Search


Rennie Campbell
- Oct 23, 2019
- 1 min
Point clouds and models from drone imagery
Drones are a fantastic tool to access otherwise awkward or dangerous locations, particularly roofs, but they can produce far more than high quality imagery. A recent Levitate project involved generating a visual inspection of a roof that could otherwise only be accessed by scaffolding or a large cherry-picker, along with a 3D point cloud from which measurements could be taken. The project included the use of Ground Control Points, known coordinates in the spatial coordinate s

Rennie Campbell
- May 17, 2019
- 1 min
NHS roof measurement made easy
Levitate was recently tasked to conduct a detailed roof inspection at an NHS facility in Sussex along with mapping of the site to help clarify the property boundary. Mapping of the site was achieved through programmed flight paths that generated over 500 high definition over-lapping images. These images were then merged to create a detailed orthomosaic map, from which area and distance measurements could be taken. The resulting measurements and map provided a level of insigh

Rennie Campbell
- Apr 25, 2019
- 1 min
Drones for healthcare asset management
Levitate was delighted to be featured in the latest edition of the Health Estates & Facilities magazine, which included a great article about the benefits and value drones can bring to healthcare building surveys & asset management. Our drone Roof Report service was highlighted, particularly the ability to automatically measure roof surfaces using drone imagery, saving time, money and keeping staff safe, while gathering essential data. #roofinspection #buildinginspections

Rennie Campbell
- Oct 24, 2018
- 1 min
Levitate Aerial Imaging - Tomorrow's FM 2019 Award Finalist!
Levitate's automated roof inspection and measurement service has been shortlisted for the Tomorrow's FM 2019 Awards. The drone-generated roof report automatically identifies and measures different roof and edge types, including surface areas, valleys, flashing, ridges, parapets and eaves. The Drone Deploy application means Levitate can quickly and safely deliver the data essential to roof repairs, condition assessments, insurance claims and photo-voltaic installations. Furthe

Rennie Campbell
- Oct 11, 2018
- 1 min
Levitate drone digest - latest news from the world of drones
Our drone roof measurement service received some great media coverage recently, with articles in both Roofing Today and Tomorrow’s FM. The pieces highlight how the service automatically identifies and measures different roof and edge types, including surface areas, valleys, flashing, ridges, parapets and eaves, quickly and safely delivering the data essential to roofing repairs, condition assessments, insurance claims and photo-voltaic installations. The potential of the serv

Rennie Campbell
- Aug 6, 2018
- 1 min
Henry VIII, Jane Seymour, D-Day planning... and now drones!
Levitate was recently commissioned to conduct a detailed roof inspection of the stunning Littlecote House Hotel near Hungerford, a Grade I listed Tudor manor house where Henry VIII courted Jane Seymour and plans for D-Day were made. We were tasked to help the hotel and their roofing consultants understand the condition of the (equally historic) roof and the work required to ensure it is maintained and repaired to the required standards, while also minimising disruption to gue

Rennie Campbell
- Jun 28, 2018
- 1 min
Drone inspections - even in London
Although drone flying in London is (rightly) restricted, it is possible once the correct permissions and notifications are provided. The image below of the Shard and City was taken during a recent drone inspection of a construction project in Bermondsey. After consultation with the National Air Traffic Service they confirmed a Non-Standard Flight application was not required, so after notifying the Metropolitan Police the inspection was planned and conducted to keep within ma

Rennie Campbell
- Jun 13, 2018
- 1 min
Roof inspections made easy
Drones are the perfect tool to conduct safe and efficient roof inspections - there's no need to hire scaffolding or cranes, or put workers at height. They're also fast: most inspections can be completed within an hour or two, with high-definition images available immediately. The images below are from a Church which had experienced intermittent problems with its roof. Our drone was able to quickly identify a potential problem due to a slipped tile and worn flashing in a valle

Rennie Campbell
- Jun 5, 2018
- 1 min
Fire ravaged Claygate clubhouse from the air
Levitate Aerial was tasked to take aerial photographs of the Claygate Recreation Ground clubhouse, destroyed by fire in November 2017, to support the re-building fundraising effort. With plans for the new clubhouse well underway we hope to return to take aerial shots of the finished building in the not too distant future. "Levitate Aerial Imaging provided aerial photographs of the Claygate Recreation Ground Clubhouse, recently destroyed by fire. These images will be tremendou

Rennie Campbell
- Apr 24, 2018
- 1 min
The power of zoom
Our powerful zoom camera means we can inspect roofs and structures from a safe distance yet still capture the detail needed for surveyors, roofing companies, building owners and estate agents. Both images below were taken from the same spot (65m altitude and approx 50m from the building) and demonstrate the ability of a zoom camera to safely and effectively capture detailed images. This is particularly important in more built up areas with restricted flight options or where t

Rennie Campbell
- Feb 26, 2018
- 1 min
Latest customer review for Levitate
"This is just a note to thank you for undertaking the drone survey of the school. I really appreciated the professional approach and consideration to safety prior to and during the flight, especially as there were students outside at various times. The images are of very high quality, giving excellent views that we could not obtain in any other way, particularly the roof and guttering where we can see individual tile detail and identify areas that may require repair, and whi

Rennie Campbell
- Feb 7, 2018
- 1 min
New insights for roof inspections
Levitate recently took the opportunity to test out the new DroneDeploy Roof Report software while inspecting a school roof - with impressive results. DroneDeploy is a specialist software tool used to capture the high definition aerial imagery needed to create high resolution orthomasaic 2D maps and 3D models. In this instance the Levitate drone captured 183 images of the school buildings from above and side-on which were used to create the maps and 3D model. What is new is t
{"items":["5e1c8234ff683500172a930a","5e1c8234996d7d0017e4b48d","5e1c823420fe740017829ab3","5e1c8234d88f330017bff957","5e1c8234e9f3aa0017bb2839","5e1c82348235d30017c63771","5e1c8234e800c30018c7295e","5e1c8234a538100017fe8314","5e1c82349faf900018ce2a06","5e1c823456b2ad001755d2de","5e1c82349faf900018ce2a09","5e1c8234ff683500172a930d","5e1c8234d00ace001723b67c","5e1c82349faf900018ce2a0a","5e1c8234be917500174fd6e5","5e1c82347ed0bb0017540e72"],"styles":{"galleryType":"Columns","groupSize":1,"showArrows":true,"cubeImages":true,"cubeType":"fill","cubeRatio":1.3333333333333333,"isVertical":true,"gallerySize":30,"collageAmount":0,"collageDensity":0,"groupTypes":"1","oneRow":false,"imageMargin":32,"galleryMargin":0,"scatter":0,"rotatingScatter":"","chooseBestGroup":true,"smartCrop":false,"hasThumbnails":false,"enableScroll":true,"isGrid":true,"isSlider":false,"isColumns":false,"isSlideshow":false,"cropOnlyFill":false,"fixedColumns":1,"enableInfiniteScroll":true,"isRTL":false,"minItemSize":50,"rotatingGroupTypes":"","rotatingCropRatios":"","columnWidths":"","gallerySliderImageRatio":1.7777777777777777,"numberOfImagesPerRow":1,"numberOfImagesPerCol":1,"groupsPerStrip":0,"borderRadius":0,"boxShadow":0,"gridStyle":1,"mobilePanorama":false,"placeGroupsLtr":true,"viewMode":"preview","thumbnailSpacings":4,"galleryThumbnailsAlignment":"bottom","isMasonry":false,"isAutoSlideshow":false,"slideshowLoop":false,"autoSlideshowInterval":4,"bottomInfoHeight":0,"titlePlacement":"SHOW_ON_THE_RIGHT","galleryTextAlign":"center","scrollSnap":false,"itemClick":"nothing","fullscreen":true,"videoPlay":"hover","scrollAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","slideAnimation":"SCROLL","scrollDirection":0,"scrollDuration":400,"overlayAnimation":"FADE_IN","arrowsPosition":0,"arrowsSize":23,"watermarkOpacity":40,"watermarkSize":40,"useWatermark":true,"watermarkDock":{"top":"auto","left":"auto","right":0,"bottom":0,"transform":"translate3d(0,0,0)"},"loadMoreAmount":"all","defaultShowInfoExpand":1,"allowLinkExpand":true,"expandInfoPosition":0,"allowFullscreenExpand":true,"fullscreenLoop":false,"galleryAlignExpand":"left","addToCartBorderWidth":1,"addToCartButtonText":"","slideshowInfoSize":200,"playButtonForAutoSlideShow":false,"allowSlideshowCounter":false,"hoveringBehaviour":"NEVER_SHOW","thumbnailSize":120,"magicLayoutSeed":1,"imageHoverAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imagePlacementAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","calculateTextBoxWidthMode":"PERCENT","textBoxHeight":0,"textBoxWidth":200,"textBoxWidthPercent":50,"textImageSpace":10,"textBoxBorderRadius":0,"textBoxBorderWidth":0,"loadMoreButtonText":"","loadMoreButtonBorderWidth":1,"loadMoreButtonBorderRadius":0,"imageInfoType":"ATTACHED_BACKGROUND","itemBorderWidth":1,"itemBorderRadius":0,"itemEnableShadow":false,"itemShadowBlur":20,"itemShadowDirection":135,"itemShadowSize":10,"imageLoadingMode":"BLUR","expandAnimation":"NO_EFFECT","imageQuality":90,"usmToggle":false,"usm_a":0,"usm_r":0,"usm_t":0,"videoSound":false,"videoSpeed":"1","videoLoop":true,"jsonStyleParams":"","gallerySizeType":"px","gallerySizePx":940,"allowTitle":true,"allowContextMenu":true,"textsHorizontalPadding":-30,"itemBorderColor":{"themeName":"color_12","value":"rgba(230,230,230,1)"},"showVideoPlayButton":true,"galleryLayout":2,"targetItemSize":940,"selectedLayout":"2|bottom|1|fill|true|0|true","layoutsVersion":2,"selectedLayoutV2":2,"isSlideshowFont":false,"externalInfoHeight":0,"externalInfoWidth":0.5},"container":{"width":940,"galleryWidth":972,"galleryHeight":0,"scrollBase":0,"height":null}}