Company Uses Artificial Intelligence to Inspect Sewer Pipes

A company is using artificial intelligence to inspect sewer systems in a more efficient way — and it could mean real savings for utility customers across the country. SewerAI shared details with WISH-TV Indianapolis I-Team 8 about how their technology is helping utility companies more quickly identify when pipes need to be repaired or replaced.

Robots in the Pipes

Every day, crews across the United States head into the field to inspect underground infrastructure. The process involves sending robots equipped with cameras into sewer and stormwater pipes to capture video footage of their condition.

"Every day throughout our country operators are going out into the field and we're sending robots into sewer pipes, storm water pipes to collect video and inspect the condition of those pipes," said Eric Sullivan, a spokesperson for SewerAI.

Those inspection runs generate hours and hours of video footage. Traditionally, a human operator has to watch all of it — a time-consuming and labor-intensive process. On top of that, operators are required to manually document everything they observe.

"Operators have to manually type in every single thing they see in the sewer pipe as they're driving a robot," Sullivan explained.

How AI Changes the Equation

SewerAI's platform automates the most tedious part of the inspection process. Using CCTV (closed-circuit television) inspection video, the AI system automatically detects and logs the conditions inside the pipes — eliminating the need for operators to manually catalog every defect or anomaly they observe.

The result is a dramatically shorter turnaround time for identifying problems in the sewer system, and a workforce that can operate more effectively regardless of individual experience level.

"In the field, the operators can collect data sometimes twice as fast, but also enable the workforce to be effective without a level of expertise that was really hard to get and very expensive," Sullivan said.

Better Data, Lower Costs

By offloading the video review work to AI, utility teams can redirect their attention to what matters most: fixing the problems the AI finds. The technology doesn't just speed things up — it also improves the quality and consistency of the data that engineers rely on to make critical infrastructure decisions.

"We're making the cost of inspection, we're lowering it, but making the data itself that these engineers need to make critical decisions more accurate and more consistent," Sullivan told I-Team 8.

For utility customers, that combination of lower inspection costs and more accurate data has the potential to translate into real savings on their bills — while also helping ensure that aging underground infrastructure gets the attention it needs before small problems become expensive emergencies.

This story was originally reported by Kody Fisher for WISH-TV Indianapolis I-Team 8. Read the original article at wishtv.com.