According to Goldman Sachs, the emerging global market for businesses using drones is expected to top $100 billion by 2020. Of the $100 billion, most is still driven by government, but the relatively new commercial/civil sector is estimated to own $13 billion.
The passing of the FAA’s Part 107 rule in mid-2016, which introduced safety regulations designed to minimize risks to other aircraft and people and property on the ground, led to booming commercial interest, and this year the drone ecosystem is expected to keep up the cadence.
Additional Commercial Industries on the Rise
In addition to the sectors noted above, the following industries are expected to grow their usage of drones over the next three years: Oil/Gas, Public Safety, Journalism, Customers/Border Protection, Real Estate, Utilities, Pipelines, Mining, Clean Energy and Cinematography. For the full list, read Goldman Sachs’ industry report “Drones – Reporting for Work.”
Interesting Use Cases
Using DroneDeploy and Dronifi technology, a coffee grower assessed the spread of an invasive vine 85% faster than if they had gathered Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) imagery from a manned aircraft.
Researchers at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology are developing a drone monitoring system that tracks floods in real time and can sound the alarm before a flash flood hits.
A Dutch engineer has created a flying defibrillator for emergency situations using drone technology.
By Kyra Tillmans (Text and Infographic)
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