As you may know, drone program technology has been around for decades, but lately, they have been reporting for duty a lot more often.
The world is undergoing a rapid change in social, political, and cultural scenarios but more importantly, this is also true for the drone industry. And so much so that commercial uses of drones are skyrocketing.
DID YOU KNOW: In a 2016 report, Goldman Sachs estimated that drone program technology will reach a total market size of $100 billion between 2016 and 2020.
In the recent past, drones have become central to many industries. Whether it is to access hard-to-reach places or to perform tasks more efficiently – drones have stepped in to give us a much-needed helping hand especially in NGOs, security, and asset management.
These unmanned aerial vehicles have helped to not only increase efficiency in work, but have also greatly reduced the time, cost, and risk factors involved in the following critical industries.
Read on to know more about how drone program technology is reshaping these spaces
How humanitarian drones aid NGOs
FACT: There are more than 600,000 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Australia whose employees makeup 8% of the Australian workforce. (Source: Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission)
Drones for good causes could help serve the society at large. Here’s a case study that reflects the need, worth, and success of such applications of drones.
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) used drone mapping and Pix4D to ease the logistical issues surrounding the management of refugee camps in Kutupalong. The main camp is divided into 20 smaller camps and further subdivided into 1600 blocks – each with its own informant and houses over a hundred families.
Given this complexity, drones were used to create maps to monitor, identify, and navigate populations, boundaries, sanitation, water points, and rivers.
Unmanned systems are also increasingly useful to map and preserve archaeological sites, deliver supplies, conduct assessments post-disasters and locate and detonate landmines.
An interesting application of drones we see often now is how journalists and reporters use them. From getting access to remote places to high-resolution coverage of stories from better angles, drones can help with it all.
For instance, in ‘Unequal Scenes’ – Johnny Miller’s award-winning drone journalism work, he used a drone to capture scenes that revealed the stark contrast in living conditions between the wealthy and the poverty-stricken populations.
How companies use security drones for surveillance
UAVs can do so much to augment security across the world, especially to manage and oversee large crowds or gatherings in religious settings or in places like railway stations.
In India, security forces need access to information in real time to help manage religious events like Kumbh Mela, Ardh Kumbh Mela, and Jagannath Yatra where thousands of people come together. IdeaForge’s drone surveillance solutions have helped the forces have an edge to handle crowd dynamics.
On one hand, drones have already proven their potential to facilitate fast responses in emergency situations and support community watch to keep neighbourhoods safe. But did you know counter-drone systems have been developed to stop unlawful uses of drones that fly without permission? That’s the far-reaching potential of the drone industry today.
Drones in engineering and asset management
We often read about drones with high-quality imaging and sensors in action helping with dangerous inspections and maintenance activities. One such useful, cost-, and time-effective application is monitoring and scanning pipelines over long distances and in remote areas.
As opposed to conventional and time-consuming methods like rope access, sky-lifts, cherry pickers, and scaffolding, drones have also been used in the oil and gas industries to conduct inspections of boilers and fuel storage tanks to ensure their safety.
Governments have also been using drones as a part of their flood defence programs, to inspect wind turbines, telecommunications towers, bridges, railway lines, road transport network, and risk assessments in the insurance industry.
We can help you with your drone program needs
Every new day brings with it a new, life-changing, and beneficial application for drones in all of these spaces and other industries too. Whether it is to keep people safe, save lives, make life easier, or to improve efficiency, drones are becoming the tool of choice for many industries and organisations.
If you have drone program requirements, get in touch with Mirragin at admin@mirragin.com.au.
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