducing inspection times from 10-20 hours to just 1-2 hours, while slashing costs by more than 80%.

Staff at West Edmonton Mall discovered that the Elios not only accelerated the inspection process but also enabled them to spot details they had previously missed. Even with the aid of scaffolding, certain sections of the infrastructure in both the World Waterpark and Galaxyland were either difficult or impossible to inspect manually. However, with the Elios, operators were able to explore tight, elevated spaces and scrutinize every corner meticulously. The drone provided unprecedented access to all parts of the area, significantly speeding up the entire inspection process.

An Amusement Park Inspection With The Elios Drone

Galaxyland and World Waterpark attract thousands of visitors daily, making safety a top priority for the management teams overseeing both venues. Regular inspections of the infrastructure are essential to identify maintenance needs and prevent accidents. However, inspecting roller coasters and waterpark rides presents numerous challenges, particularly concerning time, expense, and accessibility.

For example, inspecting a tall section of a ride—say, 15 meters (49 feet) high—or the structure supporting it requires renting and setting up scaffolding, followed by an inspector climbing the scaffolding. These requirements for labor and equipment mean that inspections are typically only done when mandated by regulations rather than more frequently, which could help catch issues earlier. Additionally, dismantling and rebuilding scaffolding between inspections is time-consuming and costly.

“There are so many areas in these two parks that we simply cannot physically reach for inspection purposes. To even check these locations, we have to build scaffolding or send personnel on ropes, and this is just for preliminary assessments—to determine if there’s even a problem. It’s very challenging when we want quick answers and immediate insights into the condition of our facilities.”

- Brian Mykitiuk, Director of Engineering & Maintenance at West Edmonton Mall

Besides being slow, costly, and risky, manual inspections are also limited in their scope. Even with scaffolding, ropes, and booms, there are still parts of both the World Waterpark and Galaxyland that are inaccessible due to height or confinement.

A New Era For Amusement Park Inspections

A certified drone pilot from INTECH NDE conducted a visual inspection of key components of the water rides at the World Waterpark and the Mindbender roller coaster in Galaxyland using the Elios drone. West Edmonton Mall staff, the INTECH NDE pilot, and a representative from Applus observed the live feed from the drone to identify areas requiring maintenance.

Outcomes Of An Amusement Park Inspection With The Elios

The Elios enabled inspections of critical assets in both the World Waterpark and Galaxyland to be completed in roughly 10% of the time required for a manual inspection.

Employing the Elios was also significantly cheaper than a manual approach. Using the Elios reduced costs from approximately $68K USD to $11K USD, yielding savings of $57K USD, or 84% of the initial cost.

In addition to cutting costs and boosting efficiency, the Elios eliminated the need for anyone to climb scaffolding for a manual inspection, thereby reducing potential risks to inspection personnel.