Insights from local experts and executives The Region this issue: [46] Maine [48] Massachusetts [50] New Hampshire [52] Rhode Island MAINE New Heights Drones Provide Sky High Property Management [by Jack Carr, P.E., RS, LEED-AP] Property management in Maine has reached new heights. I'm of course speaking of the use of drones in providing property management services. Maine real estate firms have been using drones for marketing high-end properties for years, well before the latest FAA regulations had been released. Even though Hollywood has been using unapproved drones for quite a while to capture those wild special effect scenes, most property management firms want to be compliant with FAA rules to minimize their liability. The use of drones, otherwise known as unmanned aerial system (UAS) or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), is expanding rapidly. FAA estimates there will be more than 7,500 commercial drones flying in the next two years to support a $5 billion industry. Property managers wishing to use drones must comply with FAA's new "UAS rule - Part 107" requiring the drone to be registered under the Unmanned Aircraft System Registration Service. LESS TIME AND MORE INFORMATION Many uses for drones in property management are obvious and drone inspection can significantly reduce the time and expense of building and grounds inspection. A typical condominium complex can be fully surveyed in under 20 minutes once the drone team arrives on site. With the use of available software a drone can collect still and video imagery to make high-resolution maps or 3-D models of the building complex in question. As 46 CONDOMEDIA