#Gravel stockpile calculator full
#Gravel stockpile calculator pro
#Gravel stockpile calculator trial
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Two commonly used standards are the Udden-Wentworth scale (a scale commonly used by geologists in the US) and the international standard, ISO 14688. Size classifications of rock fragments (and gravel) can vary.

For example, sand is made up of rock fragments smaller than those in gravel, while gravel is smaller than cobbles, and cobbles are smaller than boulders. Rock fragments are typically classified based on the size of the individual pieces that make up the aggregate. Gravel, along with other types of rock fragments such as sand and crushed stone, is commonly used for construction purposes, though it has other uses as well.

#Gravel stockpile calculator trial

Learn more about our paid subscription plans or start your free trial today.Gravel is a loose mixture of rock fragments formed as a result of erosion.

#Gravel stockpile calculator pro

The volumetric capability is part of all DroneDeploy’s customer plans, including the Pro plan, starting at $99 per month. Want to talk to Dallas about volumetrics on your job site? You can reach him at Add Volumetric Analysis to Your Map He also recommends that “Anyone doing a volume calculation should educate themselves on what a cubic yard is (3ft x 3ft x 3ft)” and what it looks like, so that they can get a better sense of whether their calculations are “in the right ballpark”. “That way you can know if there are obstacles around them, indentions that might make an impact on the volumes so that you can bring that up with the client before,” said Dallas. “It’s important to know what piles they want calculated before you get to the site so that you can visually look at them on the ground” Areas with the same color have the same elevation. Here is a volume calculation made while viewing the elevation layer of a map. The “toe” is where the slope of the pile meets the ground. Once he’s uploaded his photos to DroneDeploy and his map has been generated, Dallas draws a polygon around the “toe” of each pile to define its base. Once the flight is complete, he takes the SD card out of the drone and puts it into his laptop while still on-site for a quick image quality check. When flying his DJI Phantom 3 Advanced, he plans his mission on the DroneDeploy mobile app and watches as the drone automatically takes off, follows the flight path and lands again.

When he first shows up, Dallas goes through his safety checklist to checks for hazards that might affect his flight, such as power lines, high buildings or trees.

#Gravel stockpile calculator full

Not only would this take a lot of time and put the surveyor at risk climbing up and down the piles, but this process would also result in relatively few data points, compared to the digital surface area captured by a drone.įor this 30 acre site Dallas says “it would take a full day to cover with traditional methods.” How long was Dallas on site with his drone? Just thirty minutes. “Drones are safer, faster, and about half the cost as compared to traditional ground-based volumetrics.” - Dallas VanZantenĪ ground-based surveyor would measure elevation every 5–10 feet on each pile. It’s common to use traditional ground-based surveying methods to calculate stockpile volumes, but drones provide a huge benefit without sacrificing accuracy. “They don’t want to spend too much money to process material that might sit for a while, but they also want enough so that when someone calls they’re ready to go” Dallas VanZantenĪlthough Dallas has flown multiple sites for Granite Construction, let’s focus on just one - a 30-acre site with a gravel pit and 7 stockpiles.Īerial map of the gravel pit and stockyard Why Use Drones? Knowing the volumes of their stockpiles is vital information in Granite Construction’s decisions about whether to extract or process more material to fill their orders. Dallas flies their production sites to help them monitor inventory of materials, including different types of gravel and recycled asphalt. One of Dallas’s clients is Granite Construction (NYSE: GVA), one of the largest civil contractors and construction materials producers in the United States. Dallas chose DroneDeploy because it’s “easy to use” and allows him to “spend more time flying and less time processing data.” Monitoring Stockpile Inventory Today, Dallas flies a DJI Phantom 3 Advanced, a Skywalk fixed-wing and a custom-built Pixhawk for construction, mining and manufacturing clients all over the United States. With 11 years of experience in the construction industry, and six years as an RC aircraft hobbyist, he saw a big opportunity for drones to bring value to the job site. With that in mind, we’d like to introduce Dallas VanZanten, owner of Skymedia Northwest, an aerial mapping and photography company, to tell how he uses volume measurements and share his tips for getting more accurate calculations.ĭallas started Skymedia Northwest two years ago.