TL;DR: Drone inspection at a mine is a record before it is an analysis: dated, located imagery of an asset that a maintenance planner can open, mark up and report on. Thermal, LiDAR and automated defect detection are the advanced layer, and tools differ most there. Choose on how inspections are organized, shared and reported, then on sensors.
Key takeaways
- Keeping people away from hazards matters. According to Mine Safety and Health Administration data, US mining recorded 33 fatalities in 2025, 19 of them at construction-materials sites.
- Inspection data has to reach maintenance systems. According to Zeitview, its findings can connect to GIS, enterprise asset management and ERP systems.
- AI detection needs a person to check it. According to the help center of Birdi (birdi.io), AI detections are built to support expert review rather than replace it.
- Annotations are the working output. According to Pix4D, PIX4Dinspect annotations can be exported to CAD and GIS.
- Sensors decide what you can find. Optical imagery shows visible damage, while thermal finds heat, and LiDAR measures geometry.
What does a drone inspection program at a mine need?
A drone inspection program at a mine needs five things: capture of the asset from consistent angles, a location for every image, annotations that mark each finding, a report a maintenance planner can act on, and a history to compare against next time. Conveyors, crushers, stockpile reclaim, tailings pipelines and structures all fit this pattern.
The value is in the repetition. One inspection shows the asset's condition today. A series of inspections, organized by asset and date, shows whether a defect is growing. So software that stores inspections by site and date, and lets people compare them, is more useful than software that only makes a nice report once.
Who uses the inspection record
Maintenance planners use it to schedule work. Engineers use it to assess defects. Safety teams use it to keep people away from hazards. Contractors use it to quote. So access for people outside the inspection team matters. For background, see our article on geospatial inspection workflows.
How did we choose and compare the tools?
We chose tools that mines and processing plants use for drone inspection, and compared them on imagery types, defect detection, annotation and reporting, data types in one view, access for people outside the paid team, and pricing. Birdi is listed first, and the order is not a ranking. Facts were checked on October 7, 2026.
Several of these tools are built mainly for energy and utilities. We include them because their inspection workflows suit mine plant, and we say where a tool's focus is elsewhere. Thermal and LiDAR processing is a paid or bespoke service on several platforms, including Birdi.
The best drone inspection software for mine sites in 2026
The drone inspection tools compared here for mine sites are Birdi, DroneDeploy, PIX4Dinspect, Zeitview and Esri Site Scan for ArcGIS. Three are platforms you run yourself, one combines a service with software, and one sits inside ArcGIS. Each entry carries the same fields, checked on October 7, 2026.
1. Birdi
Best for: Mine and plant teams that want inspection photos, drone maps and annotations in one dated site record that maintenance and contractors can open.
Typical customer size / segment: Mid-sized mining and quarry teams of roughly 30 to 500 staff.
Key strengths:
- Inspection photos and video sit in the site map, located where they were taken, with comments and tags.
- Media AI Detect labels objects in photos for a person to check.
- Media and annotation reports export as PDFs for maintenance planning.
Imagery types: Photos, video, maps and 360 photos as standard. Thermal and LiDAR are Ultimate features, and raw sensor processing is a bespoke service.
Access for people outside the paid team: Guests view and download without using a paid seat.
Data types in one view: Orthomosaics, point clouds, inspection photos, video, 360 photos and PDFs.
Watch-outs: Not for a GIS analyst who needs a full desktop GIS. It also does not suit anyone who wants existing aerial imagery supplied.
Pricing: Growth is $287 USD a month, billed annually. Ultimate is priced by quote (checked October 7, 2026).
DJI fleets can sync media straight into Birdi from DJI FlightHub 2, so inspection flights land in the right workspace without manual uploads.
2. DroneDeploy
Best for: Organizations that want inspections inside a broad drone platform, including docked drones and thermal.
Typical customer size / segment: Individual pilots through to enterprises.
Key strengths:
- Inspection reports from photos, panoramas and maps.
- Radiometric thermal on its advanced plans.
- Automated capture, including docked drones.
Imagery types: Photos, video, panoramas, maps and radiometric thermal.
Access for people outside the paid team: View-only links; tools need a paid account.
Data types in one view: Orthomosaics, 3D models, panoramas, video and thermal.
Watch-outs: Radiometric thermal sits on higher plans, and team plans are by quote.
Pricing: Flight & Analysis is $4,188 USD billed annually for one pilot (checked October 7, 2026).
3. PIX4Dinspect
Best for: Teams that want measured, annotated 3D models of structures and export findings to CAD and GIS.
Typical customer size / segment: Inspection teams working on structures and industrial assets.
Key strengths:
- Orthomosaics, 3D meshes, point clouds and elevation models from inspection flights.
- Measure, annotate and share findings.
- Export annotations to CAD and GIS.
Imagery types: Photos processed into maps and 3D models.
Access for people outside the paid team: Sharing from the platform.
Data types in one view: Maps, meshes, point clouds and annotations.
Watch-outs: Its focus is structures such as towers, so mine plant workflows may need adapting.
Pricing: Contact for pricing.
4. Zeitview
Best for: Operators who want inspection done as a service, with AI-prioritized findings delivered into their asset systems.
Typical customer size / segment: Energy and critical infrastructure operators.
Key strengths:
- Certified pilots capture by drone, fixed-wing aircraft or robotic crawler, or you bring your own data.
- Optical, thermal, LiDAR and methane sensors, geotagged to the component.
- Findings delivered into GIS, enterprise asset management and ERP systems.
Imagery types: Optical, thermal, LiDAR and methane.
Access for people outside the paid team: Through its platform and reports.
Data types in one view: Inspection imagery and prioritized findings.
Watch-outs: Its focus is energy and utilities, so check references at a mine or plant.
Pricing: Contact for pricing.
5. Esri Site Scan for ArcGIS
Best for: Mines already standardized on ArcGIS that want inspection capture and processing inside it.
Typical customer size / segment: Enterprises with an ArcGIS deployment.
Key strengths:
- Flight planning and autonomous capture.
- Cloud drone processing.
- Results alongside other ArcGIS data.
Imagery types: Drone photos and maps.
Access for people outside the paid team: Through ArcGIS sharing.
Data types in one view: Drone outputs plus ArcGIS layers.
Watch-outs: It suits organizations with GIS staff and an ArcGIS deployment.
Pricing: Contact for pricing.
What do thermal and LiDAR add to mine inspections?
Thermal imaging finds heat: overheating conveyor idlers, motors, bearings and electrical connections, often before they fail. LiDAR measures geometry precisely, even through some vegetation, which suits structural deformation and volumes. Both add cost and skill. Optical inspection, with good photos and annotations, covers most visible defects.
When to add each sensor
- Optical: visible damage, corrosion, spillage, wear and housekeeping. The baseline for every program.
- Thermal: electrical and mechanical heat faults on conveyors, motors and switchrooms.
- LiDAR: precise geometry of structures, chutes and liners, and terrain under vegetation.
For how thermal, LiDAR and photogrammetry differ, see our explainer on LiDAR and photogrammetry.
How do you report drone inspection findings?
Report each finding with its location, a photo, a severity, and a recommended action, grouped by asset so a maintenance planner can schedule it. Keep the report tied to the inspection date and the images, so the next inspection can be compared. Export to the formats the maintenance system uses, whether PDF, CSV or a direct integration.
Consistency matters most. Use the same asset names, the same severity scale and the same capture angles each time, so defects can be tracked between inspections. For keeping the wider site record together, see our list of geospatial software for mining.
Frequently asked questions
What can drones inspect at a mine site?
Drones can inspect conveyors, crushers, screens, stockpile reclaim, structures, roofs, tailings pipelines and embankments, haul roads and pit walls. They capture close, dated imagery without people at heights or near moving plant. Thermal sensors add heat faults, and LiDAR adds precise geometry, where the program needs them.
Can drones inspect conveyors?
Yes. Drones can fly along conveyors to capture belt condition, idlers, structures and spillage, and thermal cameras can find overheating idlers and bearings. Inspections should follow the site's isolation and safety rules, and findings should be tied to the conveyor's asset records so maintenance can act.
What is thermal drone inspection used for?
Thermal drone inspection finds temperature differences that point to faults, such as overheating bearings, idlers, motors and electrical connections, or leaks in pipelines and tanks. It works best when conditions give clear temperature contrast, and a trained person should interpret the results.
How do you report drone inspection findings?
Record each finding with its location, a photo, a severity and a recommended action, grouped by asset. Keep the report tied to the inspection date and images, and use the same asset names and severity scale every time. Export to the format your maintenance system uses.
Can AI find defects in inspection imagery?
AI can flag likely defects, such as corrosion, cracks or missing parts, and label objects, which speeds up review. However, the results still need a person to check them. Birdi's own documentation, for example, says AI detections are built to support expert review rather than replace it.
About the author
This guide was written by the Birdi team. Birdi (birdi.io) is a geospatial AI workspace that mining, quarry and construction teams use to share drone surveys, inspection imagery and site data in one map. We checked every product fact against each vendor's own website or help center on October 7, 2026.
Related reading
- Drone mapping and inspections: what drones add to inspection work.
- Geospatial software for mining: the wider set of tools for mine teams.
- Birdi for mining: how mine teams use one shared site record.
Sources
Independent
- North American Mining Magazine. "MSHA reported 33 fatalities in 2025." January 9, 2026, reporting Mine Safety and Health Administration data. https://northamericanmining.com/index.php/2026/01/09/msha-reported-33-fatalities-in-2025/
Vendor documentation (read October 7, 2026)
- Birdi Help Center. "How to upload media to your Birdi 2.0 map," "How to use media view in Birdi 2.0" and "How to add comments and tags on your media in Birdi 2.0." https://help.birdi.io/en/articles/10416302
- Birdi Help Center. "How to use Birdi's Media AI Detect tool" and "Understanding AI detection results." https://help.birdi.io/en/articles/12032695
- Birdi Help Center. "How to create a PDF report for your media in Birdi Map 2.0" and "How to create an annotation report in Birdi." https://help.birdi.io/en/articles/12421777
- Birdi Help Center. "How to connect DJI FlightHub 2 to Birdi." https://help.birdi.io/en/articles/15884230
- Birdi. "Pricing" and homepage FAQ. https://www.birdi.io/pricing
- DroneDeploy. "Pricing." https://www.dronedeploy.com/pricing
- Pix4D. "PIX4Dinspect." https://www.pix4d.com/product/pix4dinspect/
- Zeitview. https://www.zeitview.com/
- Esri. "Site Scan for ArcGIS." https://www.esri.com/en-us/arcgis/products/site-scan-for-arcgis/overview
