How to monitor a site in Germany from an office in Spain

Work on the Rheinbrücke Leverkusen bridge requires extensive earthworks, removal of a current bridge and construction on the east and west banks of the Rhine. The project is due to be completed by 2028.

Hochtief has engaged Skyports Drone Services to provide drone surveying on the project using DroneDeploy technology, according to Global Construction Review (GCR).

The ‘drone-in-a-box’ system takes about two days to set up and undertakes weekly inspections beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), creating a layered, ongoing progress indicator for Hochtief. The drone is piloted remotely from Skyports’ remote operations centre in Spain. DroneDeploy processes the data to supply Hochtief with 2D and 3D survey outputs.

Alex Brown, Skyports Drone Services chief executive, told GCR: “Traditional drone surveys are usually carried out by a pilot physically attending on site. Two restrictions come with this. First, the pilot needs to physically get there, which requires logistical coordination and travel expense.

“Second, they will usually be restricted to having to keep the drone flown within visual line of sight. If you’re surveying a large site, this means the pilot will need to keep on moving. For bridge construction sites, like with Hochtief, this was a challenge as the pilot needed to cross the river to survey the full site.    

“By piloting remotely, you effectively have on-demand access to the drone; there’s no need to get someone on site to fly. And with BVLOS airspace approvals, the drone can effectively fly the full site unrestricted in one go.