Ditchmen • NUCA of Florida Ditchmen - June 2020 | Page 20

How Drone
Technology is
Rapidly Transforming
Construction Nationwide
By Chris Penasa,
Small Business
Growth Partners
The ability of drones to
operate autonomously
outside of human line-ofsight
has revolutionized
several vital industries,
from commerce to sporting events to
recreation.
One area where drones have been highly
influential is the construction industry.
Construction technologies that take
advantage of drones are becoming more
commonplace and have caused a paradigm
shift in construction activity in the past few
years. Here are just a few ways that drone
technology is changing the construction
industry nationwide, and some trends for
the future.
Surveying
The most apparent use of drone technology
is to survey plots of land for construction
efforts. Drones vastly reduce manpower
and cost for surveying tracts of land and
eliminate human error in the measurement
process. Drones can instantly transmit
video feed, so contractors have a “drones
eye view” of the area. It also takes much
less time to deploy a drone and complete
surveying than for a human. Advanced
measuring devices can accurately chart
distances and elevations much more
accurately than a human can.
Security
Drones can also be deployed for security
matters, whether for improved surveillance
or improved worker safety. Modern drones
are equipped with accurate cameras and
real-time communication capabilities that
can be used to gather information quickly
and respond to security threats. One benefit
of drones is that they can be deployed in
areas that are too risky or too expensive to
send humans.
Equipment Tracking & Transportation
Construction sites require a lot of
specialized (and expensive) equipment,
and may sometimes have to bring in goods
from the outside. Drones are being used
to transport site goods. Drones can cut
down delivery times for construction goods
without having to abide by traffic laws when
transporting materials.
18 DITCHMEN • JUNE 2020