FAA Certified • Fully Insured • Chicago Based

Chicago Drone Service for Construction & Enterprise

Site intelligence and aerial documentation that gives developers, general contractors, and operations teams a complete record of every site — progress documentation, orthomosaic maps, 3D digital twins, and executive-ready reports that reduce risk, settle disputes, and keep every stakeholder informed.

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Projects Completed

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FAA Compliant

Outcomes We Deliver

Start with what you're trying to accomplish. We'll recommend the right service and return a tailored quote — usually the same day.

What We Capture

Aerial documentation and site intelligence built for construction and enterprise teams — backed by a full suite of supporting services.

Built for Construction & Enterprise

Supporting Services

Aerial view of city

Why Clients Hire Us

Most drone pilots sell flight time. We deliver site intelligence — the measurable maps, models, and documentation that help developers reduce risk, improve stakeholder communication, and build valuable long-term project assets.

Chicago Drone Service is run by Dan Gierke, an FAA Part 107 certified Remote Pilot in Command who treats every flight as a business deliverable. For construction and enterprise clients, that means turning aerial captures into the orthomosaic maps, 3D digital twins, volumetric reports, and executive dashboards your team can actually act on — not a folder of pretty photos.

We work with developers documenting multi-year builds, GCs defending change orders, lenders and investors who need objective progress reporting, and property managers running portfolios across the city. Our other services — thermal inspections, real estate media, and aerial photography — are excellent too, but our focus is the documentation and intelligence that protects large, complex projects.

Fully insured. Fully FAA compliant. Based in Chicago, working anywhere a drone can legally fly. If a drone is the right tool for your problem, we'll tell you. If it's not, we'll tell you that too.

Our Portfolio

Explore our work across Chicago and beyond

St. Hedwig Church — Cinematic Aerial Tour

Twilight flyover of the historic Bucktown landmark, captured for a community fundraising campaign.

Chicago Skyline — Morning Reveal

Slow ascending reveal of the downtown skyline at sunrise — establishing footage delivered to a marketing client.

Construction Site — Aerial Time-Lapse

Time-lapse documentation of on-site construction progress, captured from the air for stakeholder reporting.

Construction Progress — Aerial Capture

Aerial documentation of an active construction site, delivered as part of an ongoing progress-tracking program.

Roosevelt High School — Photogrammetry Model

Full-building 3D reconstruction generated from a structured drone mapping flight. Used for facility planning.

Residential Property — Textured 3D Reconstruction

Photo-textured model of a single-family home for a real-estate listing package — orbit-ready for buyer walkthroughs.

Commercial Building — 360° Model Orbit

Full-structure orbit of a textured commercial-property model, captured to support tenant marketing and leasing.

Site Survey — Walkthrough Model

Construction-site model used to verify scope and document conditions before a phased renovation kicked off.

Rooftop & Envelope Inspection Model

High-resolution 3D capture of a building roof and façade — supports condition reporting and insurance documentation.

Belding School Orthomosaic Map
North Elston Avenue Orthophoto Map

Tell Us The Problem

Tell us what you're trying to accomplish. We'll tell you whether a drone solves it — and how fast.

One quick form. A tailored quote.

Start with what you're trying to accomplish — reduce risk, win disputes, report to lenders, sell faster, or map your site. We'll recommend the right service and Dan follows up within one business day, often the same day.

Start Your Request →

Prefer to talk first? Call (847) 881-4344 or email dan@chicagodroneservice.com.

Phone

(847) 881-4344

Email

dan@chicagodroneservice.com

Location

Chicago, Illinois

Questions Clients Ask Before Hiring Us

The straight answers — no sales pitch.

Pricing depends on the service, the size and complexity of the site, and your deliverables. Single real estate shoots start lower than full construction documentation or mapping programs. Every quote is custom and free — tell us what you need and we usually return pricing the same day. Call 847-881-4344 or request a quote online.

Yes. Every flight is operated by an FAA Part 107 certified Remote Pilot in Command and is fully insured. We comply with all federal, state, and local rules for commercial drone operations, and safety is built into every job.

We serve the entire Chicago metropolitan area: the City of Chicago and all of Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will, and Kane Counties, plus surrounding suburbs. We also travel for larger enterprise and multi-site engagements across Illinois.

Yes, with the right authorization. Much of downtown sits in controlled airspace near O'Hare and Midway, which requires FAA approval. We handle all LAANC authorizations, waivers, and notifications so every flight is legal and safe — you never touch the paperwork.

Standard turnaround is 24–48 hours for edited photos and 3–5 business days for edited video. Rush delivery is available for time-sensitive listings and events. Maps, 3D models, and reports typically take 5–7 business days depending on complexity.

Aerial photography and 4K video, real estate media, thermal and infrared inspections, 3D modeling and digital twins, orthomosaic mapping and surveying, construction progress documentation, and recurring enterprise programs. If you are not sure which fits, we will help you scope it.

A local operator knows the airspace, the lakefront restrictions, the weather windows, and the permitting realities of flying near O'Hare and Midway. We can mobilize quickly, scout sites in person, and stay on call for your project across Chicagoland.

Yes. We carry commercial drone liability insurance and can provide a certificate of insurance for your property, HOA, GC, or facility manager when required before a flight.

A thermal (infrared) drone inspection uses a radiometric camera to reveal heat patterns invisible to the eye — moisture under a roof membrane, missing insulation, energy loss, electrical hot spots, and solar panel faults. It is ideal for roofs, building envelopes, and solar arrays where ladders and lifts are slow or unsafe.

A single aerial photo is taken from one angle and is not measurable. An orthomosaic map stitches hundreds of overlapping images into one geo-referenced, distortion-corrected map you can measure to the centimeter and drop into CAD or GIS. Learn more in our Knowledge Center.

A 3D digital twin is a measurable, photorealistic model of a building or site built from drone imagery (photogrammetry). Architects, contractors, marketers, and insurers use it to measure, plan, present, and document a site without being on location.

With proper flight planning and ground control points, our maps and models reach survey-grade relative accuracy — often within a couple of centimeters. We match the accuracy level to your use case, whether that is marketing, design, or volumetric measurement.

Yes. We document roofs, facades, towers, and hard-to-reach structures from the air — no ladders, lifts, or scaffolding. That removes the biggest safety risk and gets you detailed imagery and thermal data in a fraction of the time.

Absolutely. We shoot aerial stills, cinematic listing video, twilight exteriors, and neighborhood context that help listings stand out and sell faster. See our real estate page for details and turnaround options.

Safety first. If winds, rain, snow, or low visibility make flight unsafe, we reschedule at no extra cost. We watch the forecast closely and communicate any changes well ahead of time.

For commercial work the pilot needs FAA Part 107 certification, which we carry. As the property owner you do not need special permission for us to fly your own site, and we handle any airspace authorization and notifications required.

Yes. We fly job sites on a regular cadence to capture progress photos, video, orthomosaic maps, and 3D models for owners, GCs, lenders, and investors. This documentation settles disputes, supports draw requests, and becomes a permanent project record.

Yes. For multi-site portfolios and ongoing needs we build recurring programs with a set cadence, consistent deliverables, a dedicated pilot, and executive reporting. See our enterprise services page.

Real estate, construction and development, architecture and engineering, roofing and solar, insurance and restoration, commercial and industrial facilities, utilities and infrastructure, events and hospitality, marketing agencies, and government. See our Industries We Serve page.

We fly professional-grade drones with high-resolution and radiometric thermal cameras suited to the job, and we choose the platform and sensor based on your deliverables — cinematic video, mapping accuracy, or thermal detail.

Usually very little is required. Clear vehicles or equipment you want out of frame, let us know about any obstacles or sensitive areas, and we handle airspace, flight planning, and safety. We will send a short checklist when we schedule.

Yes. Most shoots capture stills and video together, and we can add mapping, 3D, or thermal passes in the same visit to save you time and money.

High-resolution JPEG/PNG images and MP4 video as standard, plus deliverables like GeoTIFF orthomosaics, point clouds, OBJ/glTF 3D models, and PDF reports depending on the service.

A few days notice is ideal for standard shoots, and we keep room for time-sensitive real estate and event work. For recurring construction or enterprise programs we schedule the full cadence in advance.

Our core work is outdoor aerial capture, but we can discuss interior or low-altitude flights for specific projects. Tell us the goal and we will recommend the right approach.

Yes. We deliver content formatted for MLS, websites, paid social, broadcast, and OOH, and we can tailor aspect ratios and edits for each platform.

A single accountable, FAA-certified local pilot, fast turnaround, fully insured operations, deliverables built around your outcome, and deep knowledge of Chicago airspace. We aim to be the most trusted drone authority in the city.

Request a quote on our site or call Dan directly at 847-881-4344. Tell us the location, the service, and what you need the results to do — most quotes go out the same day.