Enhanced modern technology and versatility have entirely changed the construction industry in the past few years. However, the professionals across the construction industry have long envisioned technological disruptions to address the bottlenecks of the construction field.
Gone are the days when every task at the construction site was carried out manually, but with changing times, innovative technology like robots, machine control, telematics, and drones have taken over, ensuring maximum safety and efficiency and reducing the wastage of materials at the construction sites.
Rising complexity in the construction project justifies the use of drones that are mostly preferred to perform risky tasks and inspect the construction site.
How do Drones Work at Construction Sites?
The construction industry is one of the fastest-growing adopters of drones, with an annual surge of 239%. As top construction companies in India are shifting toward drones, it is easy for them to access data and stay updated with the day-to-day developments of the construction projects.
With drones used in the construction industry, construction professionals have leveraged the opportunity to get up-to-date images.
The data captured with a drone is analyzed on engineering software, and later on, they can be used with construction drawings. In addition, with the increasing usage of drones, it is used to create a digital elevation model with 3D point clouds.
The usage of drones has completely revolutionized the entire project life cycle from inception to the final stage.
The Benefits of Drones are Mentioned Below: –
(1.) Used for Land Surveys and Topography Mapping
While planning large-scale projects, topography mapping is one of the most critical aspects. It can help to track construction errors and reveal costly blunders.
Drones are exponentially used to cut down the time spent visualizing the site’s topography. Drones help keep the project on schedule and on a budget to ensure accuracy before the project is initiated. In addition, it will help to increase the feasibility and assist with design.
In addition to, this drone help to manipulate high-resolution images, giving the construction team flexibility to pinpoint the challenges during the pre-construction phase. Spotting the mistakes in the initial stage will help you to save time, money, and resources in the long run.
(2.) Equipment Tracking
Losing access to the equipment at the construction site is one of the significant challenges the managers and construction workers face. Thanks to the technology that can save you from the worst nightmare while handling big projects.
At this point, site engineers can do a flyover to locate their equipment and quickly decide their position. Then, they can decide whether the equipment is still required or need to be removed from the construction site.
The malfunctioning of the equipment is another challenge for the site engineers. Drones can record the functionality and provide visuals for further communication.
(3.) Progress Reports and Remote Monitoring
Drones are widely in demand as they provide clear visibility to clients. In addition, drones offer a clear aerial view of the project progression, especially when clients are not physically present at the construction site.
The aerial remote monitoring assures the clients that their investment is being utilized efficiently.
Apart from this, it helps to improve the internal collaborations among the team members. For example, design teams and construction managers can access the data simultaneously to stay updated with every minute detail of the projects. Drones also create a valuable trail of documents that teams can easily access.
(4.) Security Surveillance
The security of the equipment at the construction site is one of the most vital factors. The site engineers or drone operators can quickly conduct a flyover to track the piece of equipment whether it is installed with enough safety measures.
Drones can restrict unauthorized entry as they can cause damage or theft to expensive equipment. In addition, it can help you prevent trespassers from preventing damage to the construction sites.
(5.) Personal Safety
The safety of the construction workers is one of the top priorities for the construction workers. Workers often climb on the scaffolding to take some measurements. To mitigate the risks at the construction site, drones can prove helpful for the workers.
Site engineers can use a drone camera to alert the workers about the hazards at the construction sites and ensure that all equipment is in working conditions to prevent any accidents.
(6.) Onsite Inspection
Drones can help for onsite inspection as they can be flown around all directions to check the overall structures and stability of the site.
Drones can capture high-resolution images for analysis. In addition to this, they can detect spots, water leakages, or electrical issues. Drones can also be used for the planned maintenance of large-scale infrastructure.
What are the Types of Construction Drones?
Commercial drones are being used in the construction industry. Some of them are fixed-wing models, while others have rotating blade models.
- Fixed Wing Drone
This drone is designed like an airplane. They can glide through the set path and reach higher altitudes. This makes them efficient for the pre-construction processes like mapping topography and conduct a survey over a large geographical area.
They can only fly in the forward direction, so they are best suited for places with lots of obstacles and tight spaces.
- Rotary Drone
They have a rotating design allowing them to rotate 3600 with complete stability. They are designed with fixed-wing drones as well as they are a good option for conducting aerial inspections, structural scans, photography, and surveillance over a short distance.
The Final Thoughts
The use of drones in house construction companies isn’t new. However, construction companies are adopting them faster than ever before.
Whether they want to conduct a land survey or want to track the equipment status, drones are valuable assets to the construction industry.
The capabilities of drones allow them to cut the costs, time, risks, labour and help to streamline the usage of resources up to the optimum level. Moreover, if these technologies are implemented globally in the future, they will streamline the entire construction life cycle globally.
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