Disinfection by Drone: A New Application for Our Times

Perpetual Motion, a new company founded by commercial cleaning veterans Scott Thornton, president, and Jimmy Petrick, Lead Consultant, is launching commercial disinfection by drone services for large indoor venues and outdoor facilities.

“Perpetual Motion is a disinfecting distributorship that combines the industry’s most advanced drone from Lucid Drone Technologies with eco-friendly chemistry from Mark-V and Titania and full-service, expert-backed support to enable the large-scale disinfecting needs of learning institutions, athletic facilities and other large infrastructures seeking safe, sanitary and seamless reopenings,” says a company press release. “These capabilities aren’t limited to outdoor facilities, as Perpetual Motion’s groundbreaking approach empowers disinfecting for indoor venues as well.”

Disinfection by drone hasn’t been a major application in the drone industry – in part because it can be difficult for drone pilots to understand commercial disinfection protocols, and vice versa.  The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has created a need – and the drone industry has moved to fill it.  In the very beginning of the COVID crisis, drone companies like DJI moved to modify crop spraying drones to accomodate disinfectant for use overseas.  Other companies have worked to test indoor disinfection by drone applications.

Perpetual Motion is “the first to bring to market state-of-the-art drone technology combined with an N-listed EPA-approved, hospital and food-grade neutral Dual Quat disinfectant from Mark-V,” says the press release. Perpetual Motion’s protocol follows the disinfectant with an application of Titania, “a non-friction, antimicrobial coating that adheres to any surface, providing an “armor shield” coat that’s effective for up to a year for continuous protection.”

Certainly, institutions and enterprises need a way to ensure that their spaces are disinfected – and it isn’t easy to cover a large space in a cost-effective manner.  Disinfection by drones could offer a major savings in both time and money – and could ultimately be more effective than relying on human application.

“Not only does our solution retain effectiveness for over a year, it’s extremely safe for humans, animals and the environment,” said Perpetual Motion Lead Consultant Jimmy Petrick.

“At Perpetual Motion, we understand the urgency for schools, arenas and other large facilities to open doors as safely as possible. We believe our end-to-end solution—which combines American-made drone technology and safe disinfecting chemistry—can truly drive the success of reopenings and give facility operators peace of mind, knowing they have deployed a solution that ensures the safety of their patrons, fans and students,” Thornton tells DRONELIFE.