PrecisionHawk acquires tech startups Hazon Solutions and InspecTools to provide complete drone technology and analytics for the energy market

PrecisionHawk, a leading provider of drone technology for the enterprise, has acquired drone startups Hazon and InspecTools to become the leading provider of drone technology and analytics for the energy market. The two startups specialize in the delivery of inspection services and technology for the energy industry and bring demonstrated domain expertise to enable tighter integration between the collection and the analysis of drone data. With the acquisition, Hazon Solutions will add A-Grade ISNET flight operations to PrecisionHawk’s growing portfolio of drone-based solutions. The acquisitions, which are subject to customary closing conditions, are expected to close later this month.

As part of the announcement, PrecisionHawk also said Paul Bingaman, CEO InspecTools, and David Culler, CEO HAZON, will join PrecisionHawk’s executive leadership team. The combination of these companies brings unparalleled expertise, technology and relationships in drone-based solutions for distribution lines, transmission lines, solar panels, wind turbines, and utility infrastructure.

Founded in 2010 by Christopher Dean and Ernest Earon, the Raleigh, North Carolina-based PrecisionHawk is a leading provider of drone technology for the enterprise. PrecisionHawk’s client list includes Fortune 500 companies and market leaders in 150 countries, spanning a range of industries, including agriculture, energy, insurance, government and construction. To date, PrecisionHawk has raised more than $100 million from leading venture capital firms including Third Point Ventures and Millennium Technology Value Partners, with strategic investments from enterprise customers and partners including Comcast Ventures, DuPont, Intel Capital, NTT Docomo, and Yamaha Motor.

PrecisionHawk is an information delivery company that combines unmanned aerial systems, remote sensing technologies and advanced data analytics to improve business operations and day-to-day decision making. The company provides a holistic platform using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for data collection and analysis software tools to deliver better business intelligence to clients across a wide range of civilian industries. PrecisionHawk also owns aerial data software, DataMapper, satellite imagery provider, Terraserver, and the Low Altitude Traffic and Airspace Safety platform for drones, LATAS. The team is comprised of over 200 professionals with extensive backgrounds in remote sensing, unmanned aircraft operations, software development, data processing and GIS systems development. PrecisionHawk brings value to an emerging market by offering an end-to-end solution for aerial data gathering, processing and analysis to provide actionable information across a wide range of data-intensive civilian industries.

“HAZON brings extensive aviation experience, standards-based operating procedures, certified drone flight operations and inspection services, widely regarded as the best in the energy industry, to the PrecisionHawk team. The company has delivered over 13,000 inspections totaling over 8,000 hours of flight time, with a majority focused in energy markets for Fortune 500 utilities,” PrecisionHawk said in a press release.

InspecTools brings high-fidelity machine vision software and data analysis tools built for the renewable energy market. Their market-leading software for both solar panel and wind turbine inspection is utilized by some of the largest equipment manufacturers and service providers in the world. Customers like Vestas, PG&E, and SMA Solar rely on InspecTools’ sophisticated reporting, analytics and machine learning capabilities.

Thanks to advances in technology and regulations, the energy market has quickly moved from experimenting with pilot projects to large scale deployment of drone solutions. Across distribution lines, transmission lines, solar panels, wind turbines, oil and gas and utility infrastructure, and emergency response – energy presents a current global market opportunity of $9.7 billion. According to IDC, worldwide spending on robotics and drones will accelerate over the next four years reaching $201.3 billion in 2022. While the value is clear across time, safety improvements and operational efficiency, scaling and managing a drone program can be complex.

“HAZON is excited to bring our world-class best practices and reputation for standards-based operations and safety to the PrecisionHawk team,” commented HAZON CEO David A. Culler, Jr. CAPT, USN (ret.). “By joining PrecisionHawk, our customers gain access to the next level of technological sophistication for more scalable, predictive and cost-efficient drone solutions that drive better business intelligence.”

InspecTools CEO, Paul Bingaman said: “InspecTools brings years of experience, analytics tools and machine vision software for renewable energy that is an immediate value-add to PrecisionHawk’s software analytics platform. This relationship further enhances the technologies and services that are fundamental to advancing the economic potential of drones in the energy market.”

Through investments and strategic business partnerships, PrecisionHawk continues to drive innovation with its best-in-class technology solutions and remains the world’s most well-capitalized commercial drone company. With a broad vision to take businesses airborne, its drone-based solutions strengthen the entire data value chain adding efficiency, insights and safety. The acquisition of HAZON and InspecTools underscores PrecisionHawk’s strategy to operate in high-growth markets and accelerate the adoption of commercial drones.

“We’re very pleased to bring together the established technology and multi-market reputation of HAZON and InspecTools with PrecisionHawk’s experience, team and expanded portfolio,” said Michael Chasen, CEO of PrecisionHawk. “By combining these offerings, our customers will have access to extensive and leading-edge energy products and services, regulatory expertise and a record of safe, secure and compliant operations.”