Stockpiles…they’re everywhere on job sites. To keep your operations running smoothly you’ll need to stay on top of your stockpile measurements and accuracy matters a lot! Today, several different methods are used for calculating the mass (volume x density) of stockpiles. The one that is quickly becoming an industry standard, not surprisingly, is drone surveying.

Measuring Methods

It’s not uncommon to still see stockpiles being measured with traditional methods such as the walking wheel, eyeballing, or counting bucket/truckloads. It has been proven that not only are these methods more time-consuming and costly, but they are in fact, less accurate. There’s another method that has gained popularity recently and that’s through the use of an iPhone app. This, however, is only an option for small, freestanding piles that can easily be walked around. Another popular method is hiring a surveyor. This traditional base and rover surveying method can be an expensive option not to mention how it could take weeks to get the results and let’s be honest, who has time for that?!

Drones can survey a site very quickly, efficiently, and safely. The drone is taking aerial photos through photogrammetry to stitch together the images on the ground while also using GPS and ground control to tie those images down. After the flight, the data is processed through a software program (i.e.: Propeller or Pix4D) which renders everything in 3D. The 3D maps that are generated from the flights will include highly accurate stockpile volumes- down to 1/10ft (3cm). Having this information at your fingertips is helpful. You can easily compare your measurements to previous surveys making your cut and fill analysis much simpler. This method also lets you plan your importing or exporting of materials accordingly based on your needs which results in overall improved site management. These exact calculations can then be used to figure out the dollar value of your piles. You can decide how much you may want to sell or use on other job sites. Identifying problems earlier on will be easier with his method which can save you money in the long run because you can address them before they potentially become a sizeable issue. Another valuable feature is that drones are excellent in capturing irregularities. This means that the data collected during the flight reflects the true shape, not an approximation, of the stockpiles. This preferred method of calculating stockpiles is also a lot more affordable than some of the others. Once you’ve invested in the drone you can use it over and over again on all of your job sites and get your reporting results much faster than other methods. You will be able to easily share the data and 3D maps with anyone who needs the information.

Drone Workflows

There are two major workflows for drone surveying. One is called Ground Control Points (GCP) and the other is Post Processing Kinematic (PPK). With the GCP workflow, there must be a sufficient number of known points to verify and pin your drone imagery to the ground. This drone process cannot geotag photos into the site datums without local ground control points being set prior to the flight. Comparatively, the PPK workflow can geotag its location through its connectivity to satellites which gives the exact geo- references right on it while it is flying over the site and capturing the images.

Working with drone data is what we do at ECI Technologies. Our team is made up of experts who know how to manipulate the information from the drone flight and put it into useful file types so that your projects are running smoothly and advancing without unnecessary glitches. Let’s talk about doing away with your traditional stockpile survey methods and bring you into the 21st century!