Introducing Auriol – new flight system up to 25 kg

The year 2022 will be an exciting one for the Third Element Aviation team. Not only because of new, challenging projects or the company’s 5th anniversary, but also because of a special product innovation that will be introduced this year. 

Based on the experience of the past years, intensive product development and the influence of experienced drone pilots, Third Element Aviation is launching its new flight system “Auriol” soon, named after the French aviation icon Jacqueline Auriol, who was the first European woman to break the sound barrier in 1953. As a universal carrier platform, it offers the optimum in payload, robustness and safety for a wide range of applications and provides the maximum in performance with consideration for current regulations.  

With a maximum take-off weight of 25 kg, it makes full use of the regulation of the open and specific category with regard to flight permits, while offering power reserves for a multiple of that – thanks to its eight powerful motors in a coaxial design. This ensures maximum safety for applications up to 25 kg.  

Product development is carried out at the company’s headquarters in Bielefeld (Germany) and component production is also planned within Europe to meet industry standards worldwide. The elaborate, lightweight but particularly stable construction is especially durable, easy to maintain and guarantees short assembly times for users.   

Auriol offers great flexibility in terms of payload and flight time due to its high capacity. This opens up a multitude of possibilities for applications e.g. in the fields of inspection, logistics and security. A prototype has already been used for gamma spectrometry recordings in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. But new use cases, for example through the integration of specific sensors, can also be realized, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. More information will be released soon.  

We are moving – 3EA in a new home 

It has become too cozy in the beautiful water tower in Bielefeld’s Windelsbleiche. Our team has grown so much in recent years that we are now moving to a larger property.  

After a long search, we have found a new home in the Altenhagen district of Bielefeld, close to the Autobahn (A2), where we have four times the space at our disposal. In addition to office rooms on two floors, there is now also a 600 square metre ground-level hall, which provides space for product development, production and storage.  

For Third Element Aviation, this is a real improvement and a great sign both internally and externally that takes into account the rapid but sustainable development the last years. In addition we are looking forward to the 5th anniversary of the company to be celebrated there this summer.  

As of now, we can be reached at the following address:  

Third Element Aviation GmbH  

Brönninghauser Straße 38 

33729 Bielefeld  

All telephone numbers remain the same – you can reach us as usual.  

We look forward to this new chapter and even more to welcoming you in our new home soon. 

drones #3EA #UAV #thefutureisairborne #bielefeld #newhome

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

We wish you a wonderful and contemplative Christmas season, so that you can start well into the next year.

We are also taking a break over Christmas and will be available again from 03.01.22 onwards.

Stay safe and healthy – we look forward to seeing you again next year!

Your Third Element Aviaton Team

One year of Koerschulte and Third Element Aviation

A little over a year ago, we started the exciting project with Norman Koerschulte and the company Koerschulte + Werkverein to set up a pilot operation for an inner-city delivery logistics route, which has led to a close partnership.  

The company Koerschulte is established as a tier 2 supplier for tools and accessories, especially in the automotive sector, and is a renowned address in the Ruhr area and Sauerland. This is also how we got to know the company and Norman – 3EA as a customer for 3D printed parts at Koerschulte. We got into conversation with Norman, who himself has worked in aviation for a long time and has a corresponding passion.  

Norman’s vision of setting up his own drone airline for delivery logistics resulted impressively fast in a pilot project in which the Koerschulte company supplies a customer with urgently needed tools and accessories over an approved distance of approx. 2 kilometers in automated operation beyond visual range. Thus, the pilot project turned into a test phase with regular deliveries.  

While logistics drones are already used more frequently on factory premises, this is the first successful delivery drone project outside a company’s own factory premises with regular operations in Germany. The response in the industry and in the media was correspondingly great. Since then, we have also been represented together at various trade fairs and events.  

In the meantime, we have already been able to develop extended features such as manual landing monitoring during automated operation for landings on busy factory premises or specific fail-safes.  

Based on the first joint successes, the fleet is to be expanded next year using larger systems, also further delivery routes are to be set up. Koerschulte aims to establish itself as the first drone airline for drone operations, initially in the German region – with 3EA as a development partner and hardware supplier at its side.  

We are very excited about this partnership and the upcoming projects.   

#drones #3EA #UAV #koerschulte #airline #supplychain  

3EA in Central Asia – Gamma Spectrometry Field Tests and Trials

In early to mid-October, together with the consortium of the DUBGEM project, Third Element Aviation was in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan for two and a half weeks for an expedition to test the newly developed radioactive detection and mapping system.  

The DUBGEM project was set up to develop UAV-based gamma spectrometry for the exploration and monitoring of former uranium mining sites. For this purpose, a consortium consisting of IAF – Radioökologie GmbH, the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), IAEA Vienna and various ministries of the participating countries Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan joined forces with 3EA. For more information on the DUBGEM project, please visit our blog (Drone-based exploration method for remediation of former uranium mining estates in Central Asia) or https://www.bmbf-client.de/en/projects/dubgem. DUBGEM is part of the funding initiative “International Partnerships for Sustainable Innovation (CLIENT II)”. In the DUBGEM research project, the German partners are funded by the BMBF with around 960000 euros. 

After two years of joint research and development, the results have now been successfully tested and presented on site in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan under partly extreme conditions such as strong winds and operating locations up to 2,800 metres above sea level. For this purpose, 3EA has developed a specific UAV, which is characterised by extremely robust flight behaviour even with a high payload of up to 8 kg – sufficient for the gamma spectrometer developed for this use case by a Dutch supplier. In addition, pilots from the participating (Central Asian) countries were trained to carry out flights with 3EA systems on their own. Thus, they can make an important long term contribution to the clean-up of uranium waste in the affected countries.  

In addition to the successfully completed flights and measurements, the project’s success was measured above all by the enthusiasm of the Central Asian participants and the realisation that UAV-based gamma spectrometry was not only a more cost-effective alternative to helicopter missions, but also a real added value for the use in areas that are otherwise difficult to access.  

3EA is now incorporating the findings and analyses of the test flights into the optimisation and finalisation of the newly developed system “Auriol” in order to be able to start series production. This is planned for 2022. Also another DUBGEM expedition to Central Asia is currently being discussed. 

In addition to the breathtaking scenery, all participants were particularly impressed by the great hospitality with which they were received on site. Thank you very much!  

3EA with the UDVeo project at the ITS World Congress 2021

Together with the consortium of the UDVeo project we had the opportunity to present ourselves and the project results at the ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems and Services) World Congress from 11 to 15 October in Hamburg. As the leading trade fair for intelligent transport and logistics systems, trends and innovations in these areas are given a forum there.  

In the UDVeo project, the prototype implementation of a U-Space is being developed with a consortium under the title “Efficiently organised urban drone traffic” in order to demonstrate how such traffic management concepts could be created in the future, with a special focus on unmanned aerial systems. Third Element Aviation is contributing the co-development of a USSP control centre and compatible unmanned aerial systems.  

At the trade fair the current approaches and solutions of the project were presented and also shown in live demonstrations. The response of the numerous visitors from business and politics was extremely positive and confirmed all participants in the feeling that they are “on the right track”.  

Further showcases will take place in the coming year.  

We would like to thank all participants for the successful event and we are looking forward to further cooperation in the UDVeo project.  

For further Information please visit https://udveo.eu.  

#UDVeo #Hamburg #ITS #UTM #UAV #Drones #3EA 

3EA @ 15. Tag der Deutschen Luft- und Raumfahrtregionen in Aachen

We had an exciting day at the 15th Day of the German Aerospace Regions in Aachen. Together with Norman Koerschulte from Koerschulte + Werkverein, we had the opportunity to present our forward-looking logistics solution to the professional audience of representatives from politics and business.

Norman also had the chance to present his concept in a pitch on a big stage. Thank you for your pioneering spirit, the courage to break new ground and our great partnership!

We were particularly pleased about the visit of NRW Minister of Economic Affairs Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart to our stand, to whom we were able to present the use of intelligent drones via remote control in a live demo.

Many thanks to all visitors for the pleasant atmosphere, interesting conversations and positive feedback.

Live remote demo at Koerschulte & 3EA Stand

Project ‘Junior Consultants’ by ExperiMINT

Does Third Element Aviation need its own TikTok channel? Is Third Element a family-friendly employer? And how does Third Element position itself in social movements and trends?

These and many other challenging questions were posed to us by a group of Bielefeld middle and high school students during the recent “Junior Berater*innen” project week of ExperiMINT e.V.. We acted as mentors for a week and, together with our colleagues, were available to answer questions and give the students an insight into the professional life of this exciting industry.

In return, the students developed ideas and concepts on how Third Element can present itself to young people in particular and incorporate their needs and expectations regarding working conditions and living conditions into the company culture. This exchange with the next generation of workers was really interesting and enriching for us. So thank you students and you, Natalie Schneider, for the great organization.

More information about the program and ExperiMINT can be found here.

Open Innovation City office opening

Innovation made in Bielefeld – that’s what we stand for together with @openinnovationcity, whose new headquarters at Bielefeld’s Alter Markt were ceremoniously opened yesterday by NRW’s Minister of Economics Andreas Pinkwart. Congratulations! We were guests and were allowed to present ourselves as one of the faces of Bielefeld’s innovations and were accompanied by journalists from WDR.

We are happy to be part of this strong network!

Images: Open Innovation City / Third Element Aviation

CITY CYCLING

Read more