In the last few years, the search for new technologies, new processes, new paths that help in the digitalization of construction, has intensified. Partly due to the movement of other industries in this direction and partly due to the widespread use of BIM. It is perceived in all areas, such as human resources, health and legal, the need to change management and generate new ideas.

 

Civil construction has shown a considerable effort in its modernization in recent years. BIM has great influence and assumes the role of protagonist in this initiative. However, for the entire production chain to make an active contribution, other measures are needed at all levels of production that make it possible to change culture and paradigms.

 

One of the demands is the application of technology in tasks that are still performed manually. For example, in the measurement process present in different moments and uses of civil construction, from the elaboration of plans of existing buildings to studies of pathological manifestations. This stage is usually costly and may present accumulated errors, compromising the other services. The 3D laser scanner emerges as a fast and effective alternative to capture reality and create an accurate 3D model.

 

It is a portable equipment, with an average weight of 5kg, which does not pose risks to the operator. Its transport and handling is easy and fast. In addition, its operation is customizable, providing a product suited to the specific needs of the project. These factors provide flexibility for its application, having as main benefits the reduced survey time, the high volume of information and the reliability of the data.

 

Basically, it works as follows: the equipment emits an infrared laser beam to the center of a rotating mirror that deflects the beam in vertical rotation. When it encounters an obstacle, the laser returns to the origin. The device calculates the travel time and signal strength. Automatically generates an XYZ coordinate for that point with the material's reflectivity information. The equipment has a field of view of 360 ° x 300 °. These millions of points collected are known as the point cloud.

 

The application of the 3D laser scanner in industrial areas is becoming increasingly necessary to eliminate design errors as well as good planning in interventions for extensions, renovations, retrofit and relocation of equipment in areas with a limited layout.

 

For such industrial interventions, time is always the greatest enemy. A poorly planned production stop can cost companies millions per day, regardless of the sector or area of ​​activity.

 

Today, with the contracting of projects on a BIM-type platform, it is necessary to prefabricate equipment and well-planned parts to reduce the costs / downtime of a plant. And for this to be really applied, the equipment and parts must be manufactured with ideal precision, so that there are no adjustments in the field and unpleasant surprises in the execution of the works.

 

3D scanning allows to identify small errors in construction and assembly of the site that would not be noticeable using conventional measurement instruments, even using modern instruments, parallax errors are common and constant.

 

It is possible to mention some scenarios that are frequent in industrial areas and can compromise planning: misalignment of metallic structures, slopes of process piping, unevenness in floors, etc.

 

The benefits of technology are numerous and its application is already a reality in Brazil. WRodacki and Aplus Engenharia are examples of companies that use and, through partnerships, offer the customer a complete and high quality solution to meet needs and exceed expectations.

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