The mining industry loves drone technology.

And it is hardly surprising, seeing how unmanned aerial systems have helped the industry achieve tasks that were previously very difficult and dangerous to undertake. Drones have helped mining companies get a feel of what underground operations look like before committing man power into the shafts, have helped in quantifying large volumes of ores, something which required physical enumeration before; have been instrumental in securing mining premises; as well as conducting aerial survey and mapping.

This last is true of a Ghanaian gold mining company, Newmount Gold (a Newmount Corporation subsidiary), which has re-engaged the services of drone services provider Delta Drone International, provide a drone-based LIDAR solution that will create an accurate 3D model of the earth and its surface characteristics to map new areas for the mine and mitigate potential risks prior to mine expansion construction commencing.

In a statement, Delta Drone International CEO, Christopher Clark said:

“To continue working with Newmont Corporation, one of the world’s leading enterprise gold mining companies, who is using advanced drone techniques for several types of project applications, is a testament to our specialist expertise and drones-as-a-service model.”

“Using the latest in drone LIDAR technology, we can fly with this sensor in a fixed-wing drone, allowing us to map new areas and essentially compete with manned LIDAR, but at a lower price point.”

“We are seeing increased demand to use our LIDAR capability to create digital elevation models that allows companies to see below thick forest and other surface vegetation and more accurately determine site suitability for certain types of infrastructure and how a site can be used.”

“The trust our enterprise customers place in us to help solve these types of challenges through a fully outsourced solution is the reason we have long-standing customer relationships and are the go-to drones-as-a-service provider in Africa.”