Draganfly Opens New Strategic United States Office on North Carolina State University’s Centennial Campus

/EIN News/ -- Vancouver, British Columbia, Feb. 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Draganfly Inc. (CSE: DFLY) (OTCQB: DFLYF) (FSE: 3U8) (“Draganfly” or the “Company”), an award-winning, industry-leading manufacturer within the commercial Unmanned Aerial Systems (“UAS”), Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (“RPAS”), and unmanned vehicle sectors, today announced it has opened a new U.S. office on North Carolina State University’s (“NC STATE”) Centennial Campus.

Centennial Campus, in the heart of North Carolina’s research capital, is a unique part of NC STATE dedicated to the convergence of industry, research and academia. The campus works with over 70 corporate, government and non-profit partners, in addition to housing over 75 NC State research centers, institutes, laboratories and department units.

Draganfly, through its opening of its U.S. office on Centennial Campus, joins other prestigious industry and government collaborators who see the value in housing operations at NC STATE including Eastman, Merck, LexisNexis, IBM, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

From “bookBot”, a giant robotic book delivery system at the futuristic Hunt Library that can store up to 2 million items and deliver any of them within minutes of an online catalog request, to CASSI (Connected Autonomous Shuttle Supporting Innovation), a Level-4 autonomous “driverless” vehicle that uses cameras, radar, global positioning systems and electronic sensors to transport up to 12 people along its one-mile loop, the pioneering spirit at Centennial Campus can be seen everywhere.

Draganfly, the longest running manufacturer of multi-rotor helicopters in the world, is itself a pioneer and respected leader in the unmanned aerial systems industry. Draganfly has created an impressive portfolio of intellectual property and know-how over 21 years, enabling it to continually solve difficult problems for enterprise, government, and consumer clients around the world.

Draganfly’s innovative technological firsts include being the first company to commercialize a quadcopter, the first to create six and eight bladed drones, and the first to add commercial sensors to drones. In addition to its multi-rotor solutions the company offers ground robots, secure controllers, fixed wing aerial vehicles capable of beyond visual line of sight operations and delivery, and hybrid vertical take off and landing systems well suited for large area data collection and austere environments.

Draganfly’s pioneering achievements are not only commercial. A Draganflyer X-4 ES, the first unmanned aerial helicopter responsible for saving a human life, is on display in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. This special honor reflects the deep commitment the company has to supporting public safety and emergency response worldwide.

“Expanding our operations to NC State’s Centennial Campus gives us an incredible strategic advantage over our competitors,” said Patrick Imbasciani, Draganfly Chief Operating Officer. “As we scale our secure government and public safety offerings alongside our commercial solutions for agriculture, environment, energy, telecommunications, insurance and other sectors, access to the latest research and development in the application of emerging technologies such as 5G, edge computing, and new composites, shortens our learning curve and accelerates our delivery cycles to market. Incorporating talented student innovators into our operations through internships and co-op, as we programmatically engage leading faculty through research agreements and technology transfer, should be a win-win for Draganfly and NC State University.”

"NC State is excited to welcome Draganfly, Inc. to the campus community. Draganfly's commitment to innovation is well-aligned with the university's mission to "think and do". We look forward to the opportunities that this engagement will bring," said Dennis Kekas, Associate Vice Chancellor - Office of Partnerships and Economic Development.

Draganfly officially opened its U.S. office at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 1, 2020. Situated on NC STATE’s Wolfline bus line yet hidden in plain sight among the collaborative professional community of HQ Raleigh, the location in the Partners I building on Centennial Campus affords equal proximity to the United States Federal Aviation Administration approved test fields and NC STATE’s historic main campus. Draganfly anticipates the space will meet its commercial and operational needs as it grows and scales its business and operations.

ABOUT NC STATE

NC State University is a pre-eminent research enterprise that excels across disciplines. We're a powerhouse in science, technology, engineering and math. We lead in agriculture, education, textiles, business and natural resources management. We're at the forefront of teaching and research in design, the humanities and the social sciences. And we're home to one of the world's best colleges of veterinary medicine. Our more than 36,000 undergraduate and graduate students learn from 2,300 award-winning faculty. Together, they pursue original research, start new companies and develop powerful partnerships with government, industry, nonprofits and academia to remake our world for the better.

NC State's Centennial Campus - a national hub for education, innovation and public-private partnerships - is home to more than 70 corporate, government and nonprofit partners working alongside an equal number of NC State academic units. Centennial is a proving ground for new ideas and new businesses. And it's a launching pad for NC State's mission: creating economic, societal and intellectual prosperity throughout our state and across the nation

About Draganfly

Draganfly Inc. (CSE: DFLY; OTCQB: DFLYF; FSE: 3U8) is the creator of cutting-edge, autonomous systems and software that revolutionizes the way people do business. Recognized as being at the forefront of technology for over 21 years, Draganfly is an award-winning, industry-leading manufacturer within the commercial UAS and RPAS space, serving the public safety, agriculture, industrial inspections and mapping and surveying markets. Draganfly is a company driven by passion, ingenuity and the need to provide efficient solutions and first-class services to its customers around the world with the goal of saving time, money and lives.

For more information on Draganfly, please visit us at www.draganfly.com. For additional investor information visit https://www.thecse.com/en/listings/technology/draganfly-inc, https://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/DFLYF/overview or https://www.boerse-frankfurt.de/aktie/draganfly-inc.

Media Contact
Arian Hopkins
email: arian@businessinstincts.com

Company Contact
Phone: 1-306-955-9907
Email: info@draganfly.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains certain “forward looking statements” and certain “forward-looking information” as defined under applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements and information can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may”, “will”, “expect”, “intend”, “estimate”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “continue”, “plans” or similar terminology. Forward-looking statements and information are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions that, while believed by management to be reasonable, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of the Company to control or predict, that may cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out here in, including but not limited to: the inherent risks involved in the general securities markets; uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future; the inherent uncertainty of cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, currency fluctuations; regulatory restrictions, liability, competition, loss of key employees and other related risks and uncertainties. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information except as required by applicable law. Such forward-looking information represents managements’ best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

The CSE has not in any way passed upon the merits of the listing of the common shares of Draganfly and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Listing of the common shares of Draganfly is subject to satisfaction of the listing requirements of the CSE, including customary deliverables in satisfaction of the conditional approval.

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