NATE Provides Communications Infrastructure Contractors with Best Practices Advisory Resource for Drone Operations

Commercial UAV News has often talked about the value that drones are providing for infrastructure inspections from inspecting stacks for gas leaks to assessing power and communications grids, but how these inspections are run are often left up to individual companies to figure out. With varying approaches and procedures, there is little standardization and that can mean potential risks could be overlooked and left unaccounted for. With the release of its sUAS Operations Best Practices Advisory resource, NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association, is changing that for communications infrastructure inspections.

By providing the industry with an in-depth document on everything from safety policy and reporting to pre-flight checks and emergency procedures, NATE, a non-profit trade association, is helping to standardize the industry’s approach to drone operations.

“The Association is excited to officially unveil this NATE sUAS Operations Best Practices Advisory resource document to the industry today,” stated newly appointed UAS Committee Chairman Bryan McKernan of Consortiq in Annapolis, Maryland. “NATE is a prominent leader when it comes to the integration and safe utilization of UAS around communications infrastructure and these guidelines can play a major role in providing the industry’s wireless carriers, vertical realtors, contractors and technicians with a go-to resource to help standardize the training requirements and operator processes in the industry. NATE’s goal is for this new resource to ultimately serve to help scale commerce drone use in the industry in order to maximize the many benefits of this technology.”

These kinds of industry-specific resources are important for establishing best practices that are aligned with established workflows and processes, especially in industries like communications infrastructure where complex safety and operational procedures already exist.

The NATE sUAS Operations Best Practices Advisory resource document is available to NATE members and the industry as a free resource and accessible to be downloaded on NATE’s website Here.

Danielle Gagne

Danielle Gagne was the Editorial Analyst for Commercial UAV News. She continues to be dedicated to providing commercial drone professionals with exclusive insights and content from experts in the field, keeping the industry informed and up to date on everything related to drones.

Danielle originally came to Commercial UAV News from an editorial background in higher education publishing where she edited books on every topic from financial risk management to nanotechnology and morphing wing technology. During that time, she reported and conveyed the business needs and expectations between all points of her organization and the technology team, working closely with IT development. She found these aspects of her previous career invaluable to understanding and conveying the convergence of technology, business, public perception, and regulation in the drone industry as editorial analyst.