This month, we are profiling the new Head of our Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) department, Mark Bickel. As one of our technical survey departments, the UAS team operates Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV’s), also known as “drones,” to collect a variety of survey products. The type of services we provide for our clients include aerial photos, multispectral photos, and LiDAR. Using precision laser technology, we can produce highly detailed topographic surveys in a fraction of the time it takes for traditional “boots-on-the-ground” survey, and Mark is an expert at performing and managing those surveys.
Mark started with SurvTech Solutions in June as a well-qualified and seasoned veteran of the field of drone aviation. His previous ten and a half years were spent professionally operating military-style drones for a private contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan, and before that he was with the United States Military. He now brings his rigorous field experience to the SurvTech team, where he pilots our state-or-the-art survey drones for many types of clients, including engineering, construction, land development, environmental, and mining.
Mark is the ideal type of person for the job because he loves being outdoors and admiring the natural world. When he is not on a SurvTech project, he can often be found hunting, fishing, and spending time with his family. He enjoys the fact that most of the time his “office” is in unique and remote locations. He has conducted surveys at many of the mining sites around Florida, commercial real estate properties, and construction sites. When asked about his most recent interesting field experience, he recounts a project in Tampa Bay conducting LiDAR topography on an island. “Waking up and taking a boat ride out to do an early morning flight over a small island in Tampa Bay was something that I really enjoyed, especially since we had only been living in Florida for a short time before that. I am also heading to Delaware this week to conduct a LiDAR flight for a client up there.” Mark stays on the move, looking for new opportunities to provide expert survey services to our clients.
To schedule your next aerial photo or topographic survey, contact Mark at mbickel@survtechsolutions.com.