3D Laser Scanning

We capture existing conditions with survey-grade 3D laser scanners, producing high-density point clouds accurate to ±2mm. The foundation for BIM modeling, renovation planning, MEP coordination, and facility management.

3D Laser Scanning

3D laser scanning captures the existing conditions of a building or site as a dense, measurable point cloud — millions of survey-grade points, each with a real-world XYZ coordinate. It replaces tape measures, hand sketches, and guesswork with a verified digital record of what is actually there, accurate to within a few millimeters.

FieldScan operates Leica RTC360 and BLK360 scanners across San Diego County and Southern California. We deliver the registered point cloud plus whatever downstream format your team works in — Revit-ready data, 2D plans, TruView for in-browser navigation. The scan is the foundation; everything else builds on it.

When laser scanning is the right tool

Scanning earns its budget whenever the cost of being wrong about existing conditions is high:

Renovations and tenant improvements. Original drawings are almost never accurate after years of changes. A scan gives the design team verified slab elevations, column locations, ceiling heights, and MEP routing — so design decisions rest on field reality, not on drawings that no longer match the building.

MEP coordination and clash avoidance. A registered scan lets engineers route new systems against actual as-built geometry. Clashes get caught in the model instead of in the field, where they cost real money and schedule.

Heritage and adaptive reuse. Historic structures often have no digital record at all. A scan creates one. San Diego’s historic districts — Gaslamp Quarter, Sherman Heights, Burlingame — see this regularly, often as the first step before any permit application.

Litigation, insurance, and dispute documentation. A scan is a time-stamped, measurable record of conditions on a specific date. That is hard to argue with.

How a FieldScan project runs

  1. Scope call. We confirm what you need the scan for — because the end use sets the scan density, the registration tolerance, and the deliverable format. Scanning for a feasibility study is not the same job as scanning for MEP prefabrication.
  2. Field capture. Tripod-mounted scanning, position by position. Per-position capture is 1–3 minutes on the RTC360. We place targets or use cloud-to-cloud registration depending on site conditions.
  3. Registration. Individual scan positions are aligned into a single coordinate system. We deliver a registration report documenting the achieved accuracy — no hand-waving about “survey grade.”
  4. Deliverable production. Point cloud in your format, plus any extracted 2D or 3D products you scoped.
  5. Handoff. We confirm the data opens cleanly in your software before we call the job done.

Accuracy, honestly stated

The RTC360 delivers ±2 mm range accuracy at 10 meters. After registering multiple scan positions across a project, a well-controlled point cloud typically holds ±3–5 mm across the whole registered set. We report the actual achieved figure per project rather than quoting a single brochure number, because real-world accuracy depends on site geometry, target placement, and project size.

Pricing context

Laser scanning is priced primarily by building size, complexity, and required deliverables — not by hours. A single-story commercial space of around 10,000 sq ft is typically one day of fieldwork plus several days of registration and deliverable production. Multi-story or MEP-dense facilities scale from there.

We quote fixed-fee once scope is confirmed. If you only need the raw registered point cloud, that is the lowest-cost option; extracted 2D plans, BIM modeling, and TruView deliverables are scoped on top.

What you receive

  • Registered point cloud in your preferred format (.rcp, .e57, .las)
  • A registration report documenting achieved accuracy
  • TruView or an equivalent scan navigator for in-browser review
  • Optional extracted 2D floor plans, sections, and elevations
  • Optional handoff into scan-to-BIM if you need a Revit model rather than raw scan data

Most scanning engagements are the first stage of a larger workflow. Scan-to-BIM converts the point cloud into a usable Revit model. Drone surveying covers the exterior, roof, and site that a tripod scanner can’t reach efficiently. For projects that need a stamped survey, our land surveying service works through a licensed California PLS.

Tell us what you’re building and we’ll tell you exactly what to scan and in what order. Get a scope and quote.

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