For many years, drones have been seen as a military technology, which is used to gather military intelligence and even deploy missiles. But in recent years, we have come to realize the potentials drones have when it comes to the commercial application. Drones, which are flying vehicles controlled remotely, are effective tools for building inspections. If you are in real estate or a contractor, you may want to use drones to inspect structures. For that, you will need a professional UAV/drone service provider r a drone pilot.

Finding a Good UAV Pilot for the Inspection

Hiring the right drone pilot is crucial if you want inspections to be done quickly and effectively. If you want a top-notch UAV pilot, here are a few things to look out for.

Is the drone pilot insured? The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Section 333 Exemption obliges pilots operating a UAV for commercial purposes to have insurance. Before you hire a drone to provide building inspection services, ensure he or she shows you a proof of insurance.

Is the pilot have building inspection experience? Since the drones’ job is to inspect buildings and structure, the pilot has to be skilled at navigating close to building structures. It is important that you verify the experience level of the drone pilot. You can ask for video footage of previous inspections they have done in the past.

What camera is attached to the drone? The higher the quality of the camera, the higher the detail of the final footage. It is essential to get a pilot that uses an HD camera. A 4K Ultra HD camera is a plus. When the camera is of higher quality, the footage will not be blurry. Also, you can zoom in and examine the structural integrity in complete detail.

Positives of UAV Inspections

There are many positives to using drones for inspections. The first and most obvious plus is cost. Employing an excellent drone pilot will cost you less than it would to insure and to pay an inspection professional to inspect the building.

Inspection is quick. With high-quality cameras, you can quickly inspect a large surface area in a small amount of time. Later you can zoom in and slow the footage down for in-depth analysis. UAVs can be deployed in next to no time, and reach places that will take a human inspector hours to reach. According to Chris Bonnet, CEO of the nationwide drone service provider, Drone Dispatch, it takes his team about 30 minutes to complete inspections, as reported by Lowe’s ProServices.

The footage and data gathered by the drone are easy to interpret and share. You can even view a real-time inspection, as the pilot operates the drone. To many, the overview of the structure provided by drones is preferable to information provide from sampling individual data points through manual inspection. The data collected from a drone inspection can be used to create three-dimensional models of structures and even high-resolution maps of the building.

Negatives of UAV Inspections

Like other technologies, UAV has its downsides. The unavailability of trained drone pilots can be an issue. The drones can cost damages to the structure if it gets too close or collides with the structure. In addition, inexperienced pilots can harm bystanders by accident. If the pilot is uninsured, injuries and damages can lead to lawsuits.

In addition, drones find some structures are difficult to capture, for instance, an overhang. Employing an experienced drone pilot is essential for quality captures, and error-free flying.

Final Words

UAV technology is one that is constantly improving. These advances mean that drone inspection will only get better. Technologies such as drone deployed thermal mapping and imaging are already here.