Drones have an important role to play in building inspections, but operator skill and knowledge is key to using them effectively.
David Robinson is a Chartered Building Surveyor and Director at Cedar Tree Building Consultants in Auckland. I have worked with David for many years, and whilst we have the same job title, we have some very different perspectives and experiences when it comes to Building Surveying. One such differing perspective is drone technology – the idea of controlling a flying machine terrifies me, whereas David has fully embraced them.
Back in 2022, I interviewed David for NZIBS’s The Journal. Working on the principle that my fear of drones was merely due to a lack of understanding; I figured David could help me learn more. And he did.
Q: Where do you see the future of drone use in building surveying?
article extract: Come fly with me, plublished in issue 8 of the journal
“I think drones will make surveyors safer and more efficient, but they certainly won’t replace the role of a building surveyor. A surveyor’s instinct and knowledge are the critical things for any survey – the drone is just a tool for the surveyor to use. In terms of how drones could be adopted for the wider built environment, I think there are huge possibilities. Buildings might have their own automated drone one day and the drone goes out, records the condition and sends information back to the surveyor to review. Integration with artificial intelligence (AI) programmes could allow defects to be flagged in the drone images. Rather than AI making our role redundant, I think the technology will make us more relevant. We’ll be able to capture information that hasn’t been collected until now, and that will need to be reviewed by a building surveyor. There are also different camera types that can be used with the drone such as thermal imaging. An example of application might be an energy efficiency review – surveying a residential complex at night to see which houses are hot or cold. Drones could also help us create BIM models for the building exterior which can be used by surveyors and contractors. Ongoing updates would allow the surveyor to track changes in the condition and plan long-term maintenance work.”
Since writing my article, I have had the chance to partner with David and Cedar Tree on different projects where we have made use of the drone.
What David and Droney McDrone Face (yup, that’s what he calls the drone) have taught me is that drones are very useful and can efficiently get us images of those hard-to-reach areas. But, I agree with David’s comments in the interview that drones are not for everybody. That’s why I intend on embracing this technology more through partnering with people like David, rather than flying a drone myself.
By Victoria Richardson
Copper Seed 