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Written By | Tom Comet
Industrial drone delivery is where cargo weighing up to 100kg (and soon much more) is transported via heavy-lift drones along known air routes across relatively short distances (usually sub-30km) between pre-defined Launch Zones (LZs) and pre-defined or impromptu Drop Zones (DZs). Such drone deliveries are performed by highly trained personnel on BOTH ends of the operation and usually take place over secure areas with many of them completely over private land, secure industrial sites, water or remote wilderness areas. All of this helps immeasurably with the safety, compliance, efficiency and overall realistic application of industrial drone delivery operations.
There are hundreds of viable scenarios for Industrial Drone Delivery and I will give you a couple here.
Industrial Drone Delivery – Scenario #1 – A Large Open Pit Mining Operation
These types of operations usually take place on closed, secure, remote industrial sites that are often hundreds and sometimes thousands of hectares in size. The topography is varied and there is usually a great deal of vertical relief (huge holes in the ground, etc.).
Such job sites can be extremely slow and challenging to transit on the ground, causing a lot of wear and tear on vehicles, humans and precious cargo.
Safety is also a huge concern, as ground vehicles used to transport cargo and humans are forced to share the road with extremely large machines and other potentially dangerous equipment. There are also environmental concerns such as dirt, dust and blasting areas to contend with.
While our heavy-lift cargo drones are not big enough to transport bulk rock or minerals around these mines, there are hundreds of other smaller deliveries needed on an hourly and daily basis. With heavy-lift cargo drones these deliveries can be semi-automated and performed safely and effectively, day and night. Secure, pre-determined LZs and DZs can be set up all over the site and our large industrial cargo drones can ferry tools, parts, small equipment, mineral samples, food, PPE, first aid and hundreds of other mission-critical items weighing <100kg around the site, saving both time and money.
Industrial Drone Delivery – Scenario #2 – Remote Solar Farm Installation
Projects such as solar farms are often constructed in mountainous and/or difficult to access areas. In this scenario, many large, relatively light, solar panels, support structure materials, hardware and tools need to be transported safely and efficiently to, quite literally, the side of a mountain.
Our heavy-lift cargo drones can provide component transportation to and from the remote job site. At the site, they can precisely lift and place the solar panels and support structure materials exactly where required during the build.
The overall effect of drone-supported operation is added efficiency during delivery and build portions of the project, less stress on roads and infrastructure, increased safety (fewer trips up and down access roads), and potentially the ability to increase the number of viable sites to build on. A site that had too many logistical hurdles before may open up, given this new industrial drone delivery supply chain.
Obviously remote sites like these with highly specialized equipment operating require both scheduled and unscheduled maintenance. Again, this is where both our industrial delivery drones and inspection drones can be of service.
Industrial Drone Delivery – Scenario #3 – Marine Applications
In and around global ports are thousands of ships at anchor in need of logistical support and critical supplies. Many delivery missions between ship and shore could be effectively handled with our heavy-lift cargo drones. Food, clothing, documentation, tools or equipment weighing 100kg or less are just some examples of items that might be quickly delivered, all with a higher degree of safety and cost-efficiency when compared to the conventional way of sending out a crew out in a boat.
Imagine a future where drone depots will be situated within large seaports of the world, perhaps with pre-defined “air routes” for moving suitable cargo onshore or offshore with unmatched speed. Whether between ship and port, or even ship to ship, heavy-lift drones offer myriad opportunities for productive marine deliveries.
Drone delivery actually does work but it is not is the way that most people currently imagine it. I feel that drone delivery can help support real businesses doing real work on secure and difficult to access sites. It can be put to work safely and effectively by delivering materials, tools, equipment and critical support quickly and efficiently and it will be a huge benefit to a lot of businesses in the very near future. If you want to read my BLOG post about why I feel that consumer and home drone deliveries won’t work you can check that out HERE.
To find out more about Drone Delivery technology and how you can harness it to its best potential for your industrial logistics and support challenges Contact us today!