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Guides and notes from the build

Practical Scan to BIM guides for AEC teams, and engineering notes on how we build simulation for robots.

Scan to BIM guides

Scan to BIM articles

Workflows, specifications, formats, scanners, use cases and what is new.

Guide

What is Scan to BIM? The complete guide

Scan to BIM explained: how laser scans become Revit and IFC models, the workflow, LOD and accuracy, costs, software, and when to use it.

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Industry

Recent breakthroughs in Scan to BIM

What changed in Scan to BIM in 2025 and 2026: AI segmentation, mesh-to-Revit workflows, Gaussian splats, faster mobile scanning, IFC 4.3 as ISO, OpenUSD 1.0 and SimReady digital twins.

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Guide

The Scan to BIM workflow, step by step

Every stage of a Scan to BIM project: scoping, scan planning, capture, registration, cleaning, modeling at the right LOD, QA against the point cloud, and delivery in Revit and IFC.

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Guide

How to write a Scan to BIM specification

A practical template for specifying Scan to BIM: scope, LOD per discipline, USIBD LOA per element, coordinates, deliverables, naming, QA and acceptance criteria.

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Guide

Point cloud file formats explained

E57, LAS, LAZ, RCP, RCS, PTS, PTX, PLY and scanner-native formats compared: what each stores, which to request from your surveyor, and which Revit and Scan to BIM tools need.

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Guide

Choosing a scanner for Scan to BIM

Terrestrial laser scanners vs mobile SLAM vs handheld and phone LiDAR for Scan to BIM: accuracy, speed, coverage and when to use each, with independent accuracy studies.

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Guide

Can you do Scan to BIM with an iPhone?

How accurate is iPhone and iPad LiDAR for Scan to BIM?

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Technology

How AI is automating Scan to BIM

How automated Scan to BIM works: point cloud segmentation, object detection, fitting parametric BIM elements, and human review.

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Guide

How to check a Scan to BIM model against the point cloud

A Scan to BIM QA checklist: registration reports, cloud-to-model deviation analysis, LOA verification, completeness, modeling standards and IFC checks.

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Guide

IFC or Revit? Choosing Scan to BIM deliverables

Should your Scan to BIM model be delivered as Revit RVT, IFC or both?

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Use case

Scan to BIM for MEP

How to scan and model existing mechanical, electrical and plumbing services: capture in ceiling voids and plant rooms, LOD 300 vs 350 for MEP, clash detection, hidden services and coordination.

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Use case

Scan to BIM for renovation and retrofit

Using Scan to BIM for renovation, refurbishment, fit-out, historic buildings and energy retrofits: when to scan, what to model, phasing existing and new in Revit, and avoiding surprises on site.

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Use case

Scan to BIM for facilities management

How building owners use Scan to BIM for facilities management: asset registers, COBie, ISO 19650 asset information models, space management, maintenance and digital twins of existing buildings.

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Use case

Scan to BIM for industrial plants and factories

Laser scanning and modeling factories, process plants and warehouses: dense pipework, equipment, racking, shutdown windows, safety, brownfield retrofits, line changes and robot deployment.

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Robotics

From Scan to BIM to SimReady

How a Scan to BIM model becomes a SimReady digital twin in OpenUSD: separated objects, collision geometry, physics materials, articulation, Isaac Sim, and why robotics teams need scanned sites.

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Engineering notes