The Commercial Drone Market in 2019
A recent report from Goldman Sachs predicts that the total spending on drones worldwide will be over $100 billion by the year 2020. The defense sector remains the largest area of spending and is expected to spend a total of over $70 billion on drones between 2016 and 2020. The second biggest area of spending, at $17 billion, will be the consumer market (members of the public buying their drones from DJI and other major manufacturers).
commercial drone market in 2018
However, the commercial drone market is quickly expanding in 2018. Two industries dominate the projected spend with 80% share. The first, construction, is the biggest industry sector at $11 billion USD, covering a very wide area of work including inspection, maintenance, surveying and mapping.
Drones are used in construction because specialised equipment is required for a lot of this type of work. For example surveying large areas very accurately may require a fixed wing aircraft and ground control points or an RTK receiver.
The second biggest area of growth is predicted to be agriculture at $6 billion. The growth here will be driven by precision agriculture, a part of which traditionally has been carried out using satellite imagery, or by handheld or tractor mounted sensors. You’re not going to find cheap drones in the AG sector.
The data gathered and analysis carried out is then used by variable rate technology on equipment such as seeders and sprayers. Drones are now another option for farmers to capture NDVI imagery, and have been able to capture and process maps quicker than satellites. As for construction specialist equipment is required, mainly a multi spectral camera and then the software to map the farm. For larger farms fixed wings also become a viable option.
The use of drones commercially is growing and maturing quickly, and at the same time we are seeing a huge growth in the number of licenced pilots. It will be hard going for these pilots to make a career commercially without specialising and moving above and beyond basic photography and videos.
How much is the drone market worth?
In 2016, the global drone market was worth $4.5 billion USD (according to Business Insider). By the end of the 2017 financial year (the most recent information we have, obviously) it was worth $17.82 billion. If this shocking trend continues (and depending on whose numbers and analysis you trust most) the drone market is expected to be worth between 50 and $100 billion by the year 2020.
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