From the beginning, we wanted to acquire a Microdrones system,” said Nuno Santos, Founder and CEO of Aerisurvey. Since its creation in 2017, one of the Portuguese company’s core values has been to provide only the best possible data, so going with Microdrones was a no-brainer. “With Microdrones we get maximum quality and unprecedented reliability,” Santos said.
From a Microdrones blog post.
As recently as 2013, up-and-coming geologist Santos was still employing traditional methods for quarry surveying, typically involving the use of a total station- a combination electronic theodolite and distance meter. “I remember one very demanding quarry, about 30 hectares in area, with numerous embankments and a lot of variations in altitude. We had to set up 14 different total station bases and it took us three weeks to finish the job. Today, with our Microdrones system, we can do that same job in one day, and we get immensely superior results, with a level of detail impossible to achieve with traditional methods.”
A Massive Survey Project
Aerisurvey recently completed work on a major project entailing drone-based surveying at 21 quarries in 60 days. “The timeline was extremely short and the pressure to deliver the results on time was intense” Santos said. “The project involved Aerisurvey working with several other firms, all doing different tasks, including a government component, so it was imperative that everything go according to plan.”
“Incredibly, Santos carried out the entire series of photogrammetry surveys virtually single-handedly, acting as UAV pilot, operator and data specialist. “It was the winter holiday season,” he explained, “and we couldn’t be sure that a larger team would be available throughout operations, so I performed the mission myself, surveying all 21 quarries, editing the raw images based on a specific chromatic profile, processing the data, extracting the topography, and reporting and delivering the results.”
Aerisurveyʼs marathon survey project delivered a raft of detailed data, including orthophotography, DSM, DTM, contour maps, ground points showing different densities, individual records for each GCP, point cloud, 13 ready-to-print maps, a full 3D model, aerial videos and an A0 poster for each quarry on fine-art photographic paper.
For the full post on completing 21 drone quarry surveys in 60 days CLICK HERE.
