Frequently Asked Questions

Abbreviations
LiDAR
Light Detection And Ranging. Active laser scanning that captures 3D points through canopy. Helps: reliable structure/terrain, even under trees.
RGB
Red-Green-Blue imagery. High-res colour photos/orthos. Helps: context, mapping, visual inspection.
NDVI
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. Uses NIR vs red reflectance to indicate plant vigour. Helps: drought/stress and anomaly detection.
DSM
Digital Surface Model. Elevation of tops (trees/buildings/hedges). Helps: canopy structure, clearances, encroachment.
DTM
Digital Terrain Model. Bare-earth elevation with vegetation removed. Helps: access/roading, slope/aspect, drainage planning.
CHM
Canopy Height Model. Canopy height above ground. (CHM = DSM − DTM) Helps: stand height, gaps, growth/change, biomass/carbon inputs.
QA
Quality Assurance. Coverage/overlap checks, alignment & point-density, control/checkpoints and RMSE. Helps: results are auditable and repeatable.
RAMS
Risk Assessment & Method Statement. Safety and procedures agreed pre-flight. Helps: compliant, safe operations.
CAA GVC
UK Civil Aviation Authority – General VLOS Certificate. Pilot qualification for commercial operations. Helps: legal, competent flying in UK airspace.
VLOS
Visual Line Of Sight. Pilot/observer keep the aircraft in sight. Helps: safe control, situational awareness.
PIC
Pilot In Command. On-site authority and responsibility. Helps: clear safety and go/no-go decisions.
RTK GNSS
Real-Time Kinematic satellite positioning. Centimetre-level coordinates. Helps: accurate ground control, checkpoints and truth plots.
GCP / CP
Ground Control Points / Checkpoints. Surveyed targets to georeference and validate data. Helps: measure accuracy and bias.
RMSE
Root Mean Square Error. Accuracy metric (e.g., vertical error). Helps: quantify reliability of heights/positions.
KPI
Key Performance Indicator. Actionable metric (e.g., survival %, avg CHM). Helps: track outcomes and make decisions.
GIS / QGIS
Geographic Information System / QGIS app. Software for maps and spatial data. Helps: you open layers and projects we deliver, ready to use.
Truth plots
Fixed ground-surveyed sample plots. Field-measured species, DBH and height. Helps: validate CHM/DTM, report bias/RMSE, calibrate biomass/carbon.
Where do you operate?

Across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. We plan flights around CAA airspace and local permissions. Travel is scheduled to minimise cost and weather risk; the Pilot in Command (PIC) makes the final on-site go/no-go decision.

What sensors do you use?

Drone LiDAR for structure/terrain under canopy, RGB for high-res orthos, multispectral for vegetation indices (e.g., NDVI), and thermal for heat signals. We fuse these to deliver DSM, DTM, CHM, encroachment and condition metrics.

How accurate is the data?

We run a full QA workflow: RTK base/rover, ground control/checkpoints, coverage/overlap, point-density and alignment checks, and report vertical accuracy (e.g., RMSE). Where possible, we validate with truth plots for height/stocking and bias calibration.

What do I get as deliverables?

Concise PDF/DOCX report, GIS layers and a ready-to-open QGIS project. Typical rasters: DSM, DTM, CHM (GeoTIFF). Point clouds: LAS/LAZ. Vectors: Shapefile or GeoPackage. We include CRS and vertical datum in metadata.

Who owns the data?

You do. We provide a licence to use any derived analytics we create for your project. We keep secure backups for re-processing unless you ask us to delete them after delivery.

Safety and compliance

All pilots hold CAA GVC. We prepare RAMS, NOTAM/airspace checks, landowner permissions and insurance certificates. On site, the PIC retains authority for safe operations and weather calls.

Weather and scheduling

We avoid strong wind, rain and low cloud; forestry sites are often sheltered but we plan conservative weather windows. If conditions shift, we reschedule remaining tasks at the earliest opportunity.

Turnaround time

Small sites: typically a few working days from flight to report. Larger estates or multi-corridor jobs scale with area and requested analytics. We can stage early previews while LiDAR processing completes.

Pricing basics

Pricing reflects flight time, permissions/planning, processing/QA and reporting. Corridor/utility work is day-rate plus deliverables; blocks/estates are scoped by hectares and outputs. We’ll quote a fixed scope before we fly.

Carbon and biomass estimates

We derive canopy height and structure from CHM and apply appropriate allometrics. Where available, truth plots calibrate/validate biomass and reduce bias. Repeat surveys track sequestration and change.

Utilities and vegetation encroachment

We produce DTM/DSM for access planning, detect vegetation encroachment and measure clearances to structures. Outputs are GIS-ready with maps and KPI summaries for contractors.

Nursery analytics

Sapling counts, survival and A/B/C grading, average bed heights and split-stem rates from LiDAR/RGB, delivered as clear tables and maps for batch actions.