Nearly eight in ten respondents to a survey plan to use it in the near future

Man with drone

Source: Dmitry Kalinovsky / Shutterstock.com

Drone technology is beginning to take off in the UK and Irish construction industry, with a third of senior industry figures currently using it.

The survey from aerial mapping, inspection and mapping firm ProDroneWorx asked surveyors, architects, engineers and construction firms about their perception, usage and understanding of the technology.

From those currently using the technology, six out of ten have been doing so for less than a year but 11% of this sub-group have been using it for the last 3-5 years.

Three-quarters of respondents said they understood how the technology could be used within their business.

The main advantages cited by firms using it are time savings, increased operational efficiency (both 49%) and cost savings (47%).

Despite 67% of firms admitting they aren’t currently using drones, 77% of this group plan to do so in the future.

The vast majority (67%) plan to or currently use 3rd party specialists on their projects rather than having an internal drone function within their firm.

Issues such as regulation, licensing, insurance, hardware, software and data processing were factors found to be deterring them from an internal function.