Every working day, across the United Kingdom, hundreds of UAV’s & drones undertake a myriad of aerial inspection flights to assist construction professionals in their trade. It is becoming more commonplace for drones to be used in everyday building, construction and property maintenance inspection tasks. Now the leading drone operator in the North West – Hovershotz, can offer a full aerial drone inspection and surveying service across the North West of England to Cumbria Lancashire and the Lake District.
It is only recently that drones have begun replacing traditional inspection & surveying methods, and this is being driven by the ability for the job to be completed faster, safer and more cost effectively than the old school methods.
Take for example, a semi-detached house that has water leak originating from the roof. A roof inspection or survey needs to be carried out to find out where the leak is coming from.
Three options could be:
Option A – Hire and erect scaffolding to enable the surveyor to inspect the roof.
Option B – Hire an elevated platform to enable the surveyor to check the roof.
Option C – Hire an aerial drone operator to survey & inspect the roof. Images can then be inspected and analysed by surveyor.
SAVE MONEY
We’ve done the calculations! Hovershotz aerial drone surveys & inspections has done some research into the most optimistic prices of scaffold, platform and drone hire costs in the North West (Cumbria & Lancashire). According to our checks, a ball park figure for scaffolding costs would start at £900 to scaffold three sides of a semi-detached house.
We have checked the different methods or surveying or inspecting a roof and here is a cost comparison:
Based this research the cost difference between using a drone (option C) versus an elevated platform (option B) with an experienced operator was over 70% cheaper. Time wise the drone saved more than 3 days of roof survey man hours.
The cost difference between using a drone (option C) versus scaffolding (option A) to inspect a roof was 85% cheaper. Time wise the drone saved more than 3 days of roof survey man hours.
Our drones can be set up in a fraction of the time compared to using scaffolding or an elevated platform. Scaffolding requires man power to erect and dismantle the access scaffolding.
Compared to an elevated platform or scaffolding, a drone can be set up and ready to fly in approximately 20 minutes. The usual flight operation is 30 minutes. When you compare the time required to undertake a roof inspection with a drone compared to using an elevated platform or scaffolding the amount of time saved is significant. We are talking days saved not just a few hours! Time saving in business equates to money saving!
BETTER ACCESS
In many circumstances an elevated platform or scaffolding simply will not be able to provide access to hard to reach areas on a building. Sometimes it is physically impossible to erect scaffolding on parts of buildings or manoeuvre a platform into the correct operating position. Drones are easy to transport and fly effortlessly into position to carry out a detailed inspection.
Working at heights, such as on ladders, an elevated platform or scaffolding creates additional health and safety risks. Utilising drone technology especially in the inspection sector reduces safety risks. There are also some powerful safety features that are being implemented by drone manufactures to mitigate risks such as collision avoidance and return to base functions.
DRONE TECHNOLOGY
Drones can fly close to buildings and the built in hi resolution cameras capture incredible high quality photographs & images. Surveyors can easily zoom in this imagery to investigate problem areas. Video, still photos and other types of data can be captured. Different sensors can be fitted onto drones in order to capture different types of helpful data including visual & thermal, infrared, NIR (near infrared).
Sophisticated software allows roof inspections to be carried out and collate all manner of information about the condition of a roof. Drone inspections produce high quality accurate data. During a drone inspection the surveyor can be given a remote monitor allowing a live feed of the drone’s view of the building or structure. The monitor works over the internet via a YouTube link, allowing surveyors to remain off-site or indoors. Surveyors can also direct the flight path or request more detail or time in a specific ‘problem’ roof area. Hovershotz can even carry out 3D mapping of properties or structures.
OVERALL
An aerial drone roof inspection from Hovershotz Aerial Drone Photography Videos and Inspections Cumbria, could save you hundreds if not thousands of pounds. You could save money on scaffolding costs, elevated platform costs, insurance excess, or even by inspecting the roof to avoid undertaking unnecessary work.
WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER A DRONE INSPECTION
This could be for either commercial or domestic properties. You could be a real estate agent, A surveyor. Perhaps you are a construction company? Perhaps you are a home owner? Maybe you have a leaky or damaged roof? Perhaps you have a roof or chimney that is ageing and requires attention? Maybe you are considering buying a property through an estate agency and need to check the condition of the roof prior to bidding? Perhaps you have been approached to have work done and you want an independent drone inspection as a second opinion. Perhaps you require a roof ‘before’ & ‘after’ record? Or maybe you just want a physical record of your roof’s current condition? It could be that a traditional access (scaffold / platform) method is not possible. Perhaps there is a safety or access issue and a drone is the only solution. Or perhaps you realise that using a drone will simply just save you time and money. Whatever the reason; drones are fast replacing traditional methods of inspecting roof. Hovershotz are the leading aerial drone operator in Cumbria the Lake District and Lancashire and your first port of call for any advice on aerial drone inspections or surveys.
