The use of drones has arrived to port logistics and the maritime sector, revolutionizing the industry significantly. The use of these innovative technologies enables the improvement of processes and even automates others that were traditionally manual. From security to fleet tracking. In today’s post, we are going to explain how drones are transforming the way of working in port logistics.
At this point, everyone knows what a drone is: an unmanned aerial vehicle that can be controlled remotely or programmed to operate autonomously. A key feature of them is their small size and ability to reach places inaccessible to the human eye. This unique advantage has led to their adoption in various processes within the port logistics sector, among many others. Here are the main applications:
- Surveillance and security. Surveillance of both ports and their vessels is much easier with drones. These allow an aerial supervision that other types of cameras cannot offer. Their small size allows them to take pictures from many different angles, often inaccessible by other means, offering real-time comprehensive views of port activities.
- Traffic management. Managing vessel traffic is a complex aspect of port operations due to the narrow entry and exit channels typical of ports. Implementing a vessel traffic management system with drone support allows for real-time tracking of ship locations and movements. This reduces reliance on radar data and second-hand reports, enabling operators to make informed decisions. Combining drones with artificial intelligence can further enhance operations, such as predicting potential collisions.
- Infrastructure inspection. This technology allows inspections of the infrastructure in an easy way, reaching hard-to-access areas due to their small size. This offers numerous advantages like minimizing manual inspection risks, improving inspection quality and reducing the costs by eliminating the need for heavy machinery. Equipped with high-resolution cameras and sensors, drones can detect potential violations or maintenance issues.
- Enhanced safety. Linked closely to infrastructure inspections, drones can inspect hazardous areas and perform tasks that might pose risks to humans. Additionally, they can operate in adverse weather conditions and even conduct underwater inspections, protecting workers from unnecessary dangers.
- Environmental Sustainability. Another positive point of drones is that they help maintain sustainability. By having this technology, inspections are faster and easier to do, as we have already mentioned, and therefore, they can be done more frequently and can detect serious problems such as the emission of polluting gases. This makes it possible to correct them in time to avoid a significant environmental impact.
- Inventory management. Accounting for the inventory held at a port is a tedious and time-consuming task, however, the arrival of drones has provided a solution to this process, as they can control and account for inventory without the need for manpower. Saving time and resources, it also prevents human error.
- Cost reduction. Finally, it is important to highlight an advantage that encompasses all of the above: cost reduction. By being able to improve all the above processes such as inspection, surveillance and inventory management, not only time, risks and errors are saved, but also costs.
All of the above makes it clear that drones are the present and future in ports, their use in this sector will continue to grow as this technology will continue to evolve, allowing increasingly complex tasks to be performed.