ServicesScan-to-BIM

Scan-to-BIM Services: Revit Models from 3D Laser Scans

Scan-to-BIM turns an existing building into a Revit model. The building is laser scanned, the scans are registered into one point cloud, and the model is built against that cloud, element by element, so a wall in the model stands where the wall stands in the building. We are a scan-to-BIM company that does its own scanning, in every US state, and delivers the model with the point cloud it was built from.

What you get

The order is usually an as-built model of the architecture and structure at the level of development the project names: the walls, floors and roofs, the columns and beams, the doors, windows and stairs, the ceilings and the fixed equipment. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems can be added to the same model from the same scan; that scope is described under MEP BIM and drafting. The model is delivered as a Revit file in the version you work in, and as IFC or an ArchiCAD file when your team does not use Revit. IFC is an open international standard for building data, ISO 16739-1:2024, written to be vendor-neutral, so an IFC file opens in a wide range of BIM software.

The registered point cloud comes with the model, in E57, the ASTM exchange format for 3D imaging data, and in RCP/RCS for Revit, with the registration report that lists the average error of each station and the overlap between scans. When drawings are needed as well, plans, sections and elevations are cut from the model; a 2D-only order is described on the as-built drawings page.

Scan to Revit: from the point cloud to the model

The field work is a terrestrial laser scan with a scanner of the Trimble X7 class, which holds a 3D point accuracy of 2.4 mm at 10 m (one standard deviation) by its datasheet and registers its stations in the field. How the scan is planned and what it captures is on the 3D laser scanning page; the difference between a registered and an unregistered cloud, which decides whether modeling can start, is explained in registered vs unregistered point clouds.

Revit links a point cloud as an indexed RCP or RCS file, so a raw E57, LAS or PTS file is indexed to that format first; we do it in Autodesk ReCap. The cloud is linked into the Revit project on shared coordinates, so the model and the scan stay aligned when the file goes to the design team, and every element is then modeled to the points. The geometry comes from the cloud; old drawings, where they exist, supply room and system names. The point cloud to Revit guide walks through the link step for teams that model from the cloud themselves, and the scan-to-BIM workflow post covers the whole sequence from the first station to the delivered file.

Before delivery the model is checked against the cloud: the modeled surfaces are compared with the points they were built from, and elements that sit outside the LOA named in the quote are corrected.

Level of development: LOD 200, 300 and 350

Scan-to-BIM scopes usually cite the BIMForum Level of Development Specification. At LOD 200 an element is "generically and graphically represented within the Model with approximate quantity, size, shape, location, and orientation", a placeholder that is recognizable as a wall or a beam but whose dimensions are approximate. At LOD 300 the element is represented "such that its quantity, size, shape, location, and orientation can be measured". LOD 350 adds the element's "interfaces with adjacent or dependent Model Elements", the level the specification intends for construction-level coordination. LOD 400 is fabrication detail; the specification itself notes that most models contain few LOD 400 elements.

LOD 300 is the usual order. A feasibility study or an early massing model is LOD 200, and a renovation that has to coordinate new ductwork with the existing structure is LOD 350 for the elements that meet. The specification says it does not prescribe a level for the steps of a project, so the scope names the LOD per element category, and the quote lists the categories. The two guides what BIM LOD 300 means and LOD 200 vs LOD 300 in scan-to-BIM show the difference on real elements.

Accuracy

The level of development says how far an element is developed; it says nothing about how close the model is to the building. The specification's own level for existing conditions, LOD 500, requires that "the level of accuracy shall be noted or attached to the Model Element", and BIMForum recommends the U.S. Institute of Building Documentation's Level of Accuracy (LOA) specification for that. The USIBD guide states every level as a standard deviation at the 95 percent confidence level (two sigma); the three that matter for a building model are LOA20, between 5 cm and 15 mm, LOA30, between 15 mm and 5 mm, and LOA40, between 5 mm and 1 mm. The guide also separates the measured accuracy of the field measurements from the represented accuracy of the model built on them; a leaning wall, for example, is still modeled as one plane. A typical scan-to-BIM model from us is represented at LOA30, and the quote names the level with the LOD.

What is modeled, by building

A house or an apartment is modeled for a renovation or an addition, usually at LOD 300: the interior walls, floors and stairs, and the envelope and the roof when the exterior is in scope. For a tenant fit-out in an office or on a commercial floor the ceilings, the columns and the storefront matter most, and the plenum is scanned where the tiles can be lifted. Facades and sites come up in restoration work and in additions that have to meet an existing wall, since a facade scan from the street captures the ornament and the openings that old elevations rarely show correctly. In industrial buildings and plants the point cloud itself is often the first deliverable, for equipment moves and new lines, and the model follows for the areas that change. Historic buildings get a denser scan, because a scan records the irregular geometry that an old drawing straightens out.

Point cloud modeling services

When you already have a point cloud, from your own scanner or from another provider, we model from it. The cloud is checked first: it has to be registered into one coordinate system, ideally with its registration report, or with enough overlap between stations that the registration can be checked. E57, LAS, PTS and other common formats are indexed to RCP/RCS so that Revit can link them, the cloud is linked on shared coordinates, and the model is built against the points at the LOD and the LOA the scope names, exactly as it would be from a scan we take. Where the cloud has gaps, rooms nobody scanned or ceilings that stayed closed, the scope says so and those areas are left out or taken from existing drawings, marked as unverified. Point cloud modeling is quoted on the cloud itself: its area, its density and coverage, and the element categories to model. The delivery is the Revit model in your version, or IFC or an ArchiCAD file.

Price and time

Price follows the area, the level of development and how much of the building is in scope. Typical ranges from recent projects: a house or an apartment, scanned and modeled, $2,000 to $4,500; interiors with facades and the site, $2,500 to $5,000; an office or a commercial floor, $3,000 to $9,000. Large buildings run from $12,000 and are quoted on their own. The point cloud alone starts at about $1,200, and a model built from a point cloud you already have is quoted on that cloud. The exact price comes in a quote within one business day of your sending the address, the LOD and the element categories you need. The scan-to-BIM cost post explains what moves the price.

The scan is scheduled as soon as the project needs it, often within days of the order, and usually takes a day for a house or a floor. The model usually follows in two to three weeks for a house and in four to eight weeks for a commercial floor or a whole building, depending on the LOD and the categories. We scan in all 50 states.

Frequently asked questions about scan-to-BIM

What is scan-to-BIM?

The process of laser scanning an existing building, registering the scans into one point cloud, and building a BIM model, usually in Revit, against that cloud. The result is an as-built model whose geometry is measured from the building.

What LOD do you model to?

LOD 300 for most orders, LOD 200 for massing and feasibility, LOD 350 for the elements that have to be coordinated with new work. The LOD is set per element category in the scope and listed in the quote.

Can you model from our own point cloud?

Yes, when the cloud is registered and comes with its registration report or enough overlap to check it. A raw E57, LAS or PTS file is indexed to RCP/RCS for Revit. The price is quoted on the cloud.

Which Revit version and formats do you deliver?

The Revit version your office works in, plus the point cloud in E57 and RCP/RCS. IFC and ArchiCAD files are delivered when your team does not use Revit.

How accurate is the model?

Accuracy is stated in USIBD Level of Accuracy terms in the quote. A typical model is represented at LOA30, which means the modeled surfaces deviate from the building by no more than 15 mm, and usually less than that, at the 95 percent confidence level. The model is checked against the point cloud before delivery.

How much does scan-to-BIM cost?

A house or an apartment usually costs $2,000 to $4,500, interiors with facades and the site $2,500 to $5,000, and an office or a commercial floor $3,000 to $9,000. Large buildings are quoted on their own, from $12,000. The quote arrives within one business day.

How long does scan-to-BIM take?

The scan is scheduled as soon as the project needs it and usually takes a day for a house or a floor. The model usually follows in two to three weeks for a house and in four to eight weeks for a commercial floor or a whole building.

Do you offer point cloud modeling services?

Yes. We build Revit, IFC or ArchiCAD models from point clouds you already have, after checking the registration. The work is quoted on the cloud and the categories to model.