PwC Launches Division for Drone Services

International consultancy PwC has launched its own drone services department, dedicated to offering clients around the world the best in commercial UAV applications. Based in Poland, the company’s new Drone Powered Solutions unit is a significant vote of confidence in the industry.

So you may be wondering, why Poland? Well, the country is one of the only places in the world to have comprehensive legislation in place regarding commercial drone flights. And that legislation has been in place since 2013. This means that it’s is very much ground zero in PwC’s attempts to develop and offer solutions and services to clients.

This is an exciting development. Not only because a company as large as PwC will be able to ply significant resources into developing software and drone solutions. But because this is also a move that backs the industry to succeed, and will hopefully help push through some much needed regulation of the commercial sector.

The news has also come alongside a report released by PwC titled Clarity from Above, which is well worth reading for a great insight into commercial drones. In the report, PwC estimate that the addressable market value of drone powered solutions stands at over $127bn. This is the value of current business services and labour that have a high potential for replacement in the very near future by drone powered solutions.

Adam Krason, CEO of PwC Poland, said that “Initially, most industries perceived drones to be an unknown new tool; very few recognised their potential impact on operations. But this attitude has been rapidly changing, as the realisation spreads that drone technology can support various industries on a large scale, solving problems that they didn’t even know existed. This trend has been particularly noticeable in Poland, thanks to the country’s long history of radio controlled model airplane societies, its high quality technical education and the aviation authorities’ open approach. This framework has encouraged multinational corporations to locate the development of drone services and pilot programs in Poland.”

Speaking to Dronelife, PwC’s director of Drone Powered Solutions, Adam Wisniewski, said that “One of the things we are focused on is helping our clients from all industries not just follow trends in the market, but try to stay ahead of them and gain a competitive advantage. We believe that drone technology, which is still a new phenomenon, will soon be used in a broad range of commercial applications by business. We are the first professional services firm that is ready to fully support clients in embracing this new opportunity, using drones and data analytics in conjunction with our more traditional business consulting services to gain insights and improve operations.”

Wisniewski was keen to point out that, despite several media outlets hinting at the contrary, any drones piloted by PwC clients are sub-contracted. He said, “The real value we bring is in our development of the software and applications that allow clients to process the unprecedented level of data gathered by drones for business insights. I think it says something to the market when a major consultancy like PwC takes the lead on helping companies to apply a new technology like drones. It helps change the technology from novelty item to mainstream tool of business.”