Ever since its establishment in 2006, Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC), the master developer of ports and industrial zones in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, has proven that innovation, latest technologies and international best practices are integral parts of the company’s daily operations, corporate guidelines and procedures. ADPC features nine of the world’s most modern and largest ship-to-shore (STS) quay cranes at its flagship deep-water Khalifa Port, the first semi-automated port in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. The company has also been the first in the region to offer awardwinning cloud computing solutions for its customers who are operating their production plants in the Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad), right next to Khalifa Port.
Quadcopter flies 300m high
Both, Khalifa Port and Kizad represent an initial investment of US$6.5 billion and mark the biggest industrial project ever undertaken in Abu Dhabi. State-of-theart infrastructures, facilities and equipment define ADPC’s mega project that is being developed into one of the largest industrial zones in the world and has been initiated to diversify Abu Dhabi’s economy, in line with the emirate’s Economic Vision 2030. Most recently, ADPC launched its cutting edge ‘Eye in the Sky’ drone camera to increase the surveillance at Khalifa Port, Kizad and ADPC’s other ports in and around Abu Dhabi. The so-called commercially available Quadcopter is a remote controlled fourpropeller aircraft which carries a high quality camera and a 4GB micro SD card. The aircraft measures around 50cm3 and flies up to 300m high while taking 14MP stills and full HD videos.
Radar displays distance to pilot
The Quadcopter has its own wi-fi network for data transfer and is GPS-enabled to identify its location. It also offers position holding, altitude lock and stable hovering through a three-axis robotic stabilisation system. Furthermore, it is equipped with flight radar and displays its position in relation to the pilot, making it easy to calculate the distance to an incident, or the area and situation in question. Sultan Al Jaberi, vice-president of regulations, HSE and security at ADPC is keen to take safety and security measures to the next level. He argues that living in a world with highly advanced and reliable technical devices and automation procedures obliges ADPC to utilise such devices and procedures, not only to provide its customers with the best service offerings but also to ensure the safest and most secure work environment.
Drone camera complements CCTV
Unmanned, remote-controlled aircraft equipped with cameras are not new and have been used by the military and police for many years. What is new is the fact that these aircraft, such as Quadcopters or drone cameras, are increasingly infiltrating our day-to-day life and have been designed for the open market. They are reasonably priced and easy to operate. The ADPC philosophy is always to try and find new, innovative ways to enhance its services and operations, as well as its safety and security measures. The drone camera perfectly complements its CCTV cameras, of which 761 alone are focused on Khalifa Port. The drone camera helps ADPC to instantly check even difficult to access locations from various perspectives without putting any employees in danger.
