The New Bullards Bar Dam provides flood control, 340 megawatts of clean energy, and a reliable supply of water for residents and the ecosystem. Over 50 years after its construction, extreme weather events have become more frequent and intense, increasing the risk to its structural integrity. To improve inspections and obtain the level of detail that dam operator Yuba Water Agency needed, they combined drone surveys and automated sensors with Bentley applications.

They combined IoT, 3D reality modeling, and artificial intelligence, enabling survey teams to monitor the dam remotely, automatically detect tiny but growing cracks, and establish real-time, automated monitoring of the dam’s structural integrity. The new automated system provides 1,000 times more data monitoring points than the previous method, improving data accuracy by 50% and risk assessment by 100%. As a result, Yuba Water can immediately assess the dam during extreme weather events and after earthquakes to prevent disasters. Yuba Water now has renewed confidence that New Bullards Bar Dam will remain safer and more resilient in the face of climate change.