Case Studies

SurvTech Solutions’ scanning department conducted a full 3D scan of the Perfecto Garcia Brothers Cigar Factory in Tampa, Florida. The current 44,000 square foot brick building was built in 1914 with three floors and a basement that had two attachments added early in the life of the building. The first attachment in the mid 1920’s and the second attachment in the late 1930’s.

The aim of the project was to change the support structure and replace the old wooden beams and columns. The problem was that as it was such an old construction there was no design or construction documentation that could help the engineers or architects to focus on the new redesign. For this reason, the technique of laser scanning was used. 

Terrestrial LiDAR, or 3D scanning, has been available for almost two decades and provides the ability to measure objects and the environment with an accuracy of a couple millimeters. 3-D scanning is a non-contact technology that uses a laser to collect measurements of the environment around the scanner to capture the exact size and shape of everything around it through millions, and even billions of points. With the millions of data points collected, the environment being scanned can then be turned into a virtual reality of the real-life version referred to as a “digital twin”.

Production Process

After scanning a site, the data is taken back to SurvTech’s main office and processed to get a cohesive point cloud that is checked for accuracy. This allows the team to do one of two things. First we can send it out to a company to do Building Information Modeling (BIM) that can be used for building development or engineering. Second, we can send them the registered point cloud in just about any format and they can determine the next steps.

The NavVis is a mobile indoor mapping system used for this project increased performance and timeliness. The FARO X330 is a long range, terrestrial scanner that has considerable accuracy and efficiency. The use of both pieces of equipment combined yields highly accurate and precise measurements in all situations and environments.

For further information about this project or other laser scanning services please contact SurvTech Solutions at 813-621-4929.