UL Solutions Issues 1st Statement of Conformity for Drone Product in India

UL Solutions, a global leader in applied safety science, issued a statement of conformity for IoTechWorld Avigation's AGRIBOT drone, confirming the drone meets the requirements of the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation's Certification Scheme for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (CSUAS).

The statement of conformity issued by UL Solutions, a provisionally approved certification body for the Quality Council of India driving the CSUAS, enabled IoTechWorld Avigation's AGRIBOT to receive the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's first type certification for a drone in India.

Following provisional approval from the Quality Council of India as a certification body under the CSUAS, UL Solutions began drone evaluation services at its Bengaluru, India facility in accordance with the CSUAS.

"With safety mechanisms in place, unmanned aircraft systems have the potential to transform sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, and logistics as new use cases emerge on a daily basis," said Suresh Sugavanam, UL Solutions' regional vice president for South Asia. "By obtaining the type certificate, IoTechWorld Avigation has taken an important step forward in drone safety. Their proactive step demonstrates a commitment to safety, and we appreciate their confidence in UL Solutions to help deliver on that promise."

The CSUAS is an effort to establish an impartial, independent third-party conformity assessment framework to scale and support unmanned aircraft systems' safe, efficient, and secure access to Indian airspace. Assessing and confirming the design, material, specification, construction, and performance for safe operation is part of the framework.

The CSUAS requirements assist manufacturers in meeting regulatory compliance, as mandated by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, by mandating third-party evaluations through certification bodies that comply with ISO/IEC17065, as well as achieving eligibility requirements for India's Government e-Marketplace procurement processes.

In India, manufacturers of unmanned aircraft systems must have their drone models evaluated by a certification body, which certifies product conformity. The certification scheme applies to four types of drones: micro, weighing 250 grammes to 2 kilogrammes; small, weighing 2 kilogrammes to 25 kilogrammes; medium, weighing 25 kilogrammes to 150 kilogrammes; and large, weighing up to 500 kilogrammes. These guidelines are intended to promote the safe use of drones in a variety of applications, including agriculture, surveillance, monitoring, disaster management, healthcare, and logistics.

"IoTechWorld Avigation has been committed to the safe use of our drones and how they can help our customers advance their businesses safely, securely, and efficiently," said Deepak Bhardwaj, co-founder and director at IoTechWorld Avigation. Up to that point, our customers have placed their trust in us to build world-class drones. Obtaining the type certificate following UL Solutions tests demonstrated our commitment to excellence while validating the quality, performance, and safety of our AGRIBOT product."

UL Solutions, a global leader in applied safety science, turns safety, security, and sustainability challenges into opportunities for customers in over 100 countries. UL Solutions provides testing, inspection, and certification services, as well as software and advisory services, to help our customers innovate and grow their businesses.

The UL Certification Marks are a well-known symbol of trust in our customers' products, as well as an unwavering commitment to furthering our safety mission. We assist our customers in innovating, launching new products and services, navigating global markets and complex supply chains, and growing responsibly and sustainably in the future. Our science works in your favour.