Drone Inspection FAQ

Thermal roof inspections, building facade and envelope thermography, solar farm thermal scans, cell tower visual inspection, wind turbine blade inspection, bridge and infrastructure inspection, agricultural aerial scouting, commercial job-site progress documentation, construction progress monitoring, and insurance claim damage documentation.

All of North Carolina. We're headquartered in Winston-Salem and routinely deploy to Greensboro, Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham, Asheville, Wilmington, High Point, Cary, Fayetteville, Greenville, Hickory, Chapel Hill, and surrounding markets.

Yes. All Holmes and Watson pilots hold FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificates and we obtain LAANC and waiver authorizations for controlled airspace as required for each flight.

Yes. We carry specialized aviation liability and commercial general liability appropriate for high-value commercial, industrial, and energized environments. Certificates are available on request.

Our analysts are NACHI thermography certified for radiometric building diagnostics. We're also licensed Building Class Contractors with over 20 active construction and inspection certifications, which is what separates a pilot taking pictures from a builder reading a thermal map.

Mobilization timing depends on crew availability, weather, and FAA airspace conditions. For Piedmont Triad jobs we are often able to deploy quickly, and statewide jobs typically begin within a few business days of authorization. Post-storm and critical-infrastructure requests are prioritized for active commercial and industrial clients on a best-effort basis — we cannot guarantee a fixed response window, so please contact us promptly so we can confirm a realistic timeline.

Pricing depends on roof size, airspace, site complexity, and reporting depth — but we won't bury you in mobilization fees inside North Carolina. Request a quote for any specific property.

No. Infrared imagery can identify patterns that may be consistent with moisture, insulation, thermal bridging, or air-leakage conditions, but it does not confirm water intrusion or establish a cause by itself. It helps prioritize where qualified follow-up or testing may be useful.

No. A temperature pattern may be consistent with moisture-related or insulation conditions, but it is not proof of water intrusion or its cause. A roofing specialist should verify suspected areas.

Send the address, roof type and approximate area, known concerns, available roof history and your repair or capital-planning question. We confirm coverage and scheduling after reviewing the site.

Not necessarily. Recent rainfall, roof construction, safety and the cooling window affect useful capture. Timing is agreed after reviewing conditions; no rapid-response window is guaranteed.

The current scope is paired imagery and an annotated PDF, not a thermal orthomosaic or survey-grade map. Reporting organization is agreed before capture.

No. Exterior thermal capture can support an energy or envelope assessment, but does not provide a complete audit, quantified heat-loss calculation or predicted savings.

No. Patterns can suggest questions for further investigation. Building history, interior observations and appropriate testing may be needed to determine the cause.

Exterior capture can be scoped with the property manager, subject to permissions, safe access, airspace and suitable conditions. Tenant coordination or access controls may be needed.

No. Current deliverables are paired imagery and an annotated PDF, not stitched thermal elevations, thermal orthomosaics or 3D thermal models.

No. Shading, soiling, viewing conditions and operating state can influence thermal patterns. Electrical checks and operating records may be needed to confirm the cause.

Send any IEC TS 62446-3 or other protocol requirements before quoting. Conditions, measurements and reporting must be agreed; general aerial thermography is not automatically a compliance certification.

Coverage depends on layout, module count, airspace, access, weather and operating conditions. We agree a realistic schedule after review rather than promising a fixed MW-per-day rate.

No. The current handoff is paired imagery and an annotated PDF. Estimated power-loss calculations and CMMS integrations are not standard deliverables.

No. Standoff drone inspection avoids the RF safety constraints of a climber, so the tower can remain fully operational during the inspection.

A standard tower is typically captured in 30-60 minutes of flight time, with deliverables produced within a few business days.

Yes. We have inspected all common tower types in NC, including monopoles, three- and four-leg lattice towers, and guyed masts.

Typically a few hours per turbine — far less than rope access.

Yes. Post-strike inspection is one of the most common reasons clients deploy drone blade inspection — visual evidence of receptor damage and downconductor pathways.

Yes. Our pilots use obstacle-aware flight modes to safely position the drone for upward-facing capture of underdeck and bearing components.

No. We provide the visual data that the structural engineer of record uses to support their inspection findings — we do not certify bridge condition ourselves.

Stuck or broken pivots, plugged tile causing ponding, water-stress hot spots, weak emergence zones, and downed or stranded livestock are the highest-value finds.

Our aerial scouting focuses on paired radiometric thermal and high-resolution RGB. Thermal-based water-stress mapping and visual stand verification cover the inspection use cases most farms actually act on.

Most growers benefit from a scheduled in-season cadence (every 2-4 weeks during critical windows) plus event-triggered flights after major storms.

Most projects run weekly or bi-weekly. Some prefer milestone-triggered flights (foundation, structural steel topping out, dry-in, etc.). We'll match the cadence to the project's pay-app schedule and stakeholder reporting needs.

A licensed Building Class Contractor with over 20 active construction and inspection certifications. The point of independent third-party documentation is independent third-party expertise — not just a pilot uploading photos.

Yes. Our reporting can be sequenced to AIA pay-app schedules so each progress draw has matching defensible visual documentation.

We agree viewpoints and aim for comparable capture. Site changes, airspace, safety and weather may require adjustments, which are recorded rather than promising identical views.

No. This page concerns recurring visual records for remote stakeholders. Our separate commercial job-site progress inspection page describes contractor-reviewed reporting; that scope must be agreed separately.

No. Imagery can support project discussions but does not verify concealed work, quantities, code compliance or payment eligibility. Responsible project professionals retain those decisions.

Tell us your milestone dates and stakeholder needs. We can scope recurring or milestone visits, subject to site access, safe flight conditions and availability.

Acceptance and evidence requirements are determined by the insurer or adjuster. We cannot guarantee claim acceptance, coverage or payment.

Availability depends on safe conditions, access, crew scheduling and airspace. Contact us to discuss a realistic window; fixed rapid mobilization is not guaranteed.

Not definitively. We document visible conditions for contractor or adjuster review. Hands-on inspection or other evidence may be needed to establish damage and causation.

Only where suitable earlier imagery is available and included in the agreed scope. We do not invent baseline conditions or assume a visible difference was storm-caused.

We're headquartered in Winston-Salem, so for most jobs in Forsyth County we can often be on-site quickly after authorization. Same-day post-storm thermal documentation is sometimes possible but depends on crew availability, weather, and FAA airspace conditions — contact us and we'll give you a realistic timeline for your specific request.

Large-roof capture is planned around site conditions, airspace, weather, and the evening thermal window. The standard deliverable is paired imagery with an annotated PDF report, not a thermal orthomosaic.

Yes. Our pilots hold FAA Part 107 certificates and we obtain LAANC authorizations for Class B airspace around Charlotte Douglas before every flight inside the surface area.

Yes. We obtain LAANC authorization for the RDU surface area Class C airspace and coordinate with the appropriate FAA facilities for any operations near the field.

They're often preferred. Drone thermography is non-invasive and produces defensible data without anchors, scaffold, or core sampling — critical for historic envelopes.

Yes. Our enterprise platforms are rated for the temperatures and elevations encountered in Western NC, and our pilots are experienced operating in the Blue Ridge and Smokies terrain.

We pre-stage for forecasted hurricane events and work to arrive on the coast as quickly as crew availability, weather, and FAA airspace conditions allow once it is safe to fly. We cannot guarantee a fixed response window, but post-storm coastal work is prioritized.

Yes — those are within our standard High Point service area on the same mobilization.

Yes. We obtain LAANC authorization for Class C airspace around RDU when required for any flight inside the surface area.

We do not enter restricted military airspace. We coordinate carefully with FAA facilities and local airspace constraints when operating anywhere in Cumberland County.

Yes. We deploy across the inner coastal plain for agricultural scouting and commercial roof inspections, with mobilization sequenced when possible to multiple jobs in one trip.

Yes — those are within our standard Hickory service area.

Yes — they are often the preferred method precisely because thermography is non-invasive and produces defensible data without anchors, scaffold, or core sampling.