The process of constructing a building is like baking a cake on a reality TV show – everybody knows what it’s supposed to look like at the end, but with so many people involved, it takes can be an arduous process ensuring the finished product looks and works as advertised.
Stakeholders in construction projects include owners, general contractors, subcontractors, neighbors, state and local historical commissions, and concerned citizens who have both legitimate and illegitimate complaints. Fortunately, drones are emerging as an indispensable tool to both expedite construction itself and monitor progress in a way that is easily digested by all involved parties.
Before
It used to be when a contractor was hired to do an addition or repair a building, a team would have to crawl over every inch of the outside of the structure, sometimes even repel off the roof, Mission: Impossible style. This would take considerable time and money before any physical construction actually began.
The use of a drone in this initial step can often do days worth of work in minutes. It’s incredibly affordable to shoot a 4K video of the roof you are trying to repair and identify the problem areas before anyone sets foot on the roof.
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Using a drone in this situation is also creates a digital media trail that is easily shared with all the parties involved. There can be no discrepancies or communication breakdowns when you have so thoroughly documented the “before” stage of your project. Hell, with the right setup, you could livestream your surveillance to every stakeholder if you wanted to so they could see what you are seeing in real time.
During
Ok you have video of the site prior to starting, how will you document what you have done? Make a timelapse montage! Take the time to fly a drone over the site and document milestones either by time (each week or day), or project milestones along the way.
Once again, any pictures or video you shoot will be very easy to share. Plus, delays will be very easy to identify and can be addressed before they get out of hand.
When everyone can track a construction project every step of the way, everyone is forced to be transparent and accountable.
When you pack up your cares and woes and settle final bill, take some time to document what got done and what did not.
If you are a construction company, this will make an excellent addition to your portfolio because aerial shots are still relatively new and stand out.
If you are a client, it helps to have before, during, and after pictures because showing what got done can be just as valuable as showing what did not get done so you know which areas will need work in the future.
Using drones for monitoring construction projects has both aesthetic and practical advantages and you will no doubt see more and more drones at work sites in the coming years. The day is coming when you can monitor the construction of your house, in real time, from work, all via drone.
Want the footage without bringing in the drone? Check out www.jobfordrones.com to find a local drone provider.
CEO DroneLife.com, DroneRacingLife.com, and CMO of Jobfordrones.com. Principle at Spalding Barker Strategies. Has enjoyed working with and around the commercial drone industry for the last 10 years. Attendance and speaker at Industry Events such as Commercial UAV, InterGeo, Interdrone and others. Proud father of two. Enjoys karate, Sherlock Holmes, and interesting things. Subscribe to all things drone at DroneLife here. Email is Harry@dronelife.com. Make Sure that you WhiteList us in your email to make sure you get our Newsletter. Editor1@dronelife.com.