For the management of Global UAV Technologies Ltd. (CSE: UAV, OTCQB: YRLLF, Forum), all they are seeing these days is blue sky. It’s always been a part of their business, but now the blue skies are showing up on the Company’s balance sheet too.
Observant Stockhouse investors will have already seen the news. On September 21, 2017; Global UAV reported its quarterly results to the end of July 31, 2017. Revenues soared by 84%, up to $333,529. This pushed Global UAV into the black, recording a modest profit of $66,954. Not bad for the Company’s second quarter of operations in the UAV sector.
The positive news for Global UAV wasn’t confined to only the bottom line. The Company has also recently closed on two acquisitions. In addition, Global UAV expanded into South America with its first aerial contract on that continent. Finally, via the Company’s subsidiary Pioneer Aerial, UAV has recently completed a high-profile surveying assignment in the U.S.
Simultaneously expanding its markets, expanding its operations, and moving to profitability illustrates Global UAV’s success on both fiscal control and executing its corporate strategy. This elevates Global UAV Technologies into the position of being the only fully diversified publicly listed UAV technology company on the market.
Stockhouse recently had the chance to pose some questions to a President & Director Global UAV, James Rogers. We asked him about the recent strong quarterly results, the new acquisitions, and other exciting developments with the Company.
1. For investors new to the UAV space, please introduce Global UAV.
Global UAV is currently the only fully diversified, publicly listed UAV company on the market. We have two service providers, Pioneer Aerial Surveys and High Eye Aerial Imaging, which are leaders in their field of UAV geophysics surveying and photogrammetry within industries such as mining and construction. Through NOVAerial, we also design and manufacture from the ground up, commercial grade helicopter drones for industrial applications. Finally, we provide UAV regulations consulting and regulations management through UAV Regulatory Services. This approach gives investors exposure to the drone surveying, manufacturing and sales, and regulatory management sectors in an early stage opportunity that is already turning a profit for Global UAV.
2/ Could you expand on the Company’s strategy of becoming a one-stop UAV services provider?
Global UAV is positioning itself to be a ‘turn-key’ solution provider in the UAV sector throughout Canada and the USA. Although we focus on high return, high value contract markets that present a significant barrier to entry for other service providers, we are also competitive in the aerial photography industry. All of the current business units within Global UAV are complimentary to each other so that a Global UAV company can offer much more than your typical stand alone service provider.
3. Global UAV has produced strong quarterly results in just its second full quarter of operations. Please comment on these numbers.
I am very pleased that the hard work of our team has resulted in profits so quickly. It is a testament to our philosophy that the personnel that came along with the acquisitions are also a very important part of the valuation of each opportunity and the future of the company.
The start of strong numbers show that we have been able to provide a unique product – especially Pioneer Aerial – to our clients, and it is just the early-stages.
4. How was management able to produce such an impressive quarter-over-quarter jump in revenues?
We are at the forefront of a rapidly expanding industry, and our companies are experiencing that growth directly. We are also starting to see both a general acceptance, and a strong demand from a lot of our new clients that UAV’s can offer real solutions to their businesses. New customers and clients are coming directly to us now as rather than having to chase down new clients and leads. So the hard work in marketing and exposure for the company is also paying off with better awareness. Our focus on providing professional service and delivering high quality data has turned a lot of those clients into repeat customers as well. All of this translates into higher revenues, less downtime and in the end, a profitable business.
5. Which of the Company’s revenue generating subsidiaries led the way in moving to profitability?
We created Pioneer Aerial and absorbed High Eye in January of this year and now have over $525,000 of revenue. Pioneer Aerial has been the stand-out for sure. They are in a unique position with a strong industry reputation for their survey work. Their growth reflects the growth in the mining and exploration sector as well as the UAV sector, and they remain extremely competitive in this space. Within the last year, they have surveyed for 7 major multinational mining companies across North America, all of which sought out and approached Pioneer as the chosen service provider. The majority of those clients have been repeat customers. High eye is also doing well and posted one of their best months of revenue to date in September. At the same time, we are seeing a large interest and growth in sales, leads and customer exposure for NOVAerial and UAV Regulatory, which we are equally as excited about. Our investors are starting to react to our success and are realizing the significance of achievements thus far.
6. Global UAV has also closed on two acquisitions over the summer: UAV Regulatory Services (July 11, 2017) and
NOVAerial Robotics (August 9, 2017). Please discuss the first of these acquisitions.
UAV Regulatory Services provides an online platform for customers to obtain assistance with applying for and obtaining a Transport Canada SFOC, or Special Flight Operations Certificate. In order to fly a UAV commercially for any purpose, Transport Canada requires the user to hold a valid SFOC. One of the big hurdles in obtaining an SFOC is the complexity in the application process and the rapidly changing regulations. UAV Regulatory provides a solution for those operators by assisting with the application process and documentation, which ensures success while also reducing the time it takes for the application to be approved. In addition, we are working to create new products and opportunities for UAV Regulatory Services as the regulatory framework in Canada and the US evolves.
7. What additional synergies does NOVAerial Robotics offer?
NOVAerial is a very unique situation. NOVAerial produces the Procyon 800E, a Canadian designed and Canadian made helicopter-style UAV that is one of, if not the, best in its class both from a reliability and performance perspective.
The Procyon is simple to fly, maintain and easy for both new pilots, and existing multi-rotor pilots to transfer to as a UAV upgrade. The industry leading flight performance, endurance, speed and range compared to other single and multi-rotor platforms is where NOVAerial has really excelled in the engineering and design of this machine.
In addition, we will be working on designs for additions to the UAVs offered by NOVAerial. Recently, the US has restricted use of DJI products throughout all of their departments. We see this as a big opportunity where NOVAerial can competitively enter the multi-rotor market as well, with a professionally designed, commercial grade UAV that is simple to operate and built in Canada.
8. In July, the Company also announced its first contract for a UAV-MAG™ survey in South America. Who was your client and when do you expect this contract to be completed?
The client is Quantum Pacific Exploration. The survey will be completed in October.
Latin America will be an important jurisdiction for Pioneer Aerial to work during the coming winter months here in Canada.
9. Perhaps the most interesting news from the last quarter was a contract for Pioneer Aerial to conduct an aerial survey near Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. What was the objective of this aerial survey and how was your Company chosen for this high-profile assignment?
The survey near Pearl Harbor was completed for the Hawaiian Electric Authority through the California-based Engineering firm, DUDEK. The objective of the survey was to help in the decontamination of land to be used for a large solar farm. Pioneer
Aerial used a high-resolution UAV-MAGTM system to identify any buried infrastructure and objects within the area prior to development activities. A process that previously took several weeks was completed in only 3 days and was done with minimal safety or environmental impacts or concerns.
10. Over the near term, what are Global UAV’s objectives for the remainder of 2017?
Now that we have four subsidiaries, our near-term goal is to fully integrate our businesses such that we are fully optimizing the working relationships between them. We are also working on other new developments that will be announced in the coming months.
11. Longer term, please outline your long-term vision for the Company.
Our core business is focused on the growth and expansion of our subsidiaries. At the same time, we are in the unique position to be able to introduce new technology and products to the market, as well as become the preferred investment vehicle for those seeking a diversified approach to the UAV market. Global is in its infancy and we are technically still in startup-mode. Posting a profit, no mater how small, is an amazing achievement for any public company to do. That said, our commitment to increasing shareholder value lies in growth an innovation. We are very well positioned now to capitalize on both of those aspects, and turn from a company that is following the market trend to one that is actually driving the advancement in the UAV
FULL DISCLOSURE: Global UAV Technologies Ltd. is a paid client of Stockhouse Publishing.