W BUSINESS
L
MEET DRONE FACTOR
Wirral entrepreneurs Sam Barnes and Amy Marshall
are ‘Raising the Resolution’ with their new business
— Drone Factor Ltd.
Launched in April this year, Amy and Sam are making waves
across the Wirral and Northwest by embracing leading edge
drone technologies. Drone Factor started to take shape in
September 2016 and following storm Doris in the early
part of this year, the pair decided that the time was right to
get trained, licensed and insured to fly UAVs (Unmanned
Aerial Vehicles) commercially. Since then they have started
working for blue chip providers such as Iprosurv, Qlaims
and other insurance loss adjusters... and that’s before they
start printing stunning aerial photography.
During the development of the business plan, which was 90
pages at one point, they realised that they were going to be
able to go big with this business in a short period of time.
The nature of drone technologies is such that there is always
progress, so planning 6 to 12 months in advance to ensure
Drone Factor have the best systems available.
The initial investment training, hardware and setup costs
were self funded through Sam’s half time contract teaching
at Wirral Metropolitan College and Amy’s job at Marks &
Spencer. Sam is now working full time on the business and
will be starting a Masters Degree at Liverpool John Moores
in September, in Drone Technology and its applications.
Through this he will be developing the next generation of
sensor technologies that will be mounted on drones, keeping
Drone Factor at the forefront of the sector.
78 wirrallife.com
With support from the Wirral Chamber of Commerce and
the Enterprise Team, Drone Factor Ltd took shape and
rapidly became one of the new businesses in Wirral to work
with.
In the short time they have been operating, they have created
promotional videos for Ness Botanical Gardens, created 3D
maps of ancient meadows at Royden Park, and have begun
developing their system integration with Merseyside Search
& Rescue, along with c reating a suite of beautiful images of
the Wirral and Cheshire along the way.
Amy points out “[how] encouraging it is to have the support
of businesses, for example Paul Malone of Moving Soon,”
It is clear how driven Drone Factor is to break into the real
estate market, creating footage and photography for agents
that accelerate property sales.
Drone Factor plan to expand their aerial inventory to
accommodate for a wide range of emergency service
assistance, including the RNLI, Police and Fire Service, and
to accommodate for thermal imaging surveys and long range
inspection work. When asked about the new venture and
where it might go next, Sam said “We are hugely encouraged
by the positive response we’ve had so far; people are simply
amazed by our video footage - and that’s before we show
them 3D maps. We will be expanding the business in the not
to distant future.”
For more information, visit www.dronefactor.co.uk