How Drone Data Is Advancing The Forestry Industry

Challenges

Globally, there are over 900 million hectares of natural forests used for wood production, with the economic value of industrial wood north of $200 billion dollars.  Managing such vast stretches of land, forestry projects can be incredibly time-consuming and extremely tedious.  What’s more, most processes have to be executed manually or with the naked eye. With operations managers surveying such large swaths of land over only a few days, their conclusions were often muddled and inaccurate.  

Some of these challenges include: 

• Densely populated areas make it difficult to survey the land entirely on foot 
• Forest inventory management, which relies on in-field sampling, are based on estimates and are rarely precise 
• All trees are treated with the same two or three fertilizers without site-specific analysis  
• Inspections are time-consuming and laborious, sometimes taking days to complete
• Disease and infestation checks performed manually, resulting in inaccuracies 

With operating costs on the rise and an influx in redundant staffing hours, it didn’t take long for companies to recognize these challenges desperately needed a solution.

A 3D map screenshot of a forest using DroneDeploy

Solutions

Aerial imagery captured by drones creates a complete, detailed picture of the forest, providing comprehensive insights and analysis.  Managers found operations could be run from a single location, dispatching a drone to photograph the acreage’s whole. This automated process cut unnecessary labor hours and overall operation costs.  For enterprises that have begun exploring drone technology as a vital forestry tool, they’ve been presented with an entire suite of solutions: 

• Overhead photographic insight into hard-to-inspect areas.
• Measuring volumes quickly while providing accurate tree counts
• Mapping harvest units, and conducting post-harvest waste assessments
• Inspections completed in a fraction of the time
• Assess plant health and damage
• Learn site-specific fertilization treatments
• View 3D images of forests 

Drones can also be used to provide early fire detection, practically eliminating the risk of losing thousands of acres to sudden forest fires.

DroneDeploy's Area Measurement tool

Success

Several companies are viewing the adoption of drones as a significant competitive advantage.  Forestry giants such as Domtar, the world’s second-largest producer of uncoated paper in the world, and Stimson Lumber, one of the oldest continuously operating wood product companies in the U.S., have already been experimenting with drone technology.