Project Overview

A landowner in Talofofo, Guam needed to assess the terrain and elevation of their property before pursuing development plans. However, the site posed significant challenges, including dense vegetation, steep slopes, and difficult terrain, making traditional surveying methods inefficient and costly.

Given the larger land area and more extreme terrain, 2cofly utilized drone-mounted LiDAR technology to generate a highly detailed topographic dataset, providing the landowner with accurate elevation and terrain insights for planning.

The Challenge

Surveying a large, heavily vegetated site in rough terrain is an expensive and time-intensive process when using traditional methods. Key challenges included:

• Dense tree coverage obscuring terrain details

• Steep, rugged slopes making ground access difficult

• The need for high-accuracy elevation data for land development feasibility

To overcome these obstacles, 2cofly deployed advanced LiDAR technology, which is capable of penetrating dense vegetation to capture true ground elevation data.

Approach & Methodology

Drone-Based LiDAR Mapping

2cofly deployed LiDAR-equipped drones to capture thousands of data points per second, creating a high-density 3D point cloud that mapped the land beneath the vegetation. This approach eliminated the need for manual clearing and ground-based surveying, ensuring both speed and accuracy.

Advanced Terrain Modeling

Using the collected LiDAR data, we generated detailed elevation models that provided a clear representation of the site’s slopes, landforms, and development constraints.

Deliverables

• 3D Colorized Point Cloud – A precise digital terrain representation with elevation details

• Digital Elevation Model (DEM) – Elevation dataset for development planning

• 1’ Contour Map – Detailed contour lines essential for land grading and infrastructure design

Results & Project Impact

High-Accuracy Terrain Data for Planning

The landowner received a comprehensive and precise assessment of the land’s elevation, enabling them to make data-driven decisions for future development.

Significant Time & Cost Savings

Traditional surveying for a large and heavily vegetated property could have taken months, but drone-based LiDAR completed data collection in days, drastically reducing both time and expenses.

Mapping Through Dense Vegetation

Unlike traditional photogrammetry, which only captures the surface, LiDAR penetrated thick vegetation to map the actual ground elevation—providing an accurate foundation for engineering and construction planning.

Conclusion

This project showcased the effectiveness of LiDAR in large-scale, challenging terrain, enabling landowners to gain critical insights without the limitations of traditional surveys. By integrating drone technology and geospatial expertise, 2cofly delivered highly accurate topographic data that will be instrumental in the landowner’s future development plans.

For landowners, developers, and engineers needing high-precision terrain mapping in difficult environments, 2cofly offers efficient, cost-effective drone solutions that enhance project feasibility and planning accuracy.

2cofly (pronounced Ecofly) is Micronesia's leading drone service and education provider. Our core competency lies in remote sensing via various sensing technologies such as photogrammetry, LiDAR, thermal and more.

Few key deliverables we can output with our drones & sensors:

• Orthomosaic Mapping (+ Planimetric Mapping)

• Topographic Mapping (via LiDAR & photogrammetry)

• General LiDAR Mapping (land feasibility study, power line, etc)

• Aerial Inspection

• Aerial Magnetometry (underground metal detection)

• Thermal Map (radiometric)

We are also the largest drone training and education provider, offering:

• Online Course

• In-person workshops

• Custom curriculums for students and professionals

Schedule a free consultation

(671) 988-1532 | dwl@2cofly.com