Global Benchmarking Program

Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) to Enhance the Design, Construction, Inspection, and Maintenance of Transportation Infrastructure

The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Global Benchmarking Program (GBP) conducted a study on the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) to enhance transportation infrastructure.  The purpose of the study was to learn about mature UAS applications in advanced digital project delivery and contactless practices conducted by international experts.  The goal of the study was to identify opportunities to adopt UAS to enhance the design, construction, inspection, and maintenance of transportation infrastructure, thereby benefiting the U.S. highway transportation and digital construction sectors.  The study team identified diverse uses of UAS as a supplemental or enhancing tool (rather than a replacement) for human workers performing critical structural inspections, conducting construction site surveys, working at high or difficult-to-reach locations, etc.  Most importantly, the study team found that mature UAS use cases internationally have improved safety along with one or more of the following benefits: improved efficiency, improved data quality, greater data quantity, cost savings, and time savings compared to traditional methods.  This report organizes findings from the United Kingdom and Germany by i) UAS use cases and best practices benefiting the highway transportation and digital construction sectors, ii) digital models and data management supported by UAS, and iii) asset lifecycle management supported by UAS.