Archive for year: 2018

Reworks can account for up to 15 percent of the total cost of construction — but this cost can be alleviated through the use of 3D laser scanning services. 3D laser scanning, also known as high-definition surveying, is used to quickly scan, survey, and map large areas of land with complete accuracy. 3D laser scans can be ported into software solutions that are designed to simulate construction, thereby making it easier for companies to complete their projects with fewer mistakes and fewer reworks.

Lower Costs and Deliver On Time With 3D Laser Scanning

Laser scans can be used to produce more accurate plans from the start, thereby reducing the potential for reworks to as little as 1%. Through this increased accuracy, construction companies can greatly reduce their overhead and their bids, thereby making themselves both more profitable and more competitive within their field. Construction companies will experience fewer delays and will have more satisfied clientele, as projects will come in on time and on budget. Any investment in 3D laser scanning services can pay for itself through these reduced rework costs.

Laser scanning can be used at all levels of a new construction process. Not only can laser scanning be used for initial surveying, but it can also be used at intervals to assess structures. Laser scanning can be used to determine whether concrete floor slabs are flat enough, or whether the HVAC system, plumbing, and pipes are being installed correctly. Throughout the process of construction, 3D laser scanning provides a secondary check to ensure the accuracy and precision of the build. If anything goes wrong during construction, laser scanning can reveal the problems before they become monumental. In so doing, they give a construction company the opportunity to improve upon their project before problems arise.

Laser scanning can even be used throughout the process of renovation, to map the current structures and simulate and isolate potential changes. Through construction milestones, laser scanning provides for quality assurance, thereby making sure that the client gets the product delivered that they desired.

Ultimately, this doesn’t just lead to an on-time, on-budget project: it also leads to a better reputation and satisfied clientele. When fewer mistakes and reworks happen, it is also less likely that a mistake could make its way to a client, or potentially cause failure within the structure itself.

Reducing the Cost of Repairs, Maintenance, and Renovations

Laser scanning isn’t just useful during the initial project. Laser scanning creates a set of documentation, records, and 3D data that can be used throughout the rest of the project’s life. Repair work, maintenance, and renovations can all utilize this data, for more cost-effective solutions. This adds value to construction services and ultimately provides for happier clients long-term. Construction companies can provide continual support for their projects and sites through this data, as well as keeping the data for their archival records.

Laser scanning can be completed on multiple tiers of involvement and cost. Construction companies may want to do a single laser scan at the beginning of a project, to ensure that they aren’t missing anything about the lot, the environment, or a structure that is to be remodeled. Likewise, companies may find that they can improve their operations by completing laser scanning at intervals, inspecting the project as it grows and ensuring that the quality of the project is up to standards. More advanced laser scanning data can be used alongside sophisticated software packages, to simulate every aspect of a build. It’s all up to how much an organization can invest and how involved its project will be. For more information about how 3D laser scanning can improve the cost-effectiveness of your next solution, contact Landpoint.

More than 2.7 million miles of pipeline operate over federal ground. As pipelines are further developed, it becomes necessary to improve upon their cost-effectiveness while not sacrificing safety. New unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) technology can help. Pipelines have to be maintained to remain safe, and there are many advantages to using unmanned aerial vehicles for these tasks. Through sensors and scanners, UAVs can be used to maintain large-scale pipeline projects at minimal cost.

The Importance of Safety and Maintenance

The energy industry is required to maintain strict safety standards. There are substantial risks that are inherent to moving large volumes of volatile and hazardous materials. Though pipelines are constructed to be as reliable as possible, they can still break down over time due to high pressures of liquids and gasses. Without UAV pipeline inspections, these pipelines have to be manually inspected by aerial flight crews or ground based crews.

Traditional aerial flight crews are prohibitively expensive, which can ultimately lead to a pipeline company performing inspections less often than they should. This further increases the amount of overhead for the company, which can adversely impact how competitive and profitable the company can be. UAV pipeline inspections solve these problems, by providing fast, convenient inspection options, which improve overall reliability and safety.

The Advantages of Aerial Sensors

UAVs aren’t just used to perform visual inspections on pipelines. UAVs can be fitted with a number of sensors, which can be used to detect different types of pipeline damage. Some of these forms of pipeline damage wouldn’t be visible to physical inspections and therefore could not be caught by on foot inspectors. Catching these issues early on will lead to reduced costs and improved safety.

Detecting Thermal Leaks With Drones

Drones can be used to automatically sense increases in temperature surrounding the pipeline. This can reveal dangerous leaks before the leaks have been physically detected. Any leaks can then be recorded through GPS so that the leak can be located to be repaired as soon as possible.

Detecting Gas Leaks through Air Quality Detection

Thermal imaging isn’t the only way to detect gas leaks. Drones can also be fitted with sensors that are designed to detect issues with air quality. Methane and ethane can be detected through these sensors. Reports can then be generated regarding the precise location of the methane or ethane leak, so they can then be investigated by maintenance crews.

By performing these gas detection tests frequently, pipelines can reduce environmental damage and potential safety issues. Altogether, this creates a safer and more consistent work environment, as well as protecting the company’s reputation.

Locating the Precise Locations of Pipeline Damage

The archiving of damage data for future reference is one of the major challenges for modern pipeline maintenance. UAV pipeline inspections can be done frequently to identify any issues that have arisen before they become problems. As mentioned, the precise location of any identified damage can be reported and logged, which ensures that this type of damage isn’t missed and doesn’t become more significant over time. By making inspections faster, more effective, and more accurate, pipeline companies are better able to perform these inspections on a timely basis.

Identifying Physical Damage and Environmental Concerns

Finally, drone pipeline inspection is also able to see evidence of physical damage and environmental issues. Drones may be able to identify exposed pipelines, erosion, or the overgrowth of plant-life that could be slowly intruding upon the pipeline project. This can be done over uneven terrain, which may not be easily physically inspected.

Drones can provide extremely comprehensive UAV pipeline inspections, with a wide array of sensors and imaging. All of this can reduce the maintenance costs associated with pipeline installation and production. For more information, contact the experts at Landpoint.

From drone data collection to SaaS solutions, the way that surveying companies are collecting, storing, and distributing data is changing. Oil and gas surveying companies are changing the way they do business to reduce overhead, improve safety, and produce better results overall. Here are just a few ways these companies that offer surveying and engineering support are evolving with the times.

Hybrid Cloud Solutions – Interfacing with key parties

Surveying companies are collecting more data than ever before. Rather than providing two-dimensional reporting, surveying companies are now providing detailed three-dimensional point clouds, models and simulations. For the oil and gas industry, in particular, this is incredibly important; the improved accuracy and quantity of the data can make the project both faster and safer, as there will be fewer unexpected discoveries and delays.

This data has to be stored somewhere. By storing data on hybrid cloud infrastructure, surveying companies can improve the accessibility of data, reduce the possibility of it being lost, and store large volumes of data without any personal investment of data space.

Utilizing Software-as-a-Service

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) moves computational power and data to a remote server, rather than having to perform complex calculations or data modeling on-premise. Surveying and engineering companies utilizing SaaS can provide more detailed results faster, and often at a lower overall cost to the customer. These SaaS suites are highly competitive and make it easier for businesses to scale, as they no longer need to invest in physical infrastructure and hardware. For instance, you can view billions of survey grade points in a web browser or on a mobile device.

Implementing Machine Learning and Automation

The more an oil and gas field project can be automated, the better. In recent years, the oil and gas industry has embraced the Internet of Things, adding sensors onto their construction projects and automating many of the routine maintenance processes. In engineering and surveying, oil and gas companies are looking to improve the amount of automation they do and add machine learning improvements, such as areas where 3D printing can be utilized.

Drones or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) are another area in which robotics and automation are being used to improve the consistency and cost of surveying. Through drones, detailed surveys can be completed in a fraction of the time.

Investigating AR and VR

Many engineering and construction companies are looking into augmented reality and virtual reality systems. Augmented reality allows construction companies and engineers to view aspects of their surroundings through a digital overlay, while virtual reality lets engineers, developers, and planners enter into a virtual simulation of the world. Both of these can be combined with the appropriate surveying data to run simulations and explore projects before they are completed.

These are only a few of the new trends that are emerging. With advanced technology, engineering and surveying companies can collect the data they need faster, more accurately modeling their projects and ensuring that they come in under budget and on deadline. Technology is constantly changing and improving, and oil and gas companies are going to need to be aware of these new advancements if they want to remain competitive.

Intelligent modeling is becoming important to the engineering and construction industries, with organizations that support BIM now far more competitive than businesses that have not yet made the jump. BIM is still a new and emerging technology with many improvements to be made and applications to be discovered, and land surveying may be able to help bridge the gap that now exists between engineering and construction.

The Advantages of BIM

Business intelligence modeling creates accurate, 3D models of projects. Engineers can build structures and properties across surveyed land, in order to determine the most optimal configurations of these projects. 3D models create a more reliable simulation of the way that a project will be, identifying potential project flaws through simulations. Engineers are able to analyze their design elements, improve potential conflicts, and simulate scenarios such as tracking the sun throughout the year.

Essentially, 3D BIM give engineers the opportunity to “try before they buy.” They can create complex digital simulations of a project that will reveal potential risks and issues with the project before the project even begins, therefore improving the success of the project and reducing the amount of time the project will take. In terms of cost analysis, 3D BIM makes it possible for businesses to project different changes to their structures that could save them money, reducing cost while not sacrificing on quality.

By doing work on 3D BIM, engineers can provide more valuable information to construction companies. However, they need to start with the right data and technology in hand — that is where professional land surveyors come in.

Professional Land Surveying and Business Intelligence Modeling

To be accurate, 3D BIM needs to begin with a detailed representation of the surrounding area. For some projects, such as an inner city building, this may be less important. For others, such as oil and gas pipelines, this is an important factor. Structures are going to need to be developed around the surrounding environment in a way to take advantage of that environment. Consider solar panel installations: they need to be configured so they can take advantage of the sun throughout the day and year, without interrupting each other, and while taking up as little space as possible.

Professional land surveying can be done that will take a 3D scan of the surrounding area. This extremely accurate, high-resolution scan can be digitally modeled and used to build structures. From there, the structures can be created with more realistic and accurate simulations, easily making it so that construction can begin and end on schedule. Engineers will find it easier to work with accessible data, while the engineers and the construction team will be able to collaborate and communicate based on a clear 3D design.

Most importantly, the land surveying that is completed at the beginning of a project has to be as accurate as possible; inaccuracies in the early stages of surveying can cascade into serious problems later in the project. Any delays or complications during the survey process will translate into time and budget overages later on, as engineers and construction workers will have to adjust.

In general terms, BIM makes it easier for engineering and construction teams to work together, as they can view an accurate representation of what the project will be, and they can easily collaborate based on this shared data. Engineering and construction teams will be able to modify areas of the project on-the-fly to test out new recommendations and to experiment with differences in build and material. And it all begins with the process of land surveying.