Drones ignite demand for talented engineers in Malaysia

Drones or UAV (unmanned aerial vehicles) are generally perceived as a technology used for spying or attacking targets.

Not for long though.

New market demands are reinventing the way drones are to be utilised. New drone models can be used to improve government services and aid civilian living.

In Malaysia, a few drone markers are now capitalising this market,Among them is Dragonfly Robotix based in Sabah. Its drones are used in the oil and gas and agriculture sectors, and is used to survey huge land areas. Furthermore, the technology is said to improve logistics, photography, farming, surveillance and reconnaissance.

"Imagine being able to supply photographs for environmental assessment purposes and photographic evidence for the monitoring of pollution, present images of roads, access points and traffic flows to assist planning or to search large areas of land within a few minutes, and provide video feedback in real time during a search and rescue operation, said Bob Chua of Dragonfly Robotix.

He added that Malaysia is not short of talent when it comes to mechatronics engineering and robotics development. But he says it is about time that investors start looking at robotics as the new frontier.

This new development is not only for Malaysia but for the rest of the world. According to a report by CNBC, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle systems International forecasts the total domestic economic impact of introducing drones into US airspace would reach more than US$82.1 billion (RM261.6 billion) between 2015 and 2025.