–to soon employ robotics in its operations, explore opportunities in other sectors

IN a move which seeks to revolutionise the practices within the agricultural sector, local drone solutions company GuyDrones, will be exploring the possibility of employing its modern-day technology in the aquaculture sub-sector and utilising robotics to advance other aspects of agriculture.

Vice-President and Chief Pilot at GuyDrones, Ershad Mahamad, said that drone technology is not limited to land and air, as there are also underwater drones that could be used to boost production and enhance productivity in the aquaculture sector.

“Drone technology is not just limited to land, we can put it under water, which is aquaculture, in maritime and marine as well… on the agriculture side, we have sluices and aqueducts and so forth that these underwater drones can go under and monitor the integrity of those structures,” Mahamad said during an interview with the Guyana Chronicle on the sidelines of the recent three-day Agri-Investment Forum and Expo.

The drone technology, called ROV, features a sonar and thermal camera and it could dive 300 metres below the surface of water.
“ROV, we use it for recreation and unfortunately we don’t have too many clear waters in Guyana but, it has been used in other regions of the Caribbean, where they can go and see the coral reefs and so forth,” Mahamad related.

Considering its benefits, he said that the underwater drones would not only benefit the aquaculture sector in Guyana, but also assist with infrastructural development.

Using the Demerara Harbour Bridge as an example of how this drone technology could boost efficiency, Mahamad said: “A typical example we have is the harbour bridge that has anchor points… this drone will go under there and see what [is] happening versus the conventional way of having a diver go long hours.”

Additionally, he related that incorporating drone technology in agriculture is far more expansive than just using the device for spraying crops. He noted that incorporating drone and robotics into the sector could make the lives of farmers easier.

“Drone technology is not just limited to the drone, but it has sensors and it goes hand in hand with robotics as well… my goal, objectively, is to go into drone and robotics. We are going to have drones and robotics looking after everything in agriculture, from pulling out a weed, crop- monitoring; providing data to the farmer[s] so they can analyse and make wise judgment,[s] and so forth,” Mahamad said.

He added: “We have a drone that could basically tell you how many cows you have in your yard and if the cow is pregnant as well, so it monitors the heart of the cow as well. And we know that is a hard task if you have over 100 cows.”

With the hope of further expansion, GuyDrones is set to establish an assembly plant in Guyana to not just meet agricultural needs in Guyana, but also the entire Caribbean region.

On this note, Mahamad said: “Our goal in the next 10 years is to have a drone-assembly plant in Guyana, and supply the region and CARICOM as well. I already have the necessary training that is required for it and I’m just looking into the infrastructural aspect of it.”
He related that with such an expansion of technology, agriculture as we know it would be revolutionised.