Modernizing Utility Drone Programs: How IOUs Can Meet Compliance and Security Demands Without Slowing Operations
Published on October 27, 2026
Many investor-owned utilities (IOUs) already run a drone program. It may have started to prove a use case with a small team and a handful of aircraft, and it did that job well. What it wasn’t necessarily built for is working at scale across a large service territory with increasingly complex demands.
As IOU drone programs expand, compliance is becoming a program-level consideration, requiring IOUs to think beyond individual pilots and aircraft. Security scrutiny is growing, particularly around hardware and data. At the same time, IOUs need their programs to do more without slowing fieldwork.
As expectations increase, drone programs built around earlier needs can become harder to manage. What once worked well can introduce new compliance and security risks or add strain to day-to-day work.
Utility drone fleet modernization addresses that gap. But it isn’t simply about replacing older aircraft with newer ones. Modernization means evolving how drone programs operate to meet changing requirements.
Where Can Existing Drone Programs Introduce Risk?
Drone programs develop as IOUs add new use cases and respond to changing organizational needs. Decisions made at different stages may work well individually but introduce variation across an enterprise program, increasing risk in several key areas.
Utility Drone Compliance
Drone programs may not align with both current and future compliance needs. For IOUs, two important considerations are Remote ID requirements for utility drones and the FAA’s proposed Part 108 framework for routine Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flights.
Remote ID: Remote ID utility drone requirements already affect equipment decisions. Drones that are registered or required to be registered must comply with Remote ID, whether through built-in capabilities or another permitted method. Retrofitting an aircraft with a broadcast module is one option, but limits that aircraft to visual-line-of-sight flights.
Part 108: Part 108 would place greater responsibility for compliance on operating organizations across personnel, aircraft, and operations. The proposed framework highlights the importance of the standards and oversight built into an existing drone program, while final requirements and implementation timing remain subject to rulemaking.
A drone program that doesn’t evolve with these requirements may face compliance hurdles that limit its capabilities as regulations change.
Drone Security and Procurement
Security and procurement scrutiny can also complicate drone program expansion. Drone security requirements for utilities can affect whether a platform clears internal review, particularly when sensitive data is involved. Hardware origin can also affect which technology is available or approved for future purchases. The result may be longer approval cycles and procurement delays, which can slow program growth.
Data Handling: Because drones can collect sensitive data, IOUs need to consider how that data is stored and transferred in their security review. The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) specifically identifies secure data storage and transfer as essential to managing drone program cybersecurity risk.
Hardware Origin: Federal restrictions on drones from certain manufacturers, including those tied to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), can affect technology availability and procurement decisions, particularly when federal funding or requirements are involved. An IOU’s own security rules may also influence which platforms are approved for use.
For an existing drone program, these expectations can delay new hardware decisions or require previously approved technologies to undergo additional review. Both can slow program expansion.
Operational Inefficiencies
As drone programs mature, IOUs may add platforms to meet different needs. Over time, the fleet can become fragmented, with varying workflows across the program. Effective drone fleet management becomes harder as IOUs manage that variation across platforms.
Fragmentation can make training more complex and maintenance more time-consuming when parts and expertise don’t carry over between platforms. Platform differences also make it more difficult to standardize data capture and use.
What Does Drone Program Modernization Actually Mean?
Modernizing a drone program is bigger than buying new equipment. For IOUs considering how to modernize a drone fleet, the answer goes beyond the aircraft themselves. It means standardizing hardware while strengthening compliance, security, and data workflows so the program can serve more teams and use cases.
Standardized, Scalable Program Architecture: Managing fewer platforms reduces variation, while common standards make training, maintenance, and deployment easier across the program.
Compliance-Ready Systems: Built-in Remote ID supports current Remote ID requirements, while planning for the FAA’s direction on BVLOS can better prepare the program to transition to compliant drone systems and add new capabilities over time. BVLOS operations remain subject to applicable FAA approvals.
Secure-by-Design Platforms: Technology and data-handling practices that meet security requirements from the start can help avoid delays during approval and procurement.
Integrated Data and Workflow:Connecting capture and processing with the systems where data is ultimately used reduces manual handoffs and helps turn inspection data into actionable information faster.
With these changes, new regions and teams can start from established practices rather than creating their own. Security and compliance become part of the program’s foundation instead of being addressed as issues arise. As BVLOS and automation become more accessible, the program is also better prepared to incorporate those capabilities.
The day-to-day outcome is just as important: less downtime, more consistent data, and more efficient inspections.
What Makes Modernization Challenging for IOUs?
Even when the case for modernization is clear, IOUs have to consider what it could mean for their operations. Modernization can disrupt the equipment and workflows field teams rely on, potentially affecting inspections, reliability, and service commitments.
Experienced pilots also have deep knowledge around the platforms they use every day, including:
Familiarity with aircraft performance and battery endurance
Mission-specific flight and capture techniques
Established workflows for collecting consistent inspection data
When a platform changes, experience doesn’t transfer automatically. Without a transition plan, IOUs can face more downtime or inconsistent output as teams adjust to new equipment.
The transition itself also involves coordination. Capture methods may need recalibration, training updates, and data standards aligned with the teams that use inspection results. Treating that work as part of modernization from the beginning helps protect continuity as new technology is introduced.
How Can IOUs Modernize Drone Programs Without Disrupting Field Operations?
Modernization doesn’t need to be all or nothing. A phased strategy allows IOUs to introduce new technology and processes while giving teams time to adapt without interrupting critical work.
1. Phase the fleet transition.
Introduce new platforms incrementally instead of replacing the fleet all at once. When appropriate, run existing and new systems in parallel to give teams time to get comfortable while keeping up with inspections.
2. Prove the approach before scaling.
Start with a defined use case where the new technology can demonstrate value, then apply what the team learns as it adds missions or regions. Measured progression is how utilities scale drone operations without pushing program-wide change at once.
3. Design training and SOPs around real-world use.
Platform transitions take more than initial training. Pilots need opportunities to build proficiency in the missions they actually perform, supported by documented procedures that give teams a repeatable process.
4. Consolidate vendors and platforms where it makes sense.
Reducing unnecessary variation can simplify fleet management and ongoing support, making it easier to apply common standards across the program.
5. Integrate with existing data workflows.
New technology should connect with the processes IOUs already use to manage inspection data and make informed decisions. Maintaining that continuity reduces manual work and avoids a separate workflow around the new platform.
Together, these steps give IOUs the structure for a larger program without forcing change all at once.
Where Should Your Drone Program Go Next?
For utilities modernizing drone programs, success means having a program that can grow with changing needs. Building in compliance and security while reducing variation across teams and workflows can help manage risk as the program expands.
Modernization is ultimately about operational readiness as much as innovation. The goal is to strengthen the program while minimizing disruption to the field work teams that depend on it today.
Drawing on Gresco’s utility industry experience since 1960, Gresco UAS helps utilities evaluate equipment and plan practical fleet transitions. Our technical experts can help transition drone systems through a phased approach based on your organization’s:
Existing fleet technology
Operational, compliance, and security requirements
Program goals
We also offer equipment demonstrations, training, and lifecycle support to help teams prepare for new platforms and get more value from existing equipment.
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