Entrepreneurs are no doubt the leaders of today, the inspiration of tomorrow, but most importantly they are the key to the future. It is because of their innovation and class apart thinking, that companies offer exemplary and unique products/services that alleviate life and the technology as a whole.
We came across another visionary, entrepreneur, and leader. Pae (Utoomprurkporn) Natwilai is the founder of Trik. Trik is a drone mapping and 3D reporting software for structural inspection. Pae is truly a splendid example of an entrepreneur and is all set to catch the top spot of enterprising women of the year!
Let’s get to know more about Trik, its services, and Pae’s professional journey. All along the lines of some interesting conversation in this Enterprise World’s exclusive interview.
1. Brief us about the Trik, what inspired you to start the company?
Trik is a drone data analytic software for structural inspection. It works like a google map but for buildings and it works in 3D. Trik use multiple photographs to create a digital 3D model of the structure and allow you to simply store, search and analyze these data seamlessly in 3D.
When I was working as an inspection and maintenance engineer, the main pain point is being able to store and search for relevant information about the area I’m working on. I worked in an oil and gas industry where the site is in the middle of the ocean with a limited internet connection.
You need to properly plan everything before you take a helicopter to the site. This means I need to search through decades of photos and reports to get the best understanding of the area to plan what I need when I’m there. Because all the information is stored in a folder system, it is very difficult to find photos of the nearby area, and find which section of the monthly reports related to the area you are interested in.
If the actual structures in the world are in 3D, why can’t we store digital information about these structures in 3D as well? With my frustration (and also many of my colleague’s), I decided to create that technology myself.
2. What are the products or services the company focuses on? How are your services different from those in the market?
Not only that you can create a digital 3D model from drone pictures, but the key difference of our offer is also that you can then use these 3D models as a folder system to store information and track change over time in 3D.
You can simply click anywhere on the 3D model to search for photos that you want. For example, if you use a drone for a small 8-story building inspection, you may end up with over 2,000 photos of similar-looking windows and facades.
It’s very hard to trace back where each photo came from because the GPS that is embedded in the photos is not accurate enough to tell the difference between pictures taken from the 3rd floor and 4th floor. With Trik, you can simply click on the 3D model to see every photo of the window you are interested in.
Trik also have an AI algorithm that can automatically detect any change in 3D, making it much easier to compare what you built with the design, compare the progress on of your construction site each day, as well as track deuteriations of the structure over time in 3D.
3. Please tell us about your team.
We have a team of 7 incredible people with experiences ranging from an expert in Drone, Real-time 3D mapping, Computer vision, AI, system architecture, and UX/UI designer to technical support.
4. Please brief us about your professional experience.
I’m a Mechanical Engineer by trade. I used to work as an inspection and maintenance engineer in the Oil and Gas industry before I decided to expand my knowledge to study Innovation design and create my startup as a spin-out of my masters degree.
5. What are the key achievements of your business journey?
Since I started my business, we have been selected for many awards and were featured in much international news. I was selected as one of the Forbes 30 under 30 (2018), as well as one of the Top 100 BAME leaders influencing the tech sector, (Financial Times, 2019), Top 100 Asian stars in UK tech list (Asian in Tech, 2021)
We were interviewed on the BBC Business live morning news, Bloomsburg, the Financial Times, Huffington post as well as many other national and international media. We were also selected as one of the Top 10 most innovative aviation and aerospace solution providers by Insight success, 2018
6. What is your favorite quote?
Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you will land among the stars.
