Top 5 Effective 3D Laser Scanning Practices for Construction Projects

Laser scanning technology plays a crucial role in the success of a construction project. It enables the engineers to survey a piece of land to collect valuable information, create a virtual model of the actual construction, and make necessary changes before the development phase starts. As part of it, the advanced 3D (three-dimensional) laser scanning helps to document the infrastructure more accurately and at a faster pace.

Benefits of 3D laser scanning for a construction project

• It reduces human involvement in scanning structures, which minimizes errors and maximizes efficiency.
• The 3D scanners measure and collect information about every angle of the area in the form of point cloud with high precision. You can even set up series of scanners to measure a large area in a quick time.
• If you find any flaw in the structure design, you can quickly redesign it using the laser scanning technology until you get the perfect layout.
• Re-designing the areas using 3D laser scanning decreases field time and cost significantly. As a result, you can take up multiple projects at a time without feeling the work overload.
• The modern 3D laser scanners offer multi-platform compatibilities to help design accurate models, regardless of the platform or device you are using.
The adoption of this technology is increasing across industries for a wide variety of projects. However, best practices must be considered for setting up effective 3D laser scanning and ensuring that the project proceeds as per the schedule.

Let’s discuss some of the pointers;

1. Careful Planning:

Laying the groundwork to identify the purpose of using laser scanning is vital before the project begins. Disorganized planning may result in rescanning the same area repeatedly to get an accurate measurement, which leads to project delay.

Therefore, the engineers need to determine the optimal scanning locations, the number of laser scanners required, how they would use the measured data, and verify the information with current project requirements. It would help to identify any possible obstructions that can impact the scanning process and if any additional devices required.

2. Thorough Understanding of Infrastructure and Project Scope:

Contractors need to define whether the space is external or internal, occupied or unoccupied, and finished or demolished before 3D laser scanning. An unplanned scanning, especially before the demolition, can turn into a time consuming and costly output.

Besides, the dedicated team should be well aware of the project scope. A clear understanding of project features, functions, and flexibility, along with the deliverables, help generate opportunities at each stage of the project to meet stakeholders’ requirements.

3. Time Assessment and Project Survey Control:

A construction project requires the assessment of completion time to perform all the tasks. It helps to manage resources, project costs, and other components to meet the deadline. It also enables you to determine the time dedicated to laser scanning and 3D model creating from the point cloud.

Further, to use laser scanning technology efficiently, the setup of project survey control is required. It would allow us to transform the scanned data into the established project control and perform additional 3D scanning at a later stage using the synchronized system. Besides, it will ensure that all the contractors have a shared work point.

4. Walkthrough of the 3D Model to Client:

It is essential to provide a detailed design visualization to the customer before finalizing the construction model. It helps to keep everyone on the same page and communicate quickly if any change is required.

Besides, when you educate the client about laser scanning technology, they understand the three core parts of the process- object scanning, as-built data collection, and point cloud to 3D model generation. Though the first two steps are a bit easy to perform, an expert team is required to execute the third step.

5. Additional Measures:

• Minimize the scanners’ positions such that every scan overlaps with another scan.
• Adjust the scanner position according to the obstructions such as trees and more. It ensures you capture all the data around the object.
• Set the scan resolution, quality, color, horizontal/vertical settings, exposure metering, and scan profiles based on the details you require from laser scanning.

Conclusion

Comprehensive documentation of requirements and a thorough understanding of laser scanning technology can help achieve substantial savings for the project. Using the modern, professional 3D scanners, the engineers can capture the detailed, precise data for a construction site.

However, your organization might need an experienced team that can convert point cloud to 3D model to assist you in your construction project. They can help you make a virtual infrastructure by mapping millions of valid data points for future use and complete your project efficiently in less time.