Matterport is perhaps the best known among the young companies selling a new kind of 3D capture solution for the construction industry. Though not quite disruptive, these solutions are making waves by emphasizing low cost and visualization over absolute accuracy of measurement. Recently, however, the company started opening up the platform it uses for processing, storage, and visualization. Current Matterport users can perform capture with one of the company’s own devices, and supplement that with data from third-party devices such as Leica Geosystems’ blockbuster BLK360 lidar scanner, or any number of Android-based mobile capture devices.
Given Matterport’s focus on this platform-based data fusion approach, it’s no surprise that it has signed a letter of intent with BIMobject, a Swedish company that provides—you guessed it—BIM objects for download. Visit the BIMoject website and you’ll find a pre-made model for the exact type of fluorescent lights you want to specify in the office conference room you’re designing. Simply download, and plug it in.
The forthcoming official agreement between these two companies will integrate the companies’ platforms. For instance, Matterport users can include BIMobject objects like sofas or windows in their 3D spaces.
According to a press release, the two companies intend for the integration to improve workflows for facilities management and conceptual architectural design. “The cooperation will improve how design decisions are made and implemented,” an official release reads, “by enabling users to scan a space and redesign it in a collaborative environment using real objects, and then transfer those directly to the BIM model.”
“The integration will facilitate the scanning of facilities,” the release continues, “allowing customers to add all relevant BIM information directly to the scanned model from BIMobject cloud.” According to the two companies, this workflow could even provide a “complete alternative” to BIM for facilities management.
