Drone capture of telecom towers create digital twins
SITUATION
VTS capture crews created digital twins of telecom towers for engineers, project managers and field technicians to manage construction and maintenance upgrades.
VTS recruited and trained drone pilots across the US to do drone inspections for a telecom client. With a full complement of training, quality assurance, support and real time coordination, thousands of rooftops and towers across the USA have been captured since 2021.
Valued around $1 million each, there are an estimated 550,000 telecom towers in the US. Change is constant, with continuous plans in motion for upgrades and maintenance. Visual verification is required to demonstrate the assets on the tower and the condition of equipment to tower owners and carriers.
Engineers and technicians must have a thorough understanding of each tower’s equipment and condition, including ‘mounts,’ bolts, electrical connections, structure integrity and cabling.
CHALLENGES
Capturing each tower required multiple flights with specific targets of equipment to capture. Within the specified window for completion, VTS Capture Operations needed to secure site access, deploy the pilot, oversee data capture, validate the data and upload into a viewer for the client.
“The moment that we got the email, we looked at locations on the map and the clock started. The team was in constant motion, moving resources, getting commitment from pilots, coordinating travel, logistics and doing live coordination. Construction doesn’t wait for us.”
Locations were often scattered thousands of miles apart. One batch of towers had sites spread throughout New England with a few in Texas. Luckily, there was an existing capture project underway in Dallas for a large retail chain for a construction client. They were able to schedule a pilot to do both projects and meet the deadline.
SOLUTIONS
The Capture Operations team scaled a training process 100% focused on driving high quality data. VTS Quality Assurance Manager, Kamp Fender, created training guides that detail how to identify the equipment and capture the specificity required for the client.
“VTS is leading the industry with quality ratings. We’ve created a top-notch training program for all field staff. The information really sticks with the pilots and scan technicians and has a tremendous impact on our timing and quality metrics.”
The live coordination team was singularly focused on helping pilots collect quality data to meet and exceed client requirements. Ryan Miller, Live Coordination Associate and Andrew Geringer, Manager of Capture Services were communicating with pilots constantly, helping solve access issues, assisting them to upload data, tracking locations, logistics and schedules.
WIN
After final verification, the entire package is uploaded into the platform for the client to approve, download and use. Then the cycle starts again. In the past three months, the team has delivered a 99.6% first pass capture rate and a 100% site on time delivery. The goal of high quality data on the first set of flights was achieved. As clients’ requests and deadlines were met, more projects and towers were awarded. With coverage in 32 states, the team of technicians and pilots are ready to meet the demand for rooftop and tower capture across the country.
“The progression in a year and a half is amazing. We were rooftop specialists before there was such a thing as rooftop specialists. Now we fly towers and do large scale capture projects in retail and construction across the US and Canada. The biggest win is that we are solving real problems for our clients. ”
About VTS: Virtual Technology Simplified recreates buildings and structures with 3D reality capture technology to enable better decisions. The leadership combines 100+ years of cutting-edge technology experience with 3D, laser scanning and LIDAR. Vertical data capture and digital twin services deliver game changing advantages that streamline processes and reduce risk.
