The Savoy backs up to the interstate on one side, ground too soft and too tight to get a lift into position. Dave Thomas pitched the job on exactly that constraint: the drone could handle the back side in a single day, with far less disruption to residents and to interstate traffic than a traditional setup would cause.

One of the trickier parts of the job was logistics rather than the cleaning itself. The crew launched from the pool deck to reach certain areas instead of coming off the roof, the usual launch point, which meant managing foot traffic through that space for the length of the job. Thomas says the real lesson from this project was time management, having the right tools and the right number of people on-site, and communicating with the client whenever something slipped, weather, no-shows, whatever came up. Clients stay patient with a delay they actually understand.

Not every job runs the same mix, some are entirely drone work, others split roughly 50/50 with traditional methods depending on the building. But the detail Thomas credits with actually winning this contract wasn't efficiency, it was the spectacle. Residents wanted to see the drone in action, and property management wanted footage to show people why it mattered.

"The drone is a phenomenal tool, and without it we would have never gotten this job out here at the Savoy in downtown Charlotte. It was very difficult to reach with traditional methods, specifically the back side of the building. It backed up to the interstate, and there was no way to get a lift because there wasn't enough solid ground."

— Dave Thomas, Owner-Operator, Rise and Shine Drone Cleaning

"The biggest benefit to us having the drone is being able to show the property the drone itself. They love the drone, they wanted to come out and see it work, they wanted footage to show their people why this is a value-add. Ultimately, that was what got us the job."

— Dave Thomas