solidowrks 3d point cloud drawing
European Active Projects Ltd
Pioneers earth-start Veesus SolidWorks plug-in
Challenge
- Needed to accurately mensurate large sites quickly
- Unable to work with bespeak deject data natively in SolidWorks
Solution
- Veesus Bespeak Clouds for SolidWorks plug-in
- Total range of editing features, and instant and accurate measurements
Results
- Hands able to work with a 2-mile browse of a harbour to plan new edifice work
- Combining every bit-built data with designs enabled team to gain planning permission faster
About the company – EAPL
European Active Projects Ltd (EAPL) is a construction and fabrication company specialising in marine, offshore and land based projects including fabrication for the quarrying, renewables, and structure industries. With offices and facilities beyond the United kingdom, EAPL also has its ain CAD section working out of its Southampton office, creating designs and production drawings for all its projects using SolidWorks.
The Challenge
Overcoming the disconnect between 3D scanning and CAD
Equally function of its design work, the squad at EAPL oft has to measure sites alee of creating designs – something that Ben Ayling, CAD Designer at EAPL, had to practise by hand. Though this wasn't a large trouble when working on pocket-sized-scale projects, working on larger sites made measuring past hand both impractical and difficult.
Though the team persevered and worked to a high standard, measuring large sites manually allowed small errors to creep in – which required extra site visits to rectify. Ben explains, "I remember 1 site in particular, which was nigh 2 acres and was essentially impossible to measure accurately by hand. Going dorsum to re-mensurate areas where we'd found discrepancies slowed the project down – it was clear that measuring this mode just wasn't feasible on larger sites."
To solve the challenge, Ben and EAPL looked into 3D scanning engineering to gain authentic measurements of sites. They invested in FARO scanners, simply so encountered another challenge – how to work with the point cloud files generated by the scanners, in SolidWorks. For their first project, EAPL'south partner Solid Solutions converted the signal clouds into mesh models that Ben and the team could piece of work with in SolidWorks.
"Information technology was very helpful," says Ben, "only we wanted to go one step farther. We wanted to exist able to piece of work with point clouds natively in SolidWorks – the meshes we were using every bit a workaround oft contained lots of irrelevant data that nosotros couldn't get rid of, and just weren't equally versatile every bit point clouds."
A close upward of the foundations from a previous building in the harbour, which EAPL used as the ground for their new building.
A close up of EAPL'south proposed buildings in situ alongside as-built information from the point deject.
"The browse had defenseless lots of data nosotros didn't need – including hundreds of birds in the harbour. With Veesus information technology was so easy to remove all that extraneous data, and just focus on what we needed."
Ben Ayling
CAD Designer at EAPL
The Solution
Veesus Indicate Clouds for SolidWorks plug-in
Luckily for Ben, Solid Solutions suggested a new way to solve the claiming – a SolidWorks plug in from betoken cloud experts Veesus. The plug-in enables CAD designers to work with point clouds of any size natively inside SolidWorks, with no need for meshing or other workarounds.
"We'd looked at i or two other solutions, but none of them enabled u.s.a. to work with point cloud data natively in SolidWorks – they all needed to convert point clouds into meshes outset, and then what Veesus was offering was actually heady," Ben explains.
After coming together with Veesus and seeing the solution, Ben and the team decided to sign up to trial the beta version of the plug-in. From their very first trial, Ben was impressed. They uploaded a 2-mile wide scan of Ramsgate Harbour, in order to plan new buildings on the site, and were instantly able to navigate through the entire scan, including the dockside, ships in the harbour, and the buildings effectually information technology. The plug-in gives the user total manipulation of the point cloud, including the ability to clip portions out – which Ben constitute especially useful.
"The scan had caught lots of data nosotros didn't need – including hundreds of birds in the harbour. With Veesus it was so easy to remove all that extraneous data, and but focus on what we needed."
The Results
Faster, more accurate site measuring, and a bright hereafter for point clouds
The scan of Ramsgate Harbour enabled Ben to get incredibly accurate measurements of the harbour and program the new buildings with ease. Ben comments, "When measuring past mitt, there's always the adventure you lot forget to measure something and have to get back to site to rectify the issue. With the signal cloud, I can accept any measurement I need from my desk-bound – it'southward been such a time saver."
The point cloud information has besides helped EAPL to gain planning permission from the local council for their project. Past working with scan data in SolidWorks, Ben has been able to show what the proposed buildings will await like next to the existing buildings.
"I've fifty-fifty been able to plan the edifice to friction match the foundations of a building which was previously there, thanks to the detail in the scans," he adds, "which is a useful thing to show the council."
Looking to the future, Ben is keen to see the Veesus plug-in used on more than projects. Every bit well as the time-saving benefits and the added accuracy that comes from using betoken clouds, beingness able to leverage 3D scan data will assist EAPL increment safety when scanning sites. The team often measures sites such as quarries while they are still operational, which presents a safety adventure to those doing the measuring.
"Now that we can easily work with signal clouds, we can simply browse those areas that are dangerous to measure by hand, getting authentic data safely," Ben affirms. "It'due south merely ane of the many exciting things that the Veesus Bespeak Clouds for SolidWorks plug-in has enabled u.s.a. to do – and I'thou actually excited to encounter where the partnership takes us in the futurity."
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Source: https://veesus.com/eapl-case-study/
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