Industry Perspectives on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Utilization for Dam Inspection and Maintenance

Effective inspection and maintenance of dams are essential for infrastructure longevity, water resource management, and public safety. Historically, dam maintenance relied heavily on visual inspections, which were limited in scope and accuracy, especially in detecting internal structural issues such as seepage and foundational degradation. This paper presents an industry-oriented evaluation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) as a transformative tool in modern dam inspection and maintenance. The study explores UAVs' capacity to enhance efficiency, safety, and precision in identifying structural anomalies, erosion, and environmental degradation. Survey data collected from contractors in the Saudi water sector provides insight into current adoption levels, operational challenges, and perceived benefits. Return on investment (ROI) and Strength, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis applied to evaluate and validate UAVs' potential to modernize dam maintenance practices, while highlighting technical, financial, and regulatory constraints. This research underscores UAVs' scalable utility and calls for further industry engagement to overcome adoption barriers and unlock their full potential in dam maintenance.