Free browser tool that turns five questions about your site and deliverable into a written drone survey scope you can paste into an RFP, a purchase order or an email to a contractor. Covers deliverables, coordinate reference, accuracy and verification, control, access and data rights.
Published 2026-09-30 · UAV Imaging Inc.
Most drone survey quotes that come back wrong came from a scope that did not say enough. Not because the buyer did not know what they wanted, but because the things a drone contractor needs to know are not the things a scope of work normally covers: what the data has to line up with, how exact it has to be, and who is allowed to say the flight is off.
This builder turns five questions into a written scope you can paste straight into an RFP, a purchase order or an email. It is deliberately plain. Every line is something a contractor either prices or asks you about.
Only used to label the scope text. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
2. What do you need out of it?Pick every deliverable you actually want. This is the part contractors most often have to guess at.
This single answer decides the coordinate reference, and it outranks everything else.
Buying more accuracy than the decision needs is the most common way a scope gets expensive.
Drives the access, airspace and safety clauses, and sometimes the aircraft.
Your scope
Everything runs in your browser and nothing is stored or sent. This is a scoping aid to help you ask for the right thing. It is not professional advice, and it does not replace a licensed surveyor where one is required.
Why these five questions
Deliverables, listed rather than implied
"A drone survey" is not a deliverable. An orthomosaic, a surface model, a volume against a stated base and a point cloud are four different products with four different amounts of processing behind them, and a contractor quoting all four when you needed one is not overcharging, they are guessing. Listing them is the single largest reduction in quote spread you can make. Our piece on what drone survey deliverables actually are covers what each one is for.
What it has to line up with
This outranks everything else in the scope. If the site has a design, a previous survey, a site grid or a GIS layer, the new capture should land on whatever those are on. Being independently correct is not the goal. Lining up is. Getting this wrong does not show up on the day, it shows up weeks later as a deliverable that sits a consistent distance from everything else, which is the failure our article on coordinate systems for Alberta drone surveys is about.
How exact it has to be
Accuracy is the line item that moves a price the most, and it is the one most often set by instinct. The test is simple: is a decision or a payment going to depend on the number? If yes, ask for design grade and ask for the verification that goes with it. If the imagery is going in a monthly report to show progress, visual is fine and paying for more is money spent on a decimal place nobody reads.
What kind of site it is
Site type decides access, airspace, safety and sometimes the aircraft. An operating industrial site with orientation and escort requirements is a different day from an empty quarter section, and a corridor crossing controlled airspace has a lead time that has nothing to do with flying. Getting this into the scope stops it becoming a surprise on the morning. The checklist in how to prepare your site for a drone survey goes through the rest.
The clauses that are always the same
Data rights, retention, schedule and compliance appear in the generated scope every time, because they should be in every scope and they are the ones most often left out. Who owns the raw imagery, how long the contractor keeps it, how long from flight to deliverable, and proof of certification and insurance before anyone mobilizes. These cost nothing to ask for and are extremely awkward to negotiate after the flight. Data ownership and retention covers why.
How to use the output
Paste it, then edit it. The generated text is a floor, not a contract. Add the site address, the areas or assets in scope, anything that must not be captured, your site contact, and the date window. If you are running a competitive process, send the same text to every bidder, because the comparison is only meaningful when everyone priced the same thing. Our article on what to put in a drone survey RFP covers the surrounding process, and the contractor compliance self-check scores what comes back.
Six things, and most scopes are missing at least three of them. The deliverables listed individually rather than described as a survey. The coordinate reference and vertical datum, or what the result has to line up with. The accuracy required and how it will be verified. The site type with its access, permit and airspace constraints. Data ownership and retention. And the schedule, including who can stop the flight and by when. The builder on this page produces all six.
Why do drone survey quotes vary so much?
Almost always because the bidders priced different work. A scope that says a drone survey of the site leaves the contractor to guess the deliverables, the accuracy, whether ground control is needed and how many trips it takes, and reasonable people guess differently. Sending identical, specific scope text to every bidder removes most of the spread, and what is left is a real difference in approach that you can actually evaluate.
Do I need design grade accuracy?
Only if a decision or a payment depends on the number. Design grade usually means ground control or independent check points and a written verification, and it costs accordingly. If the output feeds engineering, a billed quantity or a dispute, buy it. If it feeds a monthly progress report or an internal estimate, planning grade is sufficient and the difference is money spent on precision nobody uses.
Does this tool send my answers anywhere?
No. Everything runs in your browser, nothing is stored, and nothing is transmitted. The site name you type is only used to label the text. You can close the page without leaving anything behind, and you are welcome to use the output with any contractor.
Can I use this scope with a contractor other than UAV Imaging?
Yes. It is written to be neutral and it asks for things any competent operator can supply. A buyer who sends a clear scope gets better work from everyone, which is worth more to us than a scope that only we can answer.
What does it not cover?
Anything requiring a licensed land surveyor, which is flagged when you select a legal boundary. It also does not set prices, does not specify aircraft or sensors, and does not cover contract terms such as liability, indemnity or payment. Treat the output as the technical half of the scope and pair it with your own commercial terms.
