Digital twins
An immersive digital replica of your building or estate, combining an external drone 3D model with an internal 360 scan.
Available Files: 3D Model, Internal 360 Scan & Secure Online Access
3D
External Drone Model
360°
Internal Scan
Secure
Online Access
0
Days of Scaffold
Building Digital Twins
A Drone Site Surveys digital twin is an accurate visual replica of your building or estate, captured at a moment in time.
It combines an external 3D model from drone data with an internal 360 scan captured with either LiDAR scanning equipment or Matterport virtual tour technology, so you can explore every room and elevation remotely.
Engineers, contractors and stakeholders can walk through the building from anywhere, reducing site visits and helping teams collaborate.
Example Image Quality
Click each image to view example image quality
What your Digital Twin can include
Choose the external model, internal scan or both, with updates quoted up front.
| Deliverable | What it is | Included |
|---|---|---|
| External 3D model | A detailed 3D model of the building from drone data. | Standard |
| Internal 360 scan | An immersive walkthrough of every internal space. | Standard |
| Secure online access | Password, QR code or intranet-only access. | Standard |
| Measurements | Take measurements inside and out. | Standard |
| Updates | Internal-only or full updates after works, quoted up front. | Optional |
| Floor plans | Measured floor plans from the internal scan. | Optional |
| Point cloud | Point cloud data for design and BIM teams. | Optional |
As an example, a 10-bedroom, two-storey detached hotel took two days on site and a further seven days of processing.
At a Glance
Capture
Drone + 360 scan
Access required
Internal & external
Pilot network
Nationwide
Updates
Quoted up front
Scaffold needed
None
Coverage
Mainland UK
Get a Quote
Send us an address. We will come back the same working day with a price and a scope.
Why Clients Choose a Digital Twin
A digital twin puts your whole building in your team’s hands. Clients benefit from:
Knowing the condition of your whole portfolio lets you mitigate risk, prioritise spending and act on real evidence rather than assumptions.
The result?
Your whole building, inside and out, available to anyone you choose, from anywhere.
Secure access
Your twin, your rules
We can make your digital twin as secure as you need. Access can be password protected, restricted by QR code or limited to your company network.
Discuss any security requirements during your consultation and we’ll set up access to suit.
Walk through your building from anywhere.
CAA
CAA Operational Authorisation 11363
Fully insured, with £10m public liability and specialist UAV cover
Why drones
Why create a digital twin?
Every site visit costs time and money. A digital twin lets engineers, contractors and stakeholders inspect and plan remotely, and keeps a clear record of the building at that point in time.
- No one at height. The outside captured by drone.
- Immersive. Walk through every room remotely.
- Secure. Password, QR or intranet-only access.
- Collaborative. Share with engineers, contractors and stakeholders.
- Updatable. Refresh the model and scan after works.
An immersive replica of your building, inside and out.
Who we work with
Digital twins for estates, FM and property teams
We work with facilities managers, estates teams, hotels, property owners and developers who want a complete, shareable record of their buildings.
Our service is suitable for
- ›Facilities managers
- ›Estates teams
- ›Hotels and hospitality
- ›Commercial landlords
- ›Schools and universities
- ›Healthcare estates
- ›Housing associations
- ›Developers
- ›Insurers
- ›Heritage buildings
For estates with several buildings, we can build a twin of each site and deliver them through one secure portal.
Why choose us
Why choose Drone Site Surveys?
Drone Site Surveys specialises in survey and inspection data capture, not general aerial photography. Our pilots work across commercial and domestic properties, construction and land surveying, and have hands-on experience with roof and façade inspections. They capture complete, consistent imagery that produces accurate, measurable 3D models, so your digital twin is something you can rely on.
Clients choose Drone Site Surveys for our specialist experience, professional standards and independent approach:
How it works
Our digital twin process
From first enquiry to secure delivery, every survey follows the same six steps, so you always know what happens next and when.
Tell us about the property
Tell us about the building or estate and how you’ll use the twin. We’ll agree the scope, security and any future updates.
Planning and quote
We carry out a desktop assessment of the property and the surrounding airspace, check the survey against current UK drone regulations, and prepare your quote. You receive it by email with no obligation, along with the airspace map for your site and an example delivery so you can see exactly what you’ll be getting.
Booking your date
Once you’re happy with the quote we add your job to the schedule and start monitoring the Met Office forecast. In the meantime we prepare the pre-flight paperwork, including our risk assessment and method statement (RAMS), which we can send over for your records. As soon as we have a clear weather window and pilot availability, we confirm your attendance date. You don’t normally need to be on site.
The survey
Our pilots capture the outside by drone for the 3D model, and our team scans every internal space with Matterport 360 technology or LiDAR scanning equipment dependent on your required deliverable.
Processing
The model and scans are processed and combined into one immersive twin, then set up with the access controls you need.
Delivery
We email you a link to our secure online portal, where your imagery, reports and any other agreed outputs are ready to view, download and share with your team or contractors. Alongside the deliverables you’ll find a folder containing the pre-flight paperwork, a copy of the drone airspace map for your site and any other relevant documents, so everything from the survey is in one place.
Request a Quote
Book a digital twin consultation
Whether it’s a single building or a whole estate, we can tailor the twin to how your team works.
Send us the address and a brief description of what you need, and we will come back with clear pricing and deliverable options.
Prefer to Speak to Us?
If you’d rather speak to one of the team, that’s no problem. Simply call the number below and one of our team will be more than happy to help.
Get a Quote
In The Know
Frequently Asked
Questions
Answers to the questions we are asked most often about digital twins. If yours is not covered here, give us a call.
What is a digital twin?
A digital replica of your building, combining an external 3D model from drone data with an internal 360 scan, so you can explore it remotely.
How long does it take?
It depends on the building. As an example, a 10-bedroom, two-storey hotel took two days on site and seven days of processing.
Can the digital twin be updated?
Yes. If only the inside changes, we can rescan the interior. If there are external works, we can update both. We include update costs in our quote.
Is it secure?
Yes. Access can be password protected, restricted by QR code or limited to your company network.
Who can access it?
Anyone you choose, such as engineers, contractors or stakeholders, from any device.
Do you need access inside the building?
Yes, for the internal 360 scan. We’ll agree timings to keep disruption to a minimum.