Proof of Concept Tests UAS Feasibility for Coastal Surveys

There’s a buzz in the air…..literally. It’s coming from an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), more commonly referred to as a drone. By now you’ve probably heard it.

On May 16, during National Hurricane Preparedness Week, Esri, the world’s largest geographical information systems (GIS) company, and McKim & Creed hosted a proof of concept (POC) event in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina to test the feasibility of using UAS to perform coastal surveys. McKim & Creed, which has the FAA 333 exemptions and credentials to operate drones commercially and has a long history of performing coastal surveys using conventional methodologies, performed the UAS data acquisition using 3DR’s Solo platform and SiteScan software. Esri processed the data using its Drone2Map software.