Know what is in the pile without walking it.
Stockpile, cut-and-fill and inventory volumes measured from the air on a repeatable cycle, so every figure compares directly against the last one.
Photogrammetric surface model
Volumes and cut/fill
Repeatable to a schedule
A number somebody can defend
Volume questions are constant on a working site and slow to answer from the ground. How much material is in that stockpile, how much has moved since last month, whether earthworks progress matches what has been claimed. Answering those with a rod and a tape takes most of a day and puts a person on the same ground the machines are using.
Flying the site produces a surface model of the whole area at once. Volumes come out of that model against a base plane or against the previous survey, and because the capture is repeatable, a comparison between two dates is a real comparison rather than two different methods disagreeing with each other.
What you get
Stockpile volumes per pile, with the base plane used stated alongside the figure
Cut and fill quantities measured against a design surface or a previous survey
Surface model and contours covering the surveyed area
Orthomosaic of the site as it stood on the date of capture
Period-over-period comparison showing what moved, and where it went
A method note recording how each volume was derived, so the figure can be checked
How it works
Agree the tolerance and the base
A volume only means something against a stated base plane and a stated accuracy. Both are agreed before flying, because together they decide whether the job needs ground control.
Plan the capture
Flight height and overlap are set for the surface being measured. Loose material and steep faces need denser coverage than a flat yard does.
Fly and control
The site is flown on a consistent pattern, with ground control observed where the job needs absolute accuracy rather than relative change.
Measure and report
Volumes are computed from the surface model, checked against the previous cycle where one exists, and delivered with the method stated beside the number.
Common questions
How accurate is a drone volume?
Accurate enough to run a site on, and the accuracy is a function of method rather than a fixed figure. Relative change between two flights captured the same way is tighter than absolute volume against a survey datum. If you need the latter, the job needs ground control, and we will say so when quoting rather than afterwards.
Can you measure material under vegetation or water?
Not with photogrammetry, which measures the visible surface. Vegetated ground is a LiDAR problem, and standing water cannot be measured through at all. We will tell you which of those applies to your site before you commit to anything.
How often should a site be flown?
Whatever matches your reporting cycle; monthly is common for progress claims. The value compounds, because the second flight is worth more than the first. It is the first one you have something to compare against.
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