3D laser scanning services

The registered point cloud is ±3 mm typical (2–4 mm depending on range and setup). How accurate the drawings or model are depends on what is built from the cloud, and that tolerance is agreed in the scope. For steel and installation work we can tie the scan to survey control, so the whole site sits in one coordinate system.

Millions of measured points, each with a position and a colour, that together show the site in 3D. You can move through it, take measurements, cut sections and draw or model on top of it. It is the measured 3D dataset produced from the scan, and the source everything else we deliver is built from.

Terrestrial scanners sit on a tripod and give the densest, most accurate data: interiors, MEP, steel, façades. Mobile scanners are walked through a site and cover large open areas quickly, with lower accuracy. Drones cover roofs and sites from above. Many jobs use two of them, tied into one cloud.

A registered point cloud in E57, RCP, RCS or LAS, with the scan photos. On top of that, whatever was scoped: as-built drawings in DWG and PDF, a Revit model from our scan to BIM services, IFC or Navisworks files, or a comparison with the design.

To measure and section it, you need a program that reads point clouds: Autodesk ReCap, AutoCAD, Revit, Navisworks and most CAD and BIM tools do. If your team does not work in any of them, we deliver drawings or a model instead.

3D laser scanning is a form of LiDAR. LiDAR is the measuring method, a laser used to find the distance to each surface, and scanners calculate that distance in different ways. Terrestrial laser scanning means scanners set up around a site to capture dense 3D measurements; mobile and drone systems use LiDAR too. Photogrammetry, which builds 3D from photos, is different. We explain the details in 3D laser scanning vs LiDAR.

Not usually. Matterport is mainly used for visual documentation and walkthroughs; how accurately it measures depends on the device and workflow. Terrestrial laser scanning is chosen when the job needs dense, millimetre-level existing-condition data for CAD, BIM, installation or verification. See our Matterport vs LiDAR accuracy comparison.

Yes. Most of the plants, offices and stores we scan are in use. We work around people and production, in a shutdown window when there is one, and after hours or overnight when that suits you better.

On-site capture for a standard commercial building is usually one to two days; a large plant or campus takes longer. The registered point cloud comes first, then drawings or models, depending on the scope. We give you the dates with the quote.

The size of the site, how much is in it, the density and accuracy you need, and what is built from the cloud. Scanning one floor for the point cloud only and modelling a whole plant in Revit are very different jobs. Send the address, the building type and what the data is for and we will scope it; our 3D laser scanning cost guide explains what moves the price.

Yes. We scan what was built and compare it with the design drawings or model: a grid line off, an opening the wrong size, a slab out of level. We did this for a steel-framed building in Mississauga, where three contractors needed one set of numbers.

Ask four things before you compare prices. What accuracy they quote, and whether that is the point cloud or the finished drawing or model. How registration is checked, and how you will see it. Which formats you get, and in which software version. And what they do with areas the scanner cannot see. A good provider answers all four in the quote. Ours: ±3 mm typical on the cloud, registration checked before delivery, your formats, and hidden areas marked as not visible rather than guessed.

A tape and a laser distance meter give you the dimensions someone thought to take. A scan records everything the scanner can see, so the measurement you forgot is already in the cloud and nobody goes back to site. It also shows what a tape cannot: walls out of plumb, floors out of level, steel off its grid. For one room and one simple question, a tape is fine, and we will tell you when a scan is more than you need.

We work across Canada and the US, and each city on the map above has its own page with coverage details and the number to call: start with 3D laser scanning in Toronto, New York City or Chicago. For a site somewhere else, send the address and we will tell you how we would get there.