Have you ever found yourself on-site for a project, taking a million photographs and measurements, only to return to the office and realize you missed that one photo or that one dimension? Are you ever coordinating with engineers or presenting a space to a client and need a visual aid to help them understand the area under discussion? With Matterport, an interactive 3D modeling software, LGA Partners can solve all of these problems and more. By using a Matterport 360 camera, we can scan a space of any size, publish the model, and then share the scanned 3D space with team members, clients, and consultants. Once the model is generated, you can pull real-time dimensions, add notes and points of interest, and view the model in plan or 3D. Being able to change the view of the model allows people to understand spatial relationships better and visualize project flow. Over the past year, we have integrated Matterport 360 cameras and software into our arsenal of tools we use every day to elevate our team coordination both internally and externally with fantastic results.
LGA Partners has utilized Matterport technology across all of our design sectors (Aviation, Education, Healthcare, Housing, Retail, and Workplace). When working on projects within airports, it’s not always easy to review project progress at just anytime. Site visits to airports take an extra level of planning and coordination. Therefore it is crucial to document as much information as possible while on-site, especially with larger projects such as master planning of airport tenant spaces. We have recently utilized Matterport to document significant completion milestones of our master planning project in the Nashville International Airport. With the 360 camera, we capture scans of post demolition of existing conditions, white box build-outs, and finally, the completed master plan. At each phase, these 3D models aid in understanding site conditions in real-time coordination meetings. The 3D model allows us to be “on-site” from virtually anywhere in the world.
We have found these 3D models to be very helpful in identifying unique conditions that otherwise could become lost through photographs. You can walk the entire project from the comfort of your computer, tablet, or phone to fully understand the scope of work. Overall, it is a fun experience for any client to see the progression of any new space develop with the help of Matterport 3D technology.
LGA is always experimenting with new technology to elevate our work and coordination on projects. We have found Matterport a crucial referencing tool that creates an all-compassing experience compared to standard photographs. In today’s world of virtual meetings and conferences, our team found this a great tool to bring a project site to anyone. The in-person site walks will always be an essential step in our design process. This technology has not replaced the need for in-person site evaluation but instead, is viewed more as a tool that can efficiently capture every inch of a space, giving an architect, designer, client, engineer; all the information they need to help make the best decisions that lead to great design. As we look to the future, we hope to train all of our employees on Matterport to strengthen the LGA teams’ overall skillset of using 3D technology.
