TOPODRONE, a Swiss based designer and manufacturer of high-precision surveying equipment, and RASA Surveying, an integrated surveying company, enter a technological partnership to advance airborne surveying approaches and accommodate coastal management and monitoring demands in the Philippines. RASA Surveying will adapt Swiss hardware & software for data collection and processing to overcome local operational limitations for coastal mapping.

In Q1 2023 TOPODRONE & RASA Surveying teams agreed on the strategic partnership and technology exchange to collect elevation and depth data for effective coastal management and planning. RASA Surveying’s new approach synchronizes current photogrammetry and LiDAR practices with the bathymetric data collection capabilities of TOPODRONE AQUAMAPPER. The join between orthophotos, above and below waterline point clouds and bathymetric data is expected to better support authorities to manage coastlines and enhance the resilience of coastal communities.

‘Coastal cities in the Philippines are vulnerable to the effects of climate change and climate-related disaster events. However, coastal areas are expensive and challenging to map using conventional technologies. UAV-based surveying of coastal environments allows quickly and accurately to collect shallow water data and details on the land-sea interface’, Maxim Baklykov, TOPODRONE CEO, explains.

‘TOPODRONE AQUAMAPPER will provide RASA the much-needed efficiency in doing bathymetric survey. We will be able to conduct our bathymetric surveys with ease since the equipment involves only 2 people to operate. Furthermore, it can quickly cover a large survey area within a short span of time without sacrificing data accuracy’, Raymund Arnold S. Alberto, President & Owner, adds.

To learn more about RASA Surveying team’s test flight with TOPODRONE AQUAMAPPER in the Cabuyao City, Province of Laguna watch the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgxb4WLS_eU.

Launched in October 2022 at Intergeo, TOPODRONE AQUAMAPPER, has been named as a finalist in the XCELLENCE IN TECHNOLOGY of the XCELLENCE Awards 2023 by AUVSI. On May 17-18, 2023 TOPODRONE will participate in GEO Business in London (booth G357); as a part of the expo business programme the company will run a session ‘Airborne bathymetry: surveyors’ insights’ on May 18. Guest speakers are Maxim Baklykov, CEO, TOPODRONE; Roman Kirsanov, CEO, ERELIS; Andrei Șueran, Managing Partner, Graphein.