MANAGERIAL PERSPECTIVES ON BUILDING MAINTENANCE THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF NONCONVENTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS
Keywords:
: Innovative technologies, 3D thermography, Drone inspection, Building maintenance, Carbon emission reduction
Abstract
Building maintenance is undergoing a profound evolution, thanks to the integration of innovative technological solutions. The use of drones equipped with optical and thermal sensors, capable of integrating RGB imaging with infrared thermography and generating elaborate 3D models, opens new perspectives for the diagnosis and optimization of buildings. This method is not limited to the rapid detection of hidden defects and monitoring of energy performance, but also leads to a reduction in costs and risks associated with conventional inspections. At the same time, by detecting energy losses and improving decision-making, RGB-T 3D technology contributes to extending the lifespan of buildings and reducing carbon emissions. The paper analyzes the transition from the visible to the infrared spectrum, practical scenarios for using drones in audits and maintenance processes, but also the current limitations of these tools. Finally, the potential of three-dimensional aerial thermography to become a key element in modern building maintenance management is highlighted, with direct advantages for sustainability and the development of a more efficient and environmentally responsible built environment
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28. Pajares, G. (2015). Overview and Current Status of Remote Sensing Applications Based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 81(4), 281–330. https://doi.org/10.14358/pers.81.4.281
29. Omar, T., & Nehdi, M. L. (2017). Remote sensing of concrete bridge decks using unmanned aerial vehicle infrared thermography. Automation in Construction, 83, 360–371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2017.06.024
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2. Corentin Coupry, Richard, P., Bigaud, D., Sylvain Noblecourt, & Baudry, D. (2023). The Value of Extended Reality Techniques to Improve Remote Collaborative Maintenance Operations: A User Study. Proceedings E Report, 23–33. https://doi.org/10.36253/979-12-215-0289-3.03
3. Corentin Coupry, Richard, P., Bigaud, D., Sylvain Noblecourt, & Baudry, D. (2023). The Value of Extended Reality Techniques to Improve Remote Collaborative Maintenance Operations: A User Study. Proceedings E Report, 23–33. https://doi.org/10.36253/979-12-215-0289-3.03
4. Tae, S., Baek, C., & Shin, S. (2011). Life cycle CO2 evaluation on reinforced concrete structures with high-strength concrete. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 31(3),253–260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2010.07.002
5. Oh, B. K., Glisic, B., Lee, S. H., Cho, T., & Park, H. S. (2019). Comprehensive investigation of embodied carbon emissions, costs, design parameters, and serviceability in optimum green construction of two-way slabs in buildings. Journal of Cleaner Production, 222, 111–128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.03.003
6. Banu Sizirici, Yohanna Fseha, Cho, C.-S., Yildiz, I., & Byon, Y.-J. (2021). A Review of Carbon Footprint Reduction in Construction Industry, from Design to Operation. Materials, 14(20), 6094–6094. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14206094
7. Yim, S. Y. C., Ng, S. T., Hossain, M. U., & Wong, J. M. W. (2018). Comprehensive Evaluation of Carbon Emissions for the Development of High-Rise Residential Building. Buildings, 8(11), 147. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings8110147
8. Lin, D., Yang, N., Miao, Q., Cui, X., & Xu, D. (2025). True 3D Thermal Inspection of Buildings Using Multimodal UAV Images. Journal of Building Engineering, 100, 111806–111806. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2025.111806
9. Review of unmanned aerial vehicle infrared thermography (UAV-IRT) applications in building thermal performance: towards the thermal performance evaluation of building envelope. (2025). Quantitative InfraRed Thermography Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080//17686733.2024.2356913
10. Drones, C. (2024, July 14). Demystifying RGB and Thermal Imaging in Drones. Covert Drones. https://covertdrones.com/blogs/covert-drones-blog/demystifying-rgb-and-thermal-imaging-in-drones
11. Song, K., Zhao, Y., Huang, L., Yan, Y., & Meng, Q. (2023). RGB-T image analysis technology and application: A survey. Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, 120, 105919–105919. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engappai.2023.105919
12. Hassan, M., Forest, F., Fink, O., & Mielle, M. (2024). ThermoNeRF: Joint RGB and Thermal Novel View Synthesis for Building Facades using Multimodal Neural Radiance Fields. ArXiv.org. https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.12154
13. Schulte, S., Hillen, F., & Prinz, T. (2017). Analysis of combined uav-based rgb and thermal remote sensing data: a new approach to crowd monitoring. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XLII-2/W6, 347–354. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-xlii-2-w6-347-2017
14. Daffara, C., Riccardo Muradore, Piccinelli, N., Gaburro, N., Tullio de Rubeis, & Ambrosini, D. (2020). A Cost-Effective System for Aerial 3D Thermography of Buildings. Journal of Imaging, 6(8), 76–76. https://doi.org/10.3390/jimaging6080076
15. Zheng, H., Zhong, X., Yan, J., Zhao, L., & Wang, X. (2020). A Thermal Performance Detection Method for Building Envelope Based on 3D Model Generated by UAV Thermal Imagery. Energies, 13(24), 6677–6677. https://doi.org/10.3390/en13246677
16. Taheri, S., Elaheh Norouzijajarm, & Athar, A. A. (2025). Technical, economic, and environmental assessment of energy audit and optimization in the mechanical room of an office building. Energy Sustainable Development/Energy for Sustainable Development, 87, 101717–101717. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esd.2025.101717
17. Bajaro, J. C. P., & Calderon, A. D. (2024). A Review of Three-Dimensional RGB Images and Drone Thermal Camera Images Merged for Building Information Modeling for Energy Audit. Key Engineering Materials, 987, 93–108. https://doi.org/10.4028/p-aaqdl0
18. Sajjad Einizinab, Kourosh Khoshelham, Winter, S., Christopher, P., Fang, Y., Windholz, E., Marko Radanovic, & Hu, S. (2023). Enabling technologies for remote and virtual inspection of building work. Automation in Construction, 156, 105096–105096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2023.105096
19. Tarek Rakha, Masri, Y. E., Chen, K., Eleanna Panagoulia, & Wilde, P. D. (2021). Building envelope anomaly characterization and simulation using drone time-lapse thermography. Energy and Buildings, 259, 111754–111754. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2021.111754
20. Asia. (2025, August 13). Drone Solutions Asia. Drone Solutions Asia. https://www.dronesolutionsasia.com/blog/thermal-drones-for-high-rise-energy-audits
21. Drones (UAVs) to Take Off in Energy Efficiency Audits of Buildings and Houses – Renewable Market Watch. (2016, October 27). Renewable Market Watch. https://renewablemarketwatch.com/news-analysis/drones-uavs-to-take-off-in-energy-efficiency-audits-of-buildings-and-houses/
22. Ma, Y., Zeng, Z., Luo, Z., Tao, N., Deng, L., & Tian, Y. (2025). Current Challenges and Advancements of Aerial Thermography for Outdoor Structural Health Monitoring: A Review. IEEE Sensors Journal, 1–1. https://doi.org/10.1109/jsen.2025.3561200
23. Everything You Wanted to Know About Thermal Drone Inspections. (2022, October 20). Fenstermaker. https://blog.fenstermaker.com/thermal-drone-inspections/
24. Drone Thermography Inspection Guide (2025). (2025). Averroes.ai.https://averroes.ai/blog/drone-thermography-guide
25. How much CO2 is saved by switching from helicopters to drones for power line inspections? (2024). Airpelago.com. https://www.airpelago.com/news/co2-saved-switching-from-helicopters-to-drones-for-power-line-inspections
26. Wilson, A. N., Kumar, A., Jha, A., & Linga Reddy Cenkeramaddi. (2021). Embedded Sensors, Communication Technologies, Computing Platforms and Machine Learning for UAVs: A Review. IEEE Sensors Journal, 22(3), 1807–1826. https://doi.org/10.1109/jsen.2021.3139124
27. Liang, H., Lee, S.-C., Bae, W., Kim, J., & Seo, S. (2023). Towards UAVs in Construction: Advancements, Challenges, and Future Directions for Monitoring and Inspection. Drones, 7(3), 202–202. https://doi.org/10.3390/drones7030202
28. Pajares, G. (2015). Overview and Current Status of Remote Sensing Applications Based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 81(4), 281–330. https://doi.org/10.14358/pers.81.4.281
29. Omar, T., & Nehdi, M. L. (2017). Remote sensing of concrete bridge decks using unmanned aerial vehicle infrared thermography. Automation in Construction, 83, 360–371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2017.06.024
30. Ibrahim Motawa, & Kardakou, A. (2018, November 18). Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for inspection in construction and building industry. Ulster University. https://pure.ulster.ac.uk/en/publications/unmanned-aerial-vehicles-uavs-for-inspection-in-construction-and-
31. Marcin Biczyski, Rabia Sehab, Whidborne, J. F., Krebs, G., & Luk, P. (2020). Multirotor Sizing Methodology with Flight Time Estimation. Journal of Advanced Transportation, 2020, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/9689604
32. Zeng, Y., Zhang, R., & Lim, T. J. (2016). Wireless communications with unmanned aerial vehicles: opportunities and challenges. IEEE Communications Magazine, 54(5), 36–42. https://doi.org/10.1109/mcom.2016.7470933
33. Paziewska, J., & Rzonca, A. (2022). Integration of Thermal and RGB Data Obtained by Means of a Drone for Interdisciplinary Inventory. Energies, 15(14), 4971–4971. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15144971
34. How Robotics and Drones are Revolutionizing Construction: An Executive Guide. (2025). BaytechConsulting.https://www.baytechconsulting.com/blog/construction-robotics-drones-guid
Published
2025-12-31
How to Cite
Rachina, R., Tarnu, L., & Titu, M. (2025). MANAGERIAL PERSPECTIVES ON BUILDING MAINTENANCE THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF NONCONVENTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS. Nonconventional Technologies Review, 29(4). Retrieved from http://www.revtn.ro/index.php/revtn/article/view/563
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