Construction is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the drone industry – indeed, #1, according to some surveys.  The sector’s exponential growth tracks with the phenomenal expansion of the construction industry itself.  For example, in California, construction is the state’s fastest growing industry, regularly adding 7% or more employees to its workforce annually.  Globally, the construction market is expected to double in size between 2020 and 2030.  Massive and unprecedented investments in architecture and engineering technology are fueling this trend, with drones of ever-increasing sophistication becoming more central to day-to-day construction operations.

What can drones do?

Improved site mapping and surveillance is one key element.  In the past, a contractor might use a simple aerial drone to market a site to a client or to the public, showcasing work underway or completed with dazzling overhead views previously unavailable from a ground perspective. Now, drones are integrally involved in nearly all aspects of site development and maintenance.  This includes not only precise measurement of a construction site and its key elements, but also specific volumetric estimates. Currently, estimating, specifically related to calculations of earthwork volumes, is a laborious and time-consuming process typically performed by a field surveyor.  Drones equipped with laser scanners can construct 3D photogrammetric models to rapidly identify the earthwork volumes present on a construction site.  This data can be compared to past mappings to identify what earthwork has been conducted and the remaining earthwork still needed.

Drones can also create estimates of grade and slope far faster and more reliably than field surveyors can.  With better estimates, construction projects are less likely to face delays due to basic design flaws. With fewer delays, costs are reduced and projects are completed on time, with greater client satisfaction

Site inspections are another critical area.  Aerial drones can periodically record and measure the pace of site development – for example, tracking equipment use or stockpiles in materials and estimating replenishment needs.  Drones can be automated to fly in a grid pattern to inspect a whole façade of windows, for example.   Photos from these inspection drones are captured in minutes, while a human on a lift or scaffolding would take hours or even days to perform the same work.

More sophisticated drones, of the kind manufactured by Skydio – for example, can even fly indoors, underground and in other GPS-denied areas with high-powered cameras to track the progress of construction – again, analyzing workflow and anticipating the need for course corrections.

Drones can also perform critical safety inspections to reduce the large number of injuries and even deaths that occur on construction sites annually.  A survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers found that drone inspections reduced life-threatening constructing accidents by up to 91%.  Drones increased overall site awareness but also identified critical weaknesses in a site’s nascent structures that were hard to reach or otherwise dangerous for survey teams to inspect.  And drones can also patrol a site’s perimeter – even at night – to identify possible trespassers and burglars. Drones can replace security guards and further reduce project costs.

Finally, drones can contribute to a company’s sustainability goals, not just by substituting battery-powered aircraft for gas-powered helicopters and road vehicles but also by deploying special sensors to detect a building’s energy efficiency.  Construction defects can be identified early before a building’s completion, allowing for course corrections to ensure compliance with energy-savings goals.

How many U.S. construction companies currently utilize drones?  A phenomenal number, according to surveys.  In fact, half of all construction contractors currently use them, especially on large construction sites.  Paradoxically, while the number of contractors using drones hasn’t increased substantially over the past year or two, overall drone use is skyrocketing.   For example, Sundt, one of the nation’s largest construction companies, started with two workers flying a DJI Phantom 2 drone over a job site just to take pictures of the roof.  Overtime, the company has developed one of the most extensive construction drone programs in the nation.  The company boasts of 30 different pilots and a fleet of more than 40 DJI and Skydio drones. The company’s most recently acquired Skydio 3D drones, which fly autonomously, have allowed Sundt to dispense with some of its remote piloting and to reduce its inspection time by 90%.