Excavation Contractor Uses Augmented Reality to Bring 3D Modeling to Customers & the Field
The Challenge:
Severino Trucking is a mid-sized excavation contractor that provides road construction and site development services in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine. Headquartered in Candia, New Hampshire, with 170 employees, the company focuses on commercial site development, private subdivision road construction, and municipal, state, and federally funded road construction.
Severino has always been conscientious about providing a quality product to their customers, which includes value engineering to save money. But the company also operates in a competitive market. Not only do they want to keep their customers satisfied, but they also want to attract new customers and take on more design-build projects.
The Solution:
Severino Trucking saw an opportunity to grow and realized that to be successful, enhancing their 3D modeling capabilities was the way to go. To make the most of 3D modeling, they needed to prioritize the use of visualization technologies like augmented reality (AR). If Severino was going to adopt AR, though, they needed more than just a “wow” factor—they needed to deliver real value to designers, engineers, field operators, and other project stakeholders. The company found what they needed in Trimble SiteVision.
Since using SiteVision, Severino can show project workers and stakeholders how using a handheld device in the field to project the model onto the actual environment brings a much greater level of detail, accuracy, and understanding to the project. It’s become an invaluable tool throughout the process. More than just “cool” technology, SiteVision is helping Severino’s clients experience firsthand the value and benefits of 3D modeling.
The Results:
Severino Trucking uses SiteVision in the field for accurate electronic distance measuring (EDM) using the handheld device to superimpose the model in detail onto smartphones and other mobile devices. Users in the field can surface problems quickly and share the same view with workers back in the office for quick resolution. SiteVision also helps Severino make the case to engineers and other construction pros how 3D modeling improves design-build workflows and helps them better visualize the site in progress and the finished product.
Says Severino project engineer Pat L’Heureux, “I can look at a 2D plan and kind of visually see what it’s going to look like because I’ve done it before. But now you don’t need to. Now with SiteVision you can say, ‘This is what the product looks like, in even more detail than you would get from a 2D plan.’”
SiteVision’s visualization capabilities and field-friendly tool has enhanced Severino’s 3D modeling offerings. The company has:
- Delivered proven 3D capabilities to engineers still designing in 2D
- Identified and solved design problems in the field in minutes instead of hours
- Increased the accuracy of EDM with SiteVision’s GPS feature
- Improved collaboration among field workers
- Successfully integrated other popular modeling and CAD software, like SketchUp and Trimble Business Center, with the AR technology
What Next:
With SiteVision firmly integrated into Severino’s current workflows, the company is considering how they can adapt the technology for other processes, such as doing stockpile point cloud mapping and measuring, or incorporating it into drone technology to evaluate and figure out how to speed up processes.
About Severino Trucking:
Severino Trucking has over 40 years of experience in excavation services, with a commitment to quality and integrity and earning the confidence and respect of each new customer. The company takes pride in equipment maintenance to avoid downtime for servicing and ensure timeliness of project schedules. Learn more at www.severinotrucking.com.
