3D models and Revit export
The scan produces three different three dimensional things, and they are not interchangeable. Here is what each one is, what is inside it, and which one you actually want.
01
Imagery
What it looks like
02
Point cloud
What was measured
03
Model
What you draft in
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Layer 01
The walkthrough
Browser, no software
A navigable model of the space assembled from every scan position. Click any two points and read the distance between them. It is the version of the model anyone can open, including the client and the contractor, with no license and no training.
For: Everyone on the project
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Layer 02
The point cloud
DXF or RCS
The raw measured survey. Every point the scanner recorded, registered into one coordinate system across all floors. Nothing has been interpreted or drawn yet, which is exactly why it is the thing to check a drawing against when a dimension is disputed.
For: Teams who model in house
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Layer 03
The 3D model
RVT or 3D DWG
The drafted floors built as real geometry. Walls carry measured thickness and height, openings are cut at their measured sizes, levels are set from the floor to floor dimensions. This is the file you open in Revit and start designing against.
For: Architects starting a design
The Revit question, answered honestly
No scanner on the market turns a point cloud into a finished BIM model by itself. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling either a mesh or a fantasy. A deliverable BIM model needs parametric families carrying type, material, and phase data, and assigning those is human work that belongs to whoever owns the design.
So the RVT you get here is deliberately scoped. It is the geometry layer: walls, openings, levels, floors, ceilings, and basic structure, positioned from the measurement rather than traced by eye. You open it and start modeling on top of it, instead of spending two days linking a cloud and tracing walls before the design work begins.
That is the whole value proposition. It does not replace your Revit workflow. It removes the least interesting part of it.
What is in the model
Included
- Walls with measured thickness and height, positioned from the point cloud
- Door and window openings cut at measured width, height, and sill
- Floor levels set from the measured floor to floor dimensions
- Floor and ceiling planes per level, including dropped ceilings where they occur
- Stairs, columns, and basic structural elements visible in the scan
- Correct real world units and a single shared origin across all floors
Not included
- Parametric families with type, material, or phase data
- Anything behind a finished surface: framing, insulation, structure inside a wall
- Mechanical, electrical, or plumbing runs, other than visible fixtures and panels
- Furniture, casework, or appliances, unless specifically requested
- Design intent of any kind. The model is the building as it stands today
If something on the right list matters to your project, say so when you request the quote. Some of it can be added by hand during the visit, and some of it genuinely cannot be scanned. Either way you will get a straight answer before you pay for anything.
Level of detail
LOD 200
Drafted CAD plans and the 3D model are produced at LOD 200: elements are modeled as generic systems with approximate quantities, size, shape, location, and orientation. Standard for existing conditions work.
AIA
CAD deliverables use AIA standard layer naming and annotation out of the box, or your office standard if you send a sample drawing and a layer list with the order.
1 : 1
Everything is delivered at real world scale in real units, with one shared origin across every floor, so the levels stack correctly the moment you open the file.
Every format, and when to reach for it
Nine outputs come off a single scan. Most projects use three of them.
| Format | Deliverable | What it contains | Reach for it when | Included |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RVT | Revit model | 3D model of the drafted floors, native to Revit | Revit teams who want geometry to build the model on top of | Add on |
| DWG | 3D DWG model | The same 3D geometry for AutoCAD and ArchiCAD workflows | Teams not on Revit who still want a 3D base | Add on |
| DWG | 2D CAD floor plan | Drafted plan at LOD 200 with AIA standard layers and annotations | The base drawing most projects actually start from | Add on |
| DXF | Registered point cloud | Every measured point from every scan position, registered into one survey | Modeling it yourself, or verifying a drawing against the source | Add on |
| DWG | Measured linework | Walls, openings, and fixtures as vector geometry at 1:1 | Drafting over the existing conditions directly | Every capture |
| Plotted floor plan | Dimensioned plan per floor, measured to ANSI Z765-2021 | Client review, permit sets, contractor takeoffs | Every capture | |
| SVG | Vector floor plan | The plan as scalable vector, for decks and marketing | Presentation and listing use | Every capture |
| ESX | Estimating export | Room geometry for estimating and claims software | Insurance restoration and cost estimating workflows | Add on |
| CSV | Room and opening report | Every room area and ceiling height, every door and window size | Schedules, takeoffs, and area checks | Every capture |
Working with the file
Revit. Open the RVT directly, or link it into your project file and copy or monitor the levels. Levels arrive named by floor and set to the measured floor to floor heights. Walls are generic system families at measured thickness, so swapping them for your office types is a select and replace, not a retrace.
AutoCAD and ArchiCAD. Take the 3D DWG for the same geometry, or the 2D CAD plan if all you need is a base drawing. Both come layered and at 1:1.
Point cloud. DXF by default, RCS on request for Autodesk ReCap. Link it under the model if you want to verify anything, or use it as the base if your team prefers to do the modeling.
Coordinates. One origin for the whole project. Multi floor buildings stack correctly, and a second scan of the same property later lands in the same coordinate system as the first.
Turnaround and cost
The capture package, which includes the walkthrough and the plans, lands within five business days of the visit. The 3D model is a drafted deliverable and takes ten to fourteen business days after that.
The 3D model is $0.24 per square foot. The registered point cloud is free on every project. Price a specific building in the calculator.
Order the model at the same time as the capture. Nothing about the visit changes, but the drafting starts the day the scan finishes processing rather than a week later.