September 2018 Vol. 73 No. 9
New Products
Komatsu America using drone-powered mapping and analytics software
Komatsu America Corp. and Propeller Aero Inc. are partnering to boost the efficiency of construction job sites using drone-powered mapping and analytics software. These are key components of Komatsu’s Smart Construction initiative – a range of integrated hardware and software products designed to offer an end-to-end workflow for each phase of construction.
“A Komatsu Smart Construction job site by definition is technology enhanced and production optimized,” said Jason Anetsberger, senior product manager. “Adding Propeller Aero as one of our key partners gives our North American distributors and customers exceptional capabilities to achieve this standard in the aerial mapping space. Propeller combines simple, yet powerful, analysis tools with accurate and fast site visualization.”
After several years of testing various commercial drone mapping and analytics products in North America, Komatsu identified Propellor Aero as an exceptionally robust product, well-suited to meet the needs of modern construction operations., expertly balancing ease-of-use with survey accuracy and reliability.
Propeller’s processing machinery crunches thousands of drone images in hours and delivers the results as a cloud-based 3D model right to the user’s desktop or tablet. From there, powerful collaboration and analysis tools let users perform height, volume and slope calculations, and measure change over time to confirm that a project is on track.
By supporting multiple coordinate systems, including local site calibrations, Propeller’s technology platform allows personnel to capture up-to-date survey data expressed in the specific geospatial coordinates they already use on that job site. Now available through a widespread network of
Komatsu distributors across the U.S., Komatsu Equipment Company (KEC), a leading Komatsu distributor headquartered in Salt Lake City, was among the first to roll out Propeller solutions to Komatsu customers. Based on the positive response so far, KEC is confident the construction sector will be quick to adopt this technology.
Komatsu also introduced the new WA480-8-wheel loader, which combines higher production with lower fuel costs, improved operator comfort and enhanced serviceability.
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