The Rise of Drones
Posted on 21st July 2021 at 17:26
While dozens of industries are using drones, the fastest growing commercial adopter of drones is the construction industry. Drone use on job sites has skyrocketed in this year by 239% , leaving the construction industry as the leading sector for drones.
The use of drones throughout a construction project provides an unparalleled record of all activities; cuts planning and survey costs; increases efficiency and accuracy, and eliminates disputes over the status of a project at a given point in time. The presence of drones in construction means significant changes and the impact of drones across the industry can already be seen on a number of projects.
Why Use Drones In Construction?
Drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), have numerous applications within construction, including:
Site Surveys:
These are essential for monitoring the progression and quality of construction projects. Drones can be operated remotely, recording video and capturing images from a safe distance. Equipped with a surveying specific drone, the surveyor can fly a drone over a stretch of land, collect images and use photogrammetry software to generate 2D/3D structural models, volumetric measurements, and topographical maps. Drones eliminate much of the human error involved in the process and have the ability to capture necessary data in much less time than traditional methods would take.
Marketing:
Drones can capture images from a truly unique perspective, providing invaluable marketing material for construction companies.
Safety Checks and Inspections: The workplace health and safety aspect of drone use is tremendous, and drones are increasingly being used to complete safety checks and inspections remotely. With a bird’s eye view, you can spot safety issues and take remedial action rapidly. Unlike static cameras, drones can survey a site from multiple angles and move within a building to gather additional data.
Communication and Collaberation:
Drones play a vital role in communication. Stakeholders can now view a site in real-time, thousands of miles away from the location. When making important multi-stakeholder decisions, video access through drones provides enhanced communication without any team member needing to set foot on the construction site. It also means that there can be better collaboration, planning and foreseeing any future issues that may arise.
On-site Security: The use of drones helps to increase the security on site helping to reduce the number of thefts of vandalism that may occur.
Transportation and Inspection:
The use of drones in job site inspections also means a drastic increase in worksite safety by eliminating numerous dangers and safety hazards. Using drones to transport goods aerially allows companies to execute difficult inspections and keep track of everything that enters and leaves the job site. It saves money and time and keeps the site secure.
How Might Drones Be Used Across The Project Lifecycles?
Bidding and Investigations
Aerial surveys and data collation can quickly create models that allow teams to better understand feasibility, and whether design solutions are feasible. These are also useful in client briefings and providing an early idea of what finished projects will look like.
Design
Design can be informed by real data of on site conditions. Questions or doubts can easily be investigated and survey data or further investigations can easily be completed to make researched and live data decisions.
On-site Construction
The use of a drone becomes invaluable once construction gets underway - helping to track progress, keep tabs on materials, improving visibility and keeping sites safe, inspections and problem solving issues that may arise across the site. Up to date live data provides a useful audit trail helping to increase productivity and mitigate problems.
Handover and Maintenance
Marketing collateral can make use of finished models, photos and videos but such data also has a more practical role for facilities management providing insight into as-built conditions.
'The construction industry is evolving at a rapid rate, and with all the innovations and changes to traditional methods comes the need for greater efficiency'
Over the past few years, drone usage has revolutionised and quite literally elevated the industry to a whole new level. With drone technology rapidly improving, it is an exciting time for the construction industry and the use of drones is becoming more widespread as time progresses.
Connect Drone Services
When we began researching about drones and the impact it has had on the Construction industry. We asked Paul Robertson from Connect Drone Service for an overview, research and his views. His company was extremely helpful and gave us lots of information and detail. If you are interested in learning more about how drones can work for your business why not ask Paul I'm sure he will be more then willing to help.
Tagged as: business, drones, drones construction, efficiency, innovation, onsite construction, project lifecycle, trends in construction
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