8 Ways Drones are Changing The Construction Industry

Drone technology has taken off in recent years. The rapid development of features and improvements in drone flight ability, data capabilities, and camera technology have increased the use of commercial drone applications. As the use of UAVs increases, more and more industries are discovering ways that their work can benefit from the implementation.

The construction industry is leading commercial drone utilization, surging a whopping 239% since 2018. The industry continues to expand and drones are a large part of that expansion. From better visibility, improvements in safety, and increases in overall efficiencies of construction, the impact of drone technology on construction and engineering companies are many.

Benefits of Using Drones in Construction and Engineering

Construction jobs are expensive and time-consuming. As the population grows, the need for more buildings and structures increases. Because of that, the construction and engineering industry has taken off. Technology plays a key role in the efficiency boost that the industry has seen. Drones, in particular, have made a huge impact on the industry.

Drones have allowed construction companies to improve communication and collaboration across their workforce by as much as 65%.

While the list of benefits can be extensive, here is our list of major benefits Drones deliver to construction and engineering companies:

Drones Greatly Benefit The Construction Industry.

1) DATA COLLECTION

Data is everywhere and its applications are endless. Every industry is benefiting from collecting data from its workforce, technology, customers, business, and more. This influx of data allows leaders to confidently make better business-driven decisions.

Construction and Engineering companies are no exception to their need for data. Data collection allows engineers, managers, investors and company leaders to learn more about their work-site than ever before. Before a project even begins, drone technology can help them capture details about the environment and the physical site. With the help of drones, construction companies have seen data collection time reduced by over 5%.

Drones can come equipped with geo-location sensors, infrared sensors, and advanced cameras. With these features, managers can take the high-resolution images captured by the drones and use them to create 2D and 3D models that accurately represent the job site. With these models and images, engineers can find challenges and problem areas before construction starts.

2) LAND SURVEYING

While Land Surveying would certainly fall under the Data Collection category, because of the Drone technology specific to the Surveying industry, we feel it deserves its own category.

It’s a given that land surveying is a key part of planning out construction jobs. Engineers and contractors need to understand the land that they’re working with. Nevertheless, sending workers out to survey the land, while effective, is not always as accurate as it could be and can often put individuals in dangerous terrain.

Drone technology makes land surveying easier and safer. By flying drones over a site, they can now learn more than ever about the land. This means that drones reduce land surveying costs and increase revenue by reducing human error, time and improving safety. This one efficiency boost alone can have a significant impact on the construction industry as a whole.

The DJI Phantom 4 RTK is an excellent example of drone integration for land surveying. This particular drone is designed to be an advanced mapping tool. It can store satellite observation data, take clearer imagery, and improve flight and real-time photography. The accuracy ensures that every detail is captured. After all, the more information a contractor or engineer has, the faster the project can be directed and completed.

[Watch Our DJI Phantom 4 RTK | Review and Test]

3) BETTER PROJECT UPDATES

With the help of drones, time-consuming walkthroughs to monitor progress and take photos are eliminated. All of the time it used to take to send inspectors and photographers out to the site is saved by drones. With routine flyovers, drones can capture images and videos of the worksite which allows managers and engineers to oversee jobs without ever having to go on-site.

Additionally, this process improves safety on the job site. Nearly 39% of deaths at construction sites occur during these walk-throughs, but now there’s no need to send anyone through the site. When workplace accidents decrease and safety increases, the company saves money and can protect their reputation. (More on Safety in a moment)

4) SECURITY & SURVEILLANCE

With large construction sites, the issues of theft, trespassing, and vandalism make monitoring construction sites difficult to manage. To combat this, construction companies use drones to surveillance the area.

Simply put, drones are great tools for surveillance during and after work hours. With advanced systems and applications UAVs enable 24/7, real-time monitoring, making it easier to reduce criminal activity.

By reducing theft and criminal activity, it enables construction companies to complete jobs faster. It reduces the risk of project delays and setbacks in the case of missing equipment, damage to the building, and other issues. The result is decreased loss and increased productivity and revenue.

5) IMPROVE COLLABORATION

Drones have allowed construction companies to improve their collaboration and communication by 65%.

By capturing aerial photos and video footage (including live-feeds), drones allow remote employees, owners, contractors, and engineers to easily access information about the site anywhere in the world via secure networks. This is turn not only keeps everyone in the loop and happy but, also, reduces cost and delays in travel. Even more importantly, it allows potential issues to be caught early before they develop into expensive or dangerous problems.

6) MITIGATE RISK & INCREASE SAFETY

Construction projects can be dangerous. Not only that, but problems can arise that make construction companies vulnerable to legal and insurance issues. Both of these can be very expensive. For those reasons, in addition to the safety of the workers, mitigating risk at job sites is incredibly important.

Drones are key to reducing these risks and increasing safety. As mentioned throughout, by sending drones into dangerous areas for many tasks, it greatly reduces the need to place workers into dangerous situations. This alone keeps workers safe and insurance claims down. Additionally, drones can be used to capture real-time data, and protect the company against legal challenges by documenting the process and maintaining accurate data that can be used if legal issues arise.

7) WASTE MANAGEMENT

This is an area that can often be overlooked when integrating the use of drones within construction projects.

The construction industry generates more than $160 billion in waste. While building-related waste seems unavoidable, drones used for waste monitoring and stockpile measurement has led to an amazing 61% waste measurement accuracy.

By producing less waste, construction companies save money and protect the environment. This is a win-win.

8) TRANSPORTATION

Drones can do more than collect data and take photos, they can also carry materials across sites.

Emerging technology and larger drones allow the UAVs to carry items that previously would have required the use of a vehicle or machinery. They can be used to quickly make small deliveries in less time than it would take a worker to drive out to the site.

Soon, there will be drones capable of carrying larger, heavier materials. This will reduce the need for large machinery and vehicles. Not only does this benefit the construction company, but this will also reduce environmental impact.

The Impact of Drones on the Construction Industry

Overall, the use of drones by construction and engineering companies have allowed for faster and more accuracy and efficiency. This is just the beginning of drone utilization in the construction industry. The future of drones in construction is growing and as the UAV technology increases the need for drones in this industry will also continue to increase.

The future is here!

Drone Training for Construction and Engineering Companies

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