Service
3D Laser Scanning for Existing Buildings
We capture existing buildings with terrestrial laser scanners and drones and hand back a registered, georeferenced point cloud — the measurable foundation for BIM modelling, as-built drawings and building documentation.
Why scan
Replace the tape measure with millions of measured points.
A renovation project fails at the point where the drawings stop matching the building. Hand measurement records what somebody thought to measure; a 3D laser scan records everything within line of sight, at a density no manual survey reaches.
Each scan position captures millions of points with their position and reflectivity. Registered together they form one point cloud — a dimensionally accurate digital copy of the building as it stands today, rather than as it was drawn.
Standard tolerance is ±20 mm between the delivered data and the building. Scans are georeferenced to the Swiss reference frame CH1903+ / LV95, so the data sits correctly against site plans, official survey data and neighbouring projects.
At a glance
- Method
- Terrestrial laser scanning · drone survey · photogrammetry
- Tolerance
- ±20 mm unless otherwise specified
- Reference frame
- CH1903+ / LV95, or your project frame
- Point cloud formats
- E57 · RCP · RCS
- Typical duration
- 1–3 days on site for a single building
- You provide
- Site access and one contact person
How a scan runs
From site visit to registered point cloud.
The same four steps every time, so you know what is happening on your site and what arrives at the end of it.
- Step 1
Survey planning
Scope, target tolerance and access are agreed before anyone travels. Scan positions are planned so the building stays in use and no area is left in shadow.
- Step 2
On-site capture
Terrestrial laser scanning station by station, drone flight for roofs, facades and surroundings, and control targets wherever the project needs verified accuracy.
- Step 3
Registration & cleaning
Individual scans are registered into one coordinate system, checked against the control measurements, and cleaned of people, vehicles and scatter.
- Step 4
Delivery
The registered cloud in your format, 360° panoramas for visual reference, and a short report stating coverage, method and achieved tolerance.
Deliverables
What leaves our office.
.E57
Registered point cloud, open format
.RCP / .RCS
Autodesk ReCap project for Revit
.JPG
360° panoramic imagery per scan position
LV95
Georeferenced data in CH1903+ / LV95
.PDF
Scan report and coverage plan
.RVT / .PLN
Modelling-ready input for BIM production
Applications
Where a scan pays for itself.
Anywhere a wrong dimension becomes a change order, capture is cheaper than the correction.
U-01
Renovation & refurbishment
Establish the actual condition before design starts, so demolition and new build are planned against the building rather than against an assumption.
U-02
Architecture & design
Existing-condition data you can plan on directly — sections, heights and levels taken from measurement, not from a drawing set of unknown vintage.
U-03
Scan-to-BIM projects
A clean, registered cloud is the input a BIM model is only as good as. Ours is produced to be modelled from, not just to be looked at.
U-04
Building documentation
A durable digital record of the building as it stands — for property files, insurance, handover and facility management.
U-05
Volume & area verification
Areas and volumes derived from measured geometry, for area statements, rental documentation and feasibility work.
U-06
Site & surroundings
Drone survey of roofs, facades and terrain where a tripod cannot reach, tied into the same coordinate frame as the interior scans.
Specification
The numbers, in writing.
DATASHEET / SC-SVC-01
±20 MM
- Capture technology
- Terrestrial laser scanning (LiDAR) · UAV / drone survey · photogrammetry
- Accuracy tolerance
- ±20 mm unless otherwise specified, verified against control targets
- Georeferencing
- CH1903+ / LV95 — or the project's own coordinate frame
- Processing
- Leica Cyclone · Autodesk ReCap — registration, validation, noise cleaning
- Output formats
- E57 · RCP · RCS · 360° panoramas (JPG) · scan report (PDF)
- Occupied buildings
- Yes — non-contact, section by section, planned around daily use
- Data transfer
- Secure exchange; multi-gigabyte datasets are standard
FAQ
3D laser scanning, answered.
Our standard delivered tolerance is ±20 mm between the point cloud and the building. The scanner itself measures far tighter than that; the figure we publish is the one that survives registration across every scan position, which is the number that matters for planning. Tighter tolerances for individual elements are possible and are priced per project.
Continue the chain
The other three services.
- BIM ModellingPoint clouds converted into structured BIM models in Revit or Archicad — modelled to your LOG and LOI, checked, and exported to IFC.
- Building SurveyA complete digital survey of an existing building — geometry, levels, openings and areas — as the reliable basis for renovation, permits and valuation.
- As-Built Drawings & Floor PlansAccurate floor plans, sections, elevations and area calculations, drawn from measured building data rather than redrawn from an old plan set.
Next step
Tell us about the building.
Area, target LOD and a rough timeline are enough for a scoped quote with rates, deliverables and dates.