Forest inventory with drones is an automated solution for planning and monitoring wood harvesting based on precise data. This technology allows forest owners to increase the profitability of logging. With this online service, you can create a 3D copy of the whole forest plot using drones.
How it works
The client determines the boundaries of potential timber harvesting sites, and either a client employee or a Forgis pilot takes aerial photographs and transmits data to the server. The results of the tree-wise inventory are uploaded online the next day. The project team helps the client to use the data to the maximum benefit.
With the help of drones that fly around forest plots with high–precision cameras and laser scanners, one can create a three-dimensional copy of the forest and literally take into account every tree – its species, height, diameter, geographical coordinates. This method provides very high accuracy and speed of data collection, while the factor of human error is almost excluded.
Tree-wise inventory is able to boost the profitability of logging by 20-40% through smart planning of the forest plot and helps make managerial decisions on the solid base of relevant data on the availability and quality of forest resources.
Preliminary analysis of the forest plot allows to locate cutting area limits based on user-preferred criteria. Our field-based research revealed that cutting trees located only on 40% of the forest plot may yield 80% of sawlogs. Limits of the cutting area are optimized to boost the volume of preferred timber assortments. Smaller forest plot area leads to lower logging costs.