Everest LiDAR, a Texas-based company founded by Raul Garcia and Raul Rincon, specializes in mapping, data collection, and services targeting the surveying and construction industries. Their team is dedicated to delivering exceptionally accurate results to help their clients make informed decisions, whether it's for construction site monitoring, road topographic surveys, or apartment complex 3D modeling.
Traditional surveying methods for these types of jobs are very time-consuming and potentially dangerous, especially in populated areas. The process usually involves surveyors standing near traffic, performing meticulous data collection such as topographic surveys, identifying potential obstacles, addressing environmental concerns, and ensuring accurate horizontal and vertical alignments. In heavy traffic areas, the traditional survey method is not only dangerous for the surveyors performing these tasks but can also cause disruptions to traffic flow if not planned accordingly.
To overcome these challenges, Raul Garcia and his team decided to integrate drone technology into their surveying workflow. According to Raul, the use of drones in surveying greatly boosts the productivity of his team.
However, as the business and the projects quickly scaled, the platform they started off using became a barrier due to the limited flight time of the aircraft and the lower resolution of the camera system. This restricted them from taking on larger scale projects. To solve this bottleneck, they acquired the X55 and added it into their surveying equipment fleet. The payload they use for photogrammetry missions is the Sony ILX-LR1 surveying package built by Arcsky. This setup is a complete surveying and mapping payload system, with built-in geotagging capabilities, live video feed, and camera/gimbal control via the standard X55 controller.
This setup, combined with 22 Ah semi-solid-state batteries, allows them to achieve over an hour of flight time. According to Everest, they used to spend half a day mapping a 3-mile section of a road construction site with multiple launch points. With the X55, they can finish the entire scan in a single flight, greatly improving workflow efficiency.
Raul Garcia noted:
"What used to take us days or weeks to survey can now be done in a single morning with the X55"
The combination of the X55 with the Sony ILX-LR1 is truly a game-changing experience. The 61MP image sensor allows them to capture images in great detail, enabling them to fly higher and to cover larger areas in a single flight while still maintaining image quality. The simplicity and ease of use of the Sony ILX-LR1, combined with its lightweight design, make this package the ultimate solution for surveying needs.
The 12mm payload rail system of the X55 makes this a versatile platform for a variety of industrial uses. Clients like Everest can quickly swap the Sony ILX-LR1 package for the Hesai XT32 lidar package in a matter of minutes, allowing them to go from doing photogrammetry missions to lidar missions with minimal downtime and effort. This helps streamline their workflow, enabling them to fly the same mission with the same platform.
According to Raul Garcia, the option of being able to use the Hybrid Module in the future provides peace of mind. Knowing that their business needs will evolve over time, and that the X55 is versatile not only in terms of payloads but also in its ability to swap from the Battery Module to the Hybrid Module for longer flight times, they are confident that this platform will enable them to maximize their ROI and provide a pathway for scaling up the business.
To learn more about Everest LiDAR, check out their website: https://www.everestlidar.com/