Drone mapping specification template

This is a template you can copy into a bid package, RFP, or scope of work when you need aerial mapping on a project. It is written to be vendor-neutral. Delete what does not apply, fill in the bracketed fields, and use it with whichever provider you like, including ones that are not us.

The point of a spec like this is that it makes bids comparable. Without one, three quotes for the same site can describe three different jobs at three accuracy levels, and you have no basis on which to judge them.

1. Scope of work

The Provider shall perform unmanned aerial capture and photogrammetric processing of the site described in Section 2, and deliver the products listed in Section 5 to the accuracy stated in Section 7.

Project name: [ ]
Site location: [ ]
Client contact: [ ]
Site contact or superintendent: [ ]

2. Site and extent

The area of interest is defined by [attached shapefile / KML / marked-up plan], comprising approximately [ ] acres.

State whether capture must extend beyond the boundary. A buffer of 50 to 100 feet outside the area of interest is common, because photogrammetric quality degrades at the edge of a flight block and volumes calculated right at the boundary are less reliable.

3. Coordinate system and datum

All deliverables shall be provided in:

Horizontal coordinate system: [ ]
Vertical datum: [ ]
Units: [US survey feet / international feet / meters]
Geoid model, if applicable: [ ]

This is the most common cause of rework. State it explicitly and require the Provider to confirm it in writing before mobilizing. Data delivered on the wrong datum is not a minor correction; it usually means reprocessing.

4. Ground sample distance

Capture shall be flown at a ground sample distance no coarser than [ ] cm per pixel.

If you are unsure what to specify, describe instead the smallest feature you need to identify and let the Provider propose an altitude. Two to four cm per pixel suits most construction mapping. Finer than that increases flight time, image count, and processing substantially, and it does not improve a bare-earth surface where the ground is obscured by vegetation.

5. Deliverables and formats

Select the products required and state the format your software actually reads.

Product	Format	Required
Orthomosaic	GeoTIFF	[ ]
Digital surface model (DSM)	GeoTIFF	[ ]
Digital terrain model (DTM), bare earth	GeoTIFF	[ ]
Point cloud	LAS or LAZ	[ ]
Textured mesh	OBJ	[ ]
Contours at [ ] interval	DXF or SHP	[ ]
Volume and cut/fill report	PDF and CSV	[ ]
QC report	PDF	Yes

Where a terrain model is required, state whether bare-earth filtering must remove vegetation, stockpiles, equipment, or structures. Filtering is interpretive work, and it is where quality varies most between providers.

6. Ground control

The Provider shall place and survey ground control targets distributed across the full extent of the area of interest, including vertical spread where the site has significant relief.

A minimum of [ ] control points shall be used in processing, and a minimum of [ ] independent checkpoints shall be surveyed and withheld from processing for verification under Section 7.

Where the Provider proposes an RTK or PPK workflow with reduced ground control, independent checkpoints are still required. An aircraft cannot verify its own result.

7. Accuracy and verification

Deliverables shall achieve a horizontal accuracy of [ ] and a vertical accuracy of [ ], verified against the independent checkpoints described in Section 6.

Accuracy reported against points used in processing is not acceptable as evidence. The model is adjusted to fit those points, so agreement with them is guaranteed and tells you nothing.

State the intended use of the data, and state plainly what it is not for. Aerial mapping of this kind is a planning-grade product supporting design, earthwork, progress tracking, and quantity estimation. It is not a boundary survey and does not replace work requiring a licensed land surveyor.

8. QC report

Each delivery shall be accompanied by a report stating, at minimum: date and time of capture; weather conditions; aircraft and sensor used; number of images captured; ground sample distance achieved; number and distribution of control points and checkpoints; and measured error at each checkpoint, with horizontal and vertical residuals reported separately.

This is the document that makes a deliverable defensible later. Require it in the bid rather than as an afterthought.

9. Schedule

Required capture window: [ ]
Required delivery: [ ] days from capture
Recurring capture, if applicable: [monthly / bi-weekly / milestone-based]

Where capture is recurring, require that each flight use the same flight plan, altitude, and control so the series is directly comparable. A progress series flown inconsistently records the differences between setups as well as the differences on the ground.

Address weather. Flight is weather-dependent, and a spec that ignores this produces disputes. State an expected make-up window measured from when conditions become suitable, rather than from the original date.

10. Site access, safety, and airspace

The Provider shall hold a current FAA Part 107 remote pilot certificate and shall obtain any airspace authorization required for the site prior to flight.

The Provider shall comply with site-specific safety requirements, including PPE, orientation, and sign-in. The Provider shall coordinate flight windows with the site superintendent and shall not require the site to stop work, except where a specific area must be briefly cleared as agreed in advance.

Airspace authorization near towered airports is usually granted quickly through the FAA automated system, but some locations require a longer manual review. Build lead time into the schedule for sites in controlled airspace.

11. Data ownership, retention, and confidentiality

On payment, the Client shall receive a perpetual, non-exclusive licence to use the delivered products for project purposes, including distribution to the Client consultants, contractors, and owner.

State whether the Provider may retain raw imagery and processed datasets, and for how long. Retention is usually in your interest, because it allows a result to be re-checked or a later flight compared against it, but it should be stated rather than assumed.

State whether the Provider may reference the project publicly, and whether site imagery may be published.

12. Submittals required with bid

Bidders shall provide: evidence of FAA Part 107 certification; certificates of general liability and aviation liability insurance; a sample QC report from a comparable project; a sample deliverable in each required format; and a description of the proposed ground control and verification approach.

The sample QC report is the most revealing item on that list. A provider who produces one routinely will send it without hesitation.

Appendix A. Site readiness checklist

Sections 1 to 12 describe how to specify the work. This checklist covers the days before an individual flight, and it is worth running through for every capture rather than only the first. Most flights that go badly go badly for reasons that were visible a week earlier.

Item	Owner	Done
Airspace authorization obtained where the site sits in controlled airspace	Provider	[ ]
Site boundary supplied as shapefile, KML, or marked-up plan	Client	[ ]
Coordinate system, vertical datum, and units confirmed in writing	Both	[ ]
Delivery formats checked against the software that will open them	Client	[ ]
Site contact named and reachable on the day	Client	[ ]
Site orientation, sign-in, and PPE requirements communicated	Client	[ ]
Overhead operations flagged: cranes, pumps, lifts, any work at height	Client	[ ]
Ground control placement walked and agreed around active work areas	Both	[ ]
Flight window agreed with the superintendent	Both	[ ]
Vehicles and equipment moved clear of the area of interest where practical	Client	[ ]
Stockpiles to be measured left undisturbed during the window	Client	[ ]
Standing water drained, or noted as unavoidable	Client	[ ]
Specific features that must be visible or uncovered identified in advance	Client	[ ]
Weather thresholds and make-up window understood by both parties	Both	[ ]
For repeat flights: same flight plan, altitude, and control as the previous capture	Provider	[ ]

Notes on the items that matter most

Coordinate system. Confirm it in writing, not in conversation. It is the item most often assumed and most expensive to get wrong, because the fix is reprocessing rather than a correction.

Airspace. Most authorizations near towered airports come through quickly, but some locations require a manual review that takes considerably longer. Start this before committing to a date.

Timing around the crew. Early morning before full mobilization is usually the quietest window. It keeps the flight out of the way and produces cleaner data, because fewer moving vehicles means fewer artifacts in the surface.

Consistency on repeat flights. If a progress series is flown differently each visit, the differences between setups show up in the data alongside the differences on the ground, and small real changes get lost in the noise.

Using this template

Copy it, adapt it, and use it freely. No attribution is required, and you are under no obligation to invite us to bid. If a section does not apply to your project, delete it. A spec that demands products nobody will use only raises the price.

If you would like help sizing the accuracy and resolution requirements for a specific site, we are happy to talk it through whether or not you end up working with us. Call 702-768-8299 or email david@uavmapserv.com.