The Innovation Campus of the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone (SBIDZ) launched a DroneTech Innovation Challenge to showcase inventive applications of drone technologies across industries.
Top of the class in the Scale-Up category was DeltaScan, a company that brings professional solutions to solve the industry’s greatest challenges by combining cutting-edge drone platforms and scanning technology with 3D digitisation, artificial intelligence (AI), and engineering analysis principles. They are a market leader in drone-based structural condition audits and survey solutions and specialist survey applications. They are also the leading experts in mining, oil and gas, and industrial site inspections. Their unique solutions are customer–centric, aiming to provide more accurate information, faster turnaround times, higher levels of confidence in reporting and accurate quantification.
DeltaScan has been assisting asset owners, engineering companies, industrial sites, petrochemical plants and mines throughout the world by introducing technological–driven workflows using digital tools in combination with AI and precision analytics.
The silver medal in the same category went to Autonosky, which partners with specific industries to develop unique drone solutions. At present, it provides the operational capability for fire, rescue and security organisations – to save lives. Its platform, ESP, is a flight system designed from the ground up to assist first responders with identifying key information and increasing situational awareness in an emergency. The platform collects drone payload and telemetry data, sends this through a custom AI and computer vision technology programme, and then distributes the data to relevant personnel – all in real–time. Once the mission is complete, it facilitates retrospective analysis and reporting. It is applicable to search and rescue teams, law enforcement, and private security and firefighters.
Autonosky’s Flyte Zone is a drone operations automation platform designed to help Remote Operator Certificate (ROC) holders manage their operations and remain compliant with Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations. Flyte Zone is currently in active development and will be launched as an online platform, coupled with a mobile app that will provide multiple functionalities, including pilot and drone management and mission planning and reporting.
The bronze medal in the Scale-Up category went to RBI Drone Tech, which revolutionises flight and inspection processes using autonomous drones, whose flight paths are predetermined off-site. The drone will then take pictures of the object before returning to its home base where the data is retrieved and uploaded to the cloud for automatic analysis and creation of a unique 3D model and analytics report. This model can be interacted with and analysed further as a practical maintenance optimisation solution. Using this technology, engineers can access this data at any time, from anywhere with an internet connection, also reducing the health and safety risks of the field inspection teams and increasing productivity.
In the Ideation category, the first prize went to Garreth Grosch, Managing Director of Taurus Energy Services, who is exploring the use of drone technology to conduct environmental compliance auditing and data management.
The second prize for Ideation went to Luminous Marketing & Branding, a digital marketing agency that aims to provide drone services as part of an integrated solution, incorporating the creation of compelling marketing material (videography and images for profiling), as well as providing property mapping and development monitoring services.