Day 12: Drones!
- Drone Operating is a great career to go into and there is a lot of need for them out there! KCI hires some people to exclusively operate drones for their business.
- You need to get a Pilot's License in order to fly a commercial drone. However, you do not need a college degree and you can even take a course and take the test while you are in high school!
- You may be interested in flying drones if you like video games and playing on your Smart Phone! You do have to have good hand-eye coordinator and attention to detail.
Bachelor's Degree in Marketing from Salisbury University
6+ years at KCI
I walk into Lauren's office and I see Star Wars pictures everywhere! I immediately know that she is going to be a fun person to hang out with today. Lauren tells me a little more about her job. She does a lot of stuff, from working on the back end of KCI's external website, to doing write-ups for awards, to event planning, photos and videos of projcets and construction sites, and of course, drone footage! A lot of the drone footage you see on the KCI website, Lauren did! Lauren explains that she uses a drone for marketing purposes and to produce aesthetically pleasing images and footage. Surveyors, on the other hand, use it for their technical and topographical work. Drones may also be used for inspections and to document progress of a construction project. Lauren said that the benefit of using drones during the pandemic was that you could show people job sites without needing a whole crew on the ground, thus limiting physical contact.
Lauren explained that you have to get your Pilot's license in order to operate a commercial drone. Who knew you needed a pilot's license? Lauren did Remote Drone Pilot Training through CCBC in order to prepare to take a test that is required to become licensed. Lauren said that the test is very difficult! It actually is part of the test that a Pilot who flies a plane has to take. She said you have to learn meteorology and nautical maps, even though in reality you probably won't ever use that knowledge when flying a drone. Lauren said you don't even need to have a high school diploma to take the class or test to get your pilot's license. She didn't even think there was an age requirement.
Lauren said that the outlook for drone operators is very good! She said that KCI even has employees that exclusively work with drones. It is a really hot career right now with lots of opportunities and you don't even need a high school diploma to become licensed! My students could get licensed while they are in high school!
Lauren shows me her drone, which she says costs about $2,000, but the ones surveyors use are way more expensive and have way more features than hers. Then she takes me outside to show me how she flies the drone. It looks like a little spaceship! It is like a robot with propellors surrounding it. It actually reminds me of Star Wars- no wonder she has gotten into drones! Lauren shows me how she attaches her smart phone to a controller that looks like a video game controller. She actually says they are just like video game controllers! I ask her if she is into playing video games and she says yes! Again, a perfect job for her! I immediately thing of my fiancé's son, who loves Star wars and video games and I think- wow, this could be a perfect career for him!
I'm so excited that Lauren gets to let me try to fly the drone (see photo above)! The controls are really quite sensitive and I can definitely see how you have to have good hand-eye coordination. There is also a limit to how high you can fly a drone and it always must be in your line of site. It can be up higher, however, if you're trying to capture the roof of a building.
Lauren said that if you are in a certain radius of an airport, you can't fly a drone. I also found it interesting that you aren't allowed to fly a drone in Washington, D.C. for security purposes. Totally makes sense!
After we play outside, Lauren says that someone in Natural Resources has asked if she can get some drone video footage of a stream restoration project they had just completed in Reisterstown. She said she would drive us over and I can take a look at the work she does.
The drive out to Reisterstown was so beautiful and I really had a great time chatting with Lauren in the car. She is so fun and down-to-earth. I feel like we could be instant friends!
Once we get to Reisterstown, we park in another cute little neighborhood and Lauren immediately knows where to go even though she said she's never been here before. I learn that Lauren has the GPS coordinates of where to go which is helpful. We find a clearing in the trees where the stream is and Lauren takes the drone out and back for some video footage. It's a small but really pretty stream.
Lauren wants to try to get footage of the other side of the stream before the battery runs out (the battery doesn't last too long). So we walk across the stream but this time we have to actually walk in the woods because there's too much tree coverage for her to fly it through. We have a bunch of brush to walk through but I don't mind because I love hiking and I have my hiking shoes on! We even see a baby deer! Lauren starts the footage but there is a bend and it's a little harder to keep her eye on the drone so she asks me to help keep my eye on it, which I'm happy to do. This is exciting! When it's time to land the drone, she says there isn't a smooth spot to land in the tall brush. If she lands it in the tall brush, the propellers may break. So she asks me to help her bring it over the trees and back out to the street. I go out on the street and help guide her and she lands it successfully!
What a cool experience and how neat that I got to be a part of getting some footage today! I want thank Lauren for spending so much time with me today and for all of the photos she has taken of me for the past few weeks. She is awesome!
How would you describe your job to a high school student in a few sentences?
"I get to take cool videos and photos for marketing materials. I help put KCI in the best light!"
What advice do you have for a high school student?
“Find your passion and pursue it however you can, even if it's a hobby, and if it's your career, even better!" Put your best foot forward and there will be many opportunities available for you.
Time to head home and catch up on my blog...next week is my last week and I have lots to do to prepare for my presentation to the CEO and leadership team on Wednesday. I can't believe this externship is almost coming to an end...
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