Drone mapping data can dramatically impact the profitability of certain businesses. Should you include it in your business app? Consider these points.
Drones gather mapping data about all kinds of things in the real world. Â Today we're using apps, data, and IoT devices, including drones rather than human surveyors on site or in a plane. Have you considered how your company might use drone mapping data in business apps to deliver new value to your customers? If not, perhaps you should.
Construction companies, excavation companies, mining companies and energy companies are just a few types of organizations using drone mapping data to do their jobs more effectively and achieve better bottom-line performance.
Drone mapping solution provider Identified Technologies works with such companies to reduce costs and win more business based on the analytics and conclusions drawn from drone mapping data collected at their work sites. The end product is reports about costs and cost forecasting, progress forecasting and accounting.
"When you have an area about the size of San Francisco Bay, you've got hundreds of piece of equipment and hundreds of people around," said Dick Zhang, founder and CEO of Identified Technologies. "[Historically,] you could only confirm [their status] after the fact."
In the past, the information might not be available for weeks or months, and the cost of collecting the data could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per year for projects. To get paid, contractors need to show progress, such as the amount of dirt they moved and status of the roads they're building. Zhang said his customers are able to save 70% to 90% on their surveying endeavors.
Although using drones to gather mapping data isn't a new concept, the economics of owning, renting and using them have changed dramatically as drone technology continues to improve and prices continue to fall.
"You can get remarkable quality and reliability for a remarkable price [which] has accelerated growth in the market," said Zhang. "Data is a huge driver."
So, you want to use drone mapping data in your application. You can collect the data yourself or perhaps pull the data from another source via an API. If you're interested in the former, be advised that US commercial drone piloting is regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
