Joined about 2 months ago
Just started my own survey firm
on Building a drone survey portfolio - what to include
Website with case studies, not just pretty pictures. Each project should tell a story: 1. Client's problem/need 2. Your solution/approach 3. Equipment and methodology 4. Results with numbers (accuracy, area covered, time saved) 5. Client testimonial if possible Include 5-6 diverse projects showing range. Construction, mining, agriculture, inspection - show you can handle different scenarios. Ditch the PDF. A good Squarespace site costs $200/year and looks 10x more professional.
on How do you price drone survey work?
Southeast US rates I'm seeing: - Basic ortho: $300-500 flat for sites under 20 acres - Full topo with GCPs: $150-250/acre (minimum $1,500) - Stockpile volumes: $500-800 per site visit - Construction monitoring: $800-1,200/visit for weekly service $500/day is way too low if you're delivering processed data. That's field-only pricing. Add processing time and deliverable creation, you should be charging $1,200-1,500 minimum per job.
on Best practices for drone surveys on construction sites
For construction PMs, DroneDeploy with Autodesk integration is the gold standard. They can overlay drone orthos on their plans in ACC (Autodesk Construction Cloud). Weekly comparison maps showing cut/fill progress. Also: always fly on the same day/time each week for consistent lighting. Makes visual comparison much easier.
on How do you present drone data to non-technical clients?
We started creating simple Loom videos walking through the data. Record your screen showing the ortho, point out key features, explain the contours. Takes 5 minutes and clients love it. Much more effective than sending raw data they don't understand.
on Exporting to Civil3D - best workflow?
This is gold. The thinning tip alone is going to save me hours. I've been importing every single point like an idiot. Thanks everyone.
on Going independent vs staying employed - real numbers
Year 1: $82k revenue, $35k expenses (insurance, equipment, vehicle, software, marketing). So about $47k take-home. Less than my old salary. Year 2: $140k revenue, $42k expenses. Now I'm ahead. Year 3: $210k revenue, $55k expenses. Much better than employment. The first year is rough. You spend way more time on admin, marketing, and bidding than actual flying. Budget for 6 months of savings before making the jump.
on Building a portfolio for drone survey work
Ask clients for permission to use anonymized samples. Most will say yes if you remove identifying details. 'Construction site in Texas' is fine, you don't need to name the client. Also, do some pro-bono work for nonprofits. They're usually happy to let you showcase it.
on Anyone tried the Autel Evo Max 4T for mapping work?
The bigger issue is ecosystem. DJI has Terra, FlightHub 2, and everything integrates. Autel's software stack is fragmented. Great drone, mediocre workflow.
on Starting a drone program - M3E RTK or Anzu Raptor?
Thanks everyone. Leaning M3E now. @BlueSkyBen good point about keeping options open for gov work down the road.