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Façade Inspections in Cleveland by Drone

Why Building Façade Inspection is Needed

A municipal ordinance was passed in 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio, to require façade inspections for buildings of certain age and height to be completed every 5 years – see the detailed ordinance here. Since this ordinance was passed in Cleveland, 2 other major Ohio cities, Columbus, and Cincinnati followed with passing similar ordinances the same year.

As with most ordinances, Cleveland's ordinance passing was a direct consequence of an accident: a parapet wall of an 1890s-era building in downtown Cleveland crumbled, releasing several bricks onto the sidewalk and the road, thankfully without human casualties this time (a parked minivan without passengers was damaged).

The ordinance that was passed requires buildings that are at least 5 stories or 75 feet in height above grade and are of a certain age (between 30-50 years old), to be initially inspected and re-inspected every 5 years.

How was the building façade inspections performed in the past

In the past, this type of inspection was done by inspectors needing to get close to the walls to visually inspect them and document the conditions, which meant erecting and installing the scaffolding, or elevating them by another method, which gets the person close to the source of inspection, but it is not very efficient:

1.   It takes time for them to move within the scaffolding, or be elevated by a crane platform to every spot that needs to be inspected and documented

2.   It is not the safest for the person involved (a falling accident is a possibility)

3.   It can be expensive with the time and equipment involved, plus the addition of insurance costs when performing this work at dangerous elevations.

These types of inspections can be costly to complete when using traditional methods. Facade inspections can run into $10K-$20K, depending on the size of the building. The cost is usually made up by using large equipment or erecting scaffolding structures, inspectors' time that is necessary to visually inspect and document the conditions of the asset, and the report write-up within the guidelines of such inspection.

As one can see, a large proportion of the cost of such inspection is driven up by the resource and time used to visually inspect and document current conditions effectively. The use of autonomous inspection tools that don't require the investment of such resources can cut costs drastically. Drones do just that for such use cases as facade inspections.

Why Use Drone For Building Façade Inspection

A drone allows for the faster and safer acquisition of the visual inspection and documentation data of the current conditions of the façades. Equipment and personnel need is reduced to a drone capable of shooting hi-res photography, and a drone pilot who is qualified to fly safely and legally and can produce such photography.

This photographic output generated by a drone can then be viewed by a qualified design professional on their computer (engineer or architect), certified in the inspection of the specific elements that make up the façade of the structure, and licensed by the State of Ohio, or an inspection agency that is qualified under the Ohio Building Code for Special Inspectors (as per the ordinance).

In addition to basic aerial photography, drone imagery can be set up to be acquired with certain parameters (automated flight path and special photography settings) with an intent of being processed through software to generate point clouds and 3D models, that help capture the building condition overall. Such models allow the inspector to zoom in at any point for a closer look during the inspection, and even produce measurements between points for needed calculations. These models can be stored digitally and updated with a new model at any point in time.

Looking to hire a drone company for a façade inspection in Cleveland?

If a company considers hiring a drone pilot to perform a façade inspection data capture (whether the building facilities management, an inspector or agency), it will need to do its due diligence - see our article Hiring a Drone Pilot for details on how to do that, or contact us to provide you with the quote to perform façade inspection data capture by one of our skilled drone pilots.

If you want to train someone within your organization to fly drones to capture such data, check out our drone training page for drone training classes offered in Cleveland, and contact us to schedule, or sign up for our drone class notification list.

V1DroneMedia Drone Classes

V1DroneMedia offers a set of drone classes that V1DroneMedia’s Chief Drone Pilot (Jason Damman) developed and teaches regularly through local Cleveland community colleges and on-demand for individuals or organizations. Each class is geared toward a specific type of ‘drone’ knowledge need the students or organization is looking for, and we can develop custom classes by request.

Curious about the drone industry?

If you have heard of drones but are not sure how you can take advantage of this innovative technology, would like to learn about it, what it takes to work with drones legally, and what careers are available in the industries that are using drones, our 3-hour Introduction to Drones Class is for you!

What you will learn may spark an interest in a new career, or hobby, or inspire you to use the drone as a tool in your current job and will help you understand what to do if you want to get started. Since this is an in-person class with a drone industry professional, you will also have the ability to ask questions.

Want to learn to fly a drone with expert guidance?

Whether you are a drone hobbyist or an aspiring commercial drone pilot, the essential part of your drone training should be learning to fly the drone. That means being comfortable with operating the drone apps (such as DJI, Litchi, etc.), performing takeoffs and landings, learning to maintain and calibrate the drone, performing routine flight maneuvers, operate the camera to take pictures and video.

We have designed the Drone Operations Class to address this need for anyone who’s never touched a drone, and for those who know their way around a little, but don’t have the full confidence in operating it and want to advance their knowledge and skills.

This class consists of a 3-hour in-class portion that will introduce you to drone apps, how to calibrate, and maintain a drone, design a pre-and post-flight checklist, and introduce you to intelligent flight modes. The outdoor 3-hour portion will allow you to practice this knowledge with the guided expertise of a seasoned drone pilot.

We also have private 2-hour Hands-on Drone Flying Lessons that include only outside flying with hands-on practice, if you just want to practice flying.

While this class will equip you with the ‘know-how’ to operate a drone, it will be up to you to practice and hone your flight skills. That takes time and dedication, but it can pay off. Drone pilots are in demand in a variety of industries (as you can learn from us by taking our Intro to Drones class or watching the Drones for Business Webinar recording), and that demand is growing. A Drone pilot’s hourly pay rate can range from $50 - $250 or even more, depending on their skill set, experience, and the type of work they are doing.

Decided to get your commercial drone pilot (aka FAA Part 107) license?

You will need to get FAA Part 107 license if you intend to use drones for commercial purposes. That means even if you take aerial photographs to market your friend’s real estate listing, or if you want to do a flyover of a building for a roof or home inspection, regardless of the size and weight of the drone. Read my Drone Pilot License blog post for more details on this topic.

If you have decided to take the Part 107 Test, you will need to study FAA Part 107 Knowledge Test Materials and take the Part 107 Test which is similar to a private pilot test in the amount of knowledge covered. It costs $175 to take the test, so having proper preparation is important. You don’t want to have to spend that money again.

Our 2-day in-person FAA Part 107 License Prep Class breaks down the FAA prep materials (they are quite dense and full of aviation lingo) into easy-to-digest concepts for anyone. We cover only the information that is needed to pass the test and operate your unmanned aircraft safely. You will also receive additional resources such as materials to study and access to practice tests.

After that it will be up to you to study, take practice tests, and, when you feel confident enough, schedule and take the Part 107 test in a testing center.

Drone Classes Sign-up

If you’d like to stay up to date on our drone class dates and times, Sign Up to be notified when they get scheduled, and check out our Events page to register for upcoming drone classes.

Custom Drone Training for Organizations

If your organization wants to train its employees, we can design courses that suit your needs. Contact us for a consultation!

 

Event Documentation For Marketing

Whether your business is event management, your company is staging or participating in an event to promote itself and engage existing and prospective customers, or you are in the sports and entertainment industry where events are an everyday business, documenting your event should be a part of your marketing strategy and can help you accomplish several goals:

1.     Create event longevity

Once you have documented your event (with video, photos, or even a Livestream feed that you recorded) and published it on your website and social media (including YouTube channels), it will live on the internet forever! That allows showing off the work your company has performed and helps past, current, and prospective clients evaluate your products and services for future consideration.

2.     Enhance your credibility

Seeing is believing, and visual content (especially video) engages more people! Showcasing participation and booth space at annual industry events and exhibiting your products/services in the event space, along with seeing the customer interactions will impress beyond any words and enhance your businesses' credibility. If your business is event management, documenting your work is a must to give you credibility and entice prospective clients!

3.     Maximize your content production for marketing

Content marketing is king nowadays, and documenting an event is a perfect opportunity to make more content without thinking hard about what type of content to produce! If you are not familiar with content marketing, Google it! And if you don't know how to approach content creation, here is an article and a PowerPoint deck by Gary Vaynerchuk How To Make 64 Pieces of Content In A Day (with step-by-step instructions).

4.     Increase your marketing reach

If you read Gary Vee's article, you know that posting content on multiple platforms (websites, social media, etc.) makes your marketing reach go further. Every media channel and social platform has its niche, and your business is active only on a few that matter to you. If you document your event with visuals (photos, videos), this will cover your basics for multiple media platforms, and you can add and change the copy as needed for various digital asset creation (photos, short-form, and long-form videos).

5.     Showcase your work

This is self-explanatory: if you stage events, impress prospective clients with the past events you've put on! If you participate in an event (or are even a talent that is hired to entertain), bring your products, services, or event you are participating in into the spotlight!

6.     Promotional content

If your company participates in the event or stages it, chances are you don't do this just once. Documenting your event is a great way to promote your services (especially if you are in the event management industry) or advertise your past and upcoming participation in the relevant industry events, for external (clients, financial markets) and internal (employee) communications!

7.     Publicity tool

And finally, documenting events is great for publicity! Generate publicity using this content with available tools in your marketing mix, or piggyback on the existing publicity of the event to get more media mentions and exposure.

V1DroneMedia is an aerial (drone) services company that delivers full traditional and aerial event documentation and video production, including aerial livestreaming. Our work ranges from covering small business events such as Sunnyside Chevrolet Annual Classic Car Show, Chamber of Commerce Golf Outing, Cleveland Haunt Club Halloween in July, to documentation of college graduations, charity events and sports events, including aerial livestreaming of US Sailing Championship on Lake Erie, and aerial coverage for 2016 Cavaliers Parade for local Cleveland news, among others. Contact us today for a quote!

V1DroneMedia's Drone Blog

V1DroneMedia's Drone Blog

As a commercial drone operator in the Cleveland, Ohio area, we get asked A LOT of questions - whether it be from companies looking to incorporate drone technology into their operation or from individuals that are new to drones and have questions or need some guidance. The goal of this blog is to promote the safe use of drones by providing educational material, answering commonly asked questions, as well as sharing information about drone technology.