PASSION AND DEDICATION SEES DRONE OPERATIONS TAKE OFF
The sight of drones hovering over Ventia work locations is becoming a common sight thanks to the passion and dedication of Gary Dring.
Over the past year, Gary has harnessed the power of technology to build an innovative, cost-saving drone program for Ventia – all while maintaining his full-time role looking after health and education contracts and business development within the Facilities Management business.
Getting the in-house drone program off the ground has been no mean feat.
The efforts involved have included:
- Acquiring certification from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority
(CASA), with New Zealand certification underway - Sourcing and training 14 pilots across five Australian states
- Creating safe work method statements, manuals, risk assessments
and a library of supporting materials for pilots - Creating a standard safety kit for pilots; and
- Developing a go/no flight approval process for all flights.
Having our own drone capability brings a range of benefits to our company, in particular, the control it affords over the quality of work performed and safety processes and protocols.
The use of drones helps keep our people out of harm’s way by mitigating risks relating to working at height and working in and around live traffic – two of our top Critical Risk Protocols. Drones can also be used for the inspection of confined spaces, preventing potential exposure to atmospheric gas.
With one of our drones in the air every business day, being able to deliver this service in house – instead of outsourcing to subcontractors – is resulting in greater value for our clients and cost savings for us.
