Esri, McKim & Creed and 3DR to Present POC Results at International Conference

Results of UAS Feasibility Tests for Coastal Surveys

June 22, 2016–On June 26 at the Esri Imaging and Mapping Forum in San Diego, Esri and McKim & Creed, Inc. will present the results of a proof of concept conducted last month along the North Carolina coast in which several local, state and federal agencies tested the feasibility of using unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for beach monitoring surveys.

Municipalities use beach monitoring surveys to prepare for extreme, shore-altering weather events such as hurricanes. Typically, survey data has been collected using conventional land surveying methodologies, aerial LiDAR and hydrographic surveying. The purpose of the proof of concept, held on May 16 to coincide with National Hurricane Preparedness Week, was to determine if UAS data collection can yield a comparable-quality deliverable quicker and more cost effectively than traditional methods.

Redlands, California-based Esri and McKim & Creed, headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, co-hosted the proof of concept at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. McKim & Creed performed the data collection using 3DR’s Solo platform and SiteScan software. Esri, the world’s largest geographical information systems (GIS) company, processed the data using its Drone2Map software.

Kurt Schwoppe, business development for imagery at Esri, Jason Nyberg, senior project manager with McKim & Creed, Todd King, business developer with McKim & Creed, and Keith Bigelow, vice president of 3DR’s enterprise division, will present the proof of concept findings at Esri’s Imaging and Mapping Forum, which will be held June 25-26 in San Diego.