3D Scanning: Replicating the Real World in a Virtual Space

Incomplete, outdated, or nonexistent site/facility drawings are all too common for owners and facility managers. Not having this information can be a significant setback when preparing for a new project or existing building update and can push design schedules back by days or weeks. When each day matters on a project, owners and design team members can’t afford to spend time on multiple site visits to view and measure existing conditions while maintaining measurement accuracy. 3D Scanning takes the guesswork out of the equation by creating an as-built point cloud of an entire site.

How does it work?

A technician arrives at the project site with a scanner and walks the area to determine the best plan for capturing the site. Once established, the technician begins scanning from one point on the site, with the scanner taking a 360-degree image and point cloud of the area. Once complete, they move to the next scan location and begin the subsequent capture. Each scan takes several minutes, and the process continues until the entire site is captured. The whole process can take anywhere from 20 minutes to several days, depending on the size of the site and the detail required.

During the scanning process, the device’s software automatically links the images together to create one cohesive and accurate digital view of the entire site. The various scans and complete site image can be imported into many different types of software (CADWorx, Revit, Recap, Navisworks, AutoCAD, etc.) to be used by the design team depending on the project’s need.

Project Example

An industrial manufacturer planned to expand a production line in an area of their building currently used for storage. The owner had outdated drawings of the area on hand, and the information was unreliable. The owner also needed to know how much space the material in the future production line expansion area occupied to determine an appropriate relocation.

Coffman scanned the site (approximately 256,000 sf) in two days and developed a complete 3D model of the space. The model was then used to develop a new drawing set of the future production line expansion area. Coffman also scanned other areas in the facility used for storage so the owner could determine the best option to move the materials once the expansion project began.

With the new drawings, the owner could better coordinate space requirements with the production line equipment supplier. The Coffman team then imported the supplier’s equipment layouts into the previously developed 3D model to demonstrate multiple configurations and arrive at the most sensible and efficient manufacturing process layout possible for the space.

When to utilize 3D Scanning:

• When facility/site drawings are incomplete, outdated, or nonexistent.
• To verify as-built conditions.
• When a project requires taking dimensions by hand (new or existing).
• When making renovations or additions to an existing building/project site.
• When an area will later be inaccessible, and a scan will permit later measurement.

Learn more about Coffman’s 3D Scanning services.