BUILDINGS & ROOFING · PACKAGE SELECTION
Choose a building package around the evidence your surveyor needs: a thermal observation, a repeatable roof photograph register or a mapped roof deliverable.
Evidence reviewed 3 November 2026 · Ireland
Choose the guide for your task
The practical answer
Choose between a residential thermal record, a visible commercial-roof survey and a planned thermal roof map. These are different evidence briefs. The BL range offers matching equipment and training arrangements; none automatically supplies a building diagnosis, structural opinion or formal energy assessment.
Start with the property decision
A roofing contractor investigating a reported leak, an estate manager planning maintenance and a surveyor requesting dimensions may visit the same building for different reasons. Begin with that reason. Name the person receiving the evidence and the decision they will make. A generic request for a complete drone survey leaves important choices unresolved.
Write a short brief describing the property, accessible surroundings, known concerns, existing drawings and the areas requiring attention. Distinguish a photographic record from a measured product or specialist thermal investigation. State whether interiors, physical testing and interpretation will be supplied separately. Use the agreed scope to compare the confirmed package contents and decide which professional services to commission alongside it.
For example, a housing manager could start with one building and ask whether the handover helps a contractor plan the next inspection. Include both an ordinary roof area and a reported concern. Record what could not be established. This hypothetical exercise tests the proposed service boundaries without inventing a customer result.
Separate three useful routes
BL-01 is the Matrice 4T residential thermal package. BL-02/04 use M4E for visible commercial building and roof work. BL-03/05 use standalone M4TD for commercial thermal mapping. M4E provides visible imaging; M4T includes a thermal camera. [1]
Shortlist the first route when a competent reviewer needs located thermal photographs. Consider the second for visible condition, layout and independently checked survey outputs. Evaluate the third when a suitable roof dataset and thermal-map handover are useful. Do not assign them solely by floor area or the word professional. Ask for representative files around your actual maintenance or design question.
Compare written supply before extras
Every BL package contains five flight batteries in total. BL-01 includes building capture/reporting templates, training and support, with no processing licence. The M4E pair includes twelve months of Terra Standard restricted to Matrice 4E/4D data. The M4TD pair includes twelve months of Flagship and its listed training, support and dataset reviews.
BL-04 adds one Power 2000 to BL-02; BL-05 adds it to BL-03. The power option changes logistics, not the inspection method or validity of an image. Ask how charging fits the visit schedule. Do not infer a laptop, display, signed building report or fault-classification service from promotional imagery. The actual included-items list controls the supplied configuration.
Define what a useful record contains
Request an example finding record with property and roof-zone identifiers, overview, detail, relevant original thermal file and uncertainty. A maintenance contractor should relocate the item without guessing the slope or elevation. Agree how incomplete areas will appear in the record.
Historic England stresses building and services history when interpreting thermography. [2] Give the reviewer relevant repairs, construction information and operating context. A visible difference can justify investigation without proving water entry, structural integrity or a heat-loss quantity. Keep those conclusions with an appropriately commissioned professional method. A report template organises evidence; it does not establish a diagnosis.
Test one representative area
Select a pilot containing ordinary covering and an awkward junction or obstruction. Explain what the reviewer must see and what would be insufficient. Coordinate the capture with the operator, property contact and relevant professional. Preserve access for occupants and other maintenance work.
Open the originals and proposed output together afterwards. Can the reviewer identify the location, read the detail and distinguish a missing view from a clear result? If dimensions matter, request agreed validation evidence. RICS survey guidance addresses control, datum, accuracy and deliverables. [3] A resolution or RTK label does not answer those questions. Record people, review effort and unresolved coverage demonstrated by the pilot.
Plan the wider investigation
A drone may provide another view while a roof remains unsuitable for access. It does not make the preparation or follow-up safe by itself. HSA identifies fragile-roof work as a competence and risk-assessment issue. [4] Responsible professionals decide access and any intrusive work.
Resolve the flight, privacy, building interpretation and energy-assessment scopes separately. Do not book a thermal task merely because the aircraft can fly on a proposed day; conditions must also serve the investigation. Request a rescheduling decision and an agreed method for recording inconclusive evidence. Where the question remains unclear, refine the brief before increasing the equipment order.
Questions before buying
Will thermal mapping find a leak source? Purchase evidence for investigation, with appropriate verification, rather than a guaranteed diagnosis. Is BL-03 a dock system? No Dock 3 is listed in BL-03/05. Does extra power improve accuracy? It changes field-power provision, not survey validation.
Is a signed professional assessment included? Equipment, templates and dataset-quality reviews are not that service. Can any software process the files? Confirm the actual entitlement, aircraft, capture and output before ordering. What if part of the roof is inaccessible? Preserve an exception rather than implying complete inspection. These answers should become acceptance questions in the quotation.
Send a roof and deliverable brief
Compare BL-01, BL-02 and BL-03 first. Then consider BL-04 or BL-05 if field power belongs in the plan. Send the property type, roof layout, concern, intended output and reviewer to Irish Drone.
Continue with residential thermal records, commercial visible surveys or thermal roof mapping. Ask each participant to describe their responsibility, evidence and exclusions. A clear handover and a named professional follow-up make the purchase more useful than a broad promise that one aircraft will identify every problem.
See the software workflow
The software image is a manufacturer workflow reference. Check the written licence edition and the supported aircraft, file type and project method before choosing a processing route.
Compare the confirmed package configurations
| Package | Aircraft route | Flight batteries · total | Included processing licence | Field power |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BL-01 | Matrice 4T | 5 | Not included | Not included |
| BL-02 | Matrice 4E | 5 | DJI Terra Standard — 12-month licence; Matrice 4E / Matrice 4D data only | Not included |
| BL-03 | Matrice 4TD | 5 | DJI Terra Flagship — 12-month licence | Not included |
| BL-04 | Matrice 4E | 5 | DJI Terra Standard — 12-month licence; Matrice 4E / Matrice 4D data only | DJI Power 2000 |
| BL-05 | Matrice 4TD | 5 | DJI Terra Flagship — 12-month licence | DJI Power 2000 |
Explore the equipment packages on Irish Drone
Package illustrations show the listed configurations. Battery quantities are whole-package totals.
Official manuals and setup guidance
Continue with the guide for your work
Documentation and evidence
Sources for the cited guidance
- DJI camera specificationsRead source ↗
Reviewed 3 November 2026.
- Historic England thermographyRead source ↗
Reviewed 3 November 2026.
- RICS measured-survey scopeRead source ↗
Reviewed 3 November 2026.
- HSA fragile-roof alertRead source ↗
Reviewed 3 November 2026.
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To discuss equipment for building or roof inspection, contact Irish Drone with the property, access constraints and records you need.
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