Drone forecasts are too low'

Robert Garbett founder and chief executive of Drone Major Group

The future value of the drone industry has been massively undervalued by recent forecasts according to a global trade organisation.

Robert Garbett, founder and chief executive of Drone Major Group, said PwC and Goldman Sachs forecasts of industry values were too low when he delivered a keynote speech on June 23 at Drone World Congress in Shenzhen, China.

He said: Less than a month ago, leading accountancy firm PwC, forecast that the drone industry in the UK alone would be worth £42 billion [approximately 48 billion] by 2030 but they were wrong. And two years ago, top banking firm Goldman Sachs said the world's drone industry would be worth $100 billion [approximately 86 billion] by 2020 they were wrong it will be much, much more because the opportunities are far greater than this, since such projections are based purely on an analysis which focuses only on the air industry...And we must define the entire drone industry as covering surface, underwater, air and space. So many members of the public simply do not realise the full spectrum of this amazing revolutionary industry. My company, and the British Standards Institution (BSI), define a drone as any vehicle, ship, aircraft, or hybrid system which is remotely or autonomously controlled.

This includes autonomous vehicles, pilotless aircraft, satellites, space craft, underwater ROVs, marine surface vehicles and most excitingly of all, hybrid systems which are increasingly breaking down environmental barriers by operating seamlessly between land, sea and air or simultaneously in all three. It is therefore clear, that the UAS or air drones, with which we've all become familiar, are only one category in a very, varied and exciting industry. So, we should always refer to drones in the wider sense, since to do otherwise will be ignoring the inevitable and ubiquitous future of this industry The potential is huge!

He added: This year, 2018, the worldwide drone industry will be boosted further by new drone standards, due to be released globally for public consultation by the International Standards Organisation (ISO) later this year.

I believe the development and adoption of these standards for the drone industry, in the months and years ahead, will lead to a new confidence in safety, security and compliance within this dynamic industry which represents a global phenomenon and a significant opportunity for any country which embraces it.

The new Standards will reinforce and deliver the underlying safety and quality principles upon which the drone industry can grow and thrive energised and empowered to open up new avenues to innovation that we can only begin to imagine.

For this reason, we need governments around the world to recognise the importance of the development of this vital business sector, which will have such a positive impact on the global economy, providing particular opportunities for those countries that embrace and enable the growth of this technology.

LINK:	http://www.inavateonthenet.net/news/article/drone-forecasts-are-too-lo...
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