Survey the pavement without closing it.
Joint distress and surface degradation mapped from an annual overhead pass, in place of a walking survey that needs a closure window on every runway, taxiway and yard you want to see.
- GSD
- ≤0.3 m (VHR)
- Cadence
- Annual
- Platform
- VHR satellite / aerial
- Spectral
- RGB
- Reported by
- Station or segment
The pavement you can't get onto
The pavement management program wants a current condition read every year. An inspector or a consultant's crew walks sample units on the runways, taxiways and aprons, logging each distress by type and severity on a field sheet.
Getting on the pavement means a closure window. Airside operations agrees a time, the section is closed and notified, and the crew works inside the gap while the airline schedule waits. At a port, a yard has to be cleared of stacks and straddle carriers first.
The busy pavements are the ones with the shortest windows, so they are the ones walked least, and the sample units that do get rated stand in for the rest.
Walking survey and overhead pass, step by step
Getting onto the pavement
Walking surveyBook a closure window with airside operations, close and notify the section, and fit the crew into the gap.
Pavement SurveyThe overhead pass is scheduled around live operations. Nothing on the ground is closed to capture it.
Still yours: Any follow-up walk of a flagged spot still needs a window, and you book it.
Choosing what gets looked at
Walking surveyThe crew walks sample units. The rest of the section is judged from those.
Pavement SurveyEvery part of the movement area the imagery covers is read, not a sample of it.
Finding the distress
Walking surveyInspectors walk the joints and surface and write down each distress on a field sheet.
Pavement SurveyJoint distress and surface degradation are picked out from the imagery and mapped by station along the pavement.
Getting findings into the maintenance schedule
Walking surveyField sheets are typed up or keyed into the pavement management system, section by section.
Pavement SurveyA CSV by station or segment ID comes back with a severity flag on each segment, ready for the maintenance schedule.
Deciding which spots to send someone to
Walking surveyThe walked sample units set the priorities, and unwalked pavement waits for the next cycle.
Pavement SurveyThe severity flags point the crew at the segments that look worst. Follow-up verification goes where the map says to look.
The formal rating
Walking surveyCertified inspectors compute a PCI from the walked sample units.
Pavement SurveyNothing here replaces that. Where a PCI is required, your certified process still produces it.
Still yours: The PCI, the treatment decision and the contract.
What comes back from a pass
- Map layer
Joint distress map
Distress along the joints, located by station on each runway, taxiway or yard. It serves the "Finding the distress" row. Delivered once per annual pass.
- Map layer
Surface degradation layer
Visible wear, patching and weathering mapped across the pavement surface. It serves the same row and opens in your GIS.
- Segment attribute
Severity flag per segment
A severity flag on each segment, so the list can be sorted. It serves the "Deciding which spots to send someone to" row.
- CSV
CSV export
Findings by station or segment ID, laid out to paste into your maintenance schedule or load to your pavement management system. It serves the "Getting findings into the maintenance schedule" row.
How it works
Reference supplied
You send the movement area or yard boundary and the station or segment reference you use. Your numbering is what the findings come back in.
Annual pass
We schedule the overhead capture around your operations and your clear-sky windows. This is a scoped pilot over an area you pick. A pilot area is usually one runway or apron, or one yard.
Condition mapped
Joint distress and surface degradation are picked out and located.
Delivery
Findings come back by station. We agree the delivery date against your maintenance schedule and capital improvement plan before the pass, and we go through the flagged segments with you.
Limits
The old method still sees more
A walking crew sees sealant condition, hairline cracks and how wide a joint has opened. At 0.3 m a pixel is wider than a joint, so none of that shows from above. What does show is broken or spalled stretches of joint, patches, and wear as a pattern across a panel.
Surface only
This reads what is visible on the surface. It says nothing about the base, subgrade or structural capacity.
Not a PCI
The output is a visual screening layer. It does not produce a PCI and does not stand in for an ASTM D5340 survey or any rating you must file.
Clear daylight only
Capture needs a clear day. Cloud, wet pavement, low sun and shadow from buildings or aircraft parked in the frame reduce what can be read, and a poor pass is rescheduled. Parked aircraft, stacked containers and equipment hide the pavement under them, so those parts are flagged as not read.
Once a year
One pass a year. Damage that opens after the pass appears in next year's. Year one has no trend to show.
Follow-up still needs a window
Verifying a flagged spot on foot needs a closure like any other survey.
Who it's for
Switch if
- You are an airport or port pavement engineer, or run the pavement management program for one.
- The walked sample units leave part of the movement area or yard unseen in most cycles.
- Closure windows are the reason the survey is thin, and you want a first read that needs none.
Stay with the walking survey if
- You need a certified PCI, or a condition rating you have to file.
- You need to know about the base, structure or load capacity.
- Sealant condition and hairline cracks are what you are surveying.
- Gravel or unpaved surfaces are what you manage.
Questions before a pilot
Does this replace our PCI survey?
No. It is a screening layer. Where you need a certified PCI, the formal survey still follows your own process. This tells you where to look first.
How do we check it against our own survey?
Pick a pilot area your inspectors have walked recently and don't send us their findings. When the delivery arrives, compare our joint distress and severity flags with theirs, station by station.
Can it see subsurface or structural problems?
No. It reads visible surface and joint condition only.
Do we need a closure window at all?
The overhead pass doesn't close anything. Any follow-up verification on foot would.
What about wet pavement or low light?
Capture is scheduled for clear daylight. A pass in poor conditions is rescheduled.
Can findings match our station numbering?
You send your station or segment reference and we key the output to it.
Will it load into our pavement management system?
It comes as a map layer and a CSV keyed to your station or segment IDs, so anything that reads a GIS layer or a spreadsheet can take it. We don't write into your system directly.
Who owns the results and the imagery?
Ownership and licence terms for the deliverables and the underlying imagery go in the pilot agreement before anything is ordered. Ask for them early if your counsel needs to review.
How is a pilot bought and priced?
The quote depends on the area and the imagery source, and we price it for your pilot area. Tell us how your airport or port buys professional services and we'll scope the pilot to fit.
Start a pilot on your pavement.
Tell us which runway, taxiway or yard you'd put in the pilot and when your maintenance schedule is set. We'll tell you straight whether the imagery calendar can meet it.
Start a pilot