10 July 2021
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
Virtual Reality walk-through of your home or development – special visualisation – Allows important design changes
When I was in College; I remember a Business Studies lecturer explaining how spreadsheets revolutionised accounting in the 1970’s. A user could explore “What if” scenarios, where one number could be tweaked and the knock on effects elsewhere could be seen instantly. Now, there is a technology that is doing the same for building. Imagine being able to ‘walk through’ a full-scale visualisation of a new build property, or even the rooms of a proposed extension, and experience what it will look like before a single brick is laid.
An Irish business Virtual Teic, are promoting their 3D design modelling technology service, ‘Virtual Reality’ that will be useful for homeowners, self-builders, developers and architects.
The 2D plans and designs for a home or development can be turned into a fully 3D virtual reality model, allowing you to feel as if you were in the actual building or looking at it on site. No other system on the market allows for such depth of perspective as full-scale. Virtual Teic’s ‘Virtual Reality’ offers the unique chance to get everything about the build right before plans come off the page and start to take physical shape.
Examples of work done by Virtual Teic
Examples of work done by Virtual Teic
Virtual Teic’s co-owners, Eamonn Gallagher and Paul McMahon, spoke with TheCork.ie
“Getting homes, living and work spaces right is all-important – we spend a lot of our time in them, so it’s very worthwhile to get the best out of the available space and resources available to you and that’s equally important whether the plan is for a floorplan reconfiguration, extension or conversion of an existing building right through to a complete new build. You may be a very experienced architect, builder or developer or be a homeowner or self-builder looking to create the home of your dreams, either way, our ‘Virtual Reality’ can really play a key role in the process. It can be extremely exciting working on such projects, but it can also be stressful and often they come with real challenges. This is where we can help…
“We can work with the plans drawn up by an architect and bring them to life with our modelling technology, so a home or development can be viewed in complete full scale 3D, through ‘Virtual Reality’, both internally and externally and even be shown sited onto its particular building plot if required. The feeling of room sizes and their relation to each other, the layout, kitchen and bathroom designs, storage areas, the scale of the building in context to its surrounds, internal flow of the space and even interior finishes can all be modelled – there is so much detail that can be included.
“Our intervention at this stage of the process can be a real catalyst to the project – over 80% of people have no ‘spatial awareness’ of the sizes of rooms or the general area inside a house from looking at the plans and this can prove to be a sticking point. People can have trouble visualising room design, windows, doors and how they will look in relation to each other and the general overall layout and scope of a building. So, exploring it in a full-scale 3D visual way provides an invaluable insight to help with the overall decision-making process, ease any uncertainties and enable a person to objectively change plans before actual construction commences. Bringing extra confidence to the build and saving costly mistakes down the line.”
2D to 3D interactive model with 360o viewing
Once Virtual Teic has worked with the plan specifications, they can either present in person or email a link with an interactive, annotated online 3D model of the building to navigate through interactively.
Either a base model or an advanced model can be requested. The advanced model includes both interior and exterior views – as if you were viewing the building on site. The link allows the application to be downloaded to desktop, laptop, phone or tablet. You can then use the phone or tablet as Virtual Goggles to view each room in the house or development in 360°.
The model can be altered in response to any changes requested and once satisfied with the final design and layout, plans can be issued and sent out to the architect.
Examples of work done by Virtual Teic
Examples of work done by Virtual Teic, showing a proposed Glamping site
Assists project briefing and planning
Virtual Teic have found that this 3D modelling can also help in the clearer briefing of building teams and help to support planning applications. Through their ‘building on site montage service’, they can build the 3D model into an actual photograph of a proposed site, which can then be used for planning applications, advertising, to test angled positioning of the building and also help provide a greater depth of visualisation if needed.
Virtual Teic’s Virtual Reality benefits
- Interact with 3D digital models of your house design on your phone, tablet or computer.
- Download and view realistic panoramic room views. See the actual view out of your 3D model windows.
- Helps with decisions on interior design options. Even see the grain of wood or colour of your chosen kitchen design.
- Allows all homeowners, developers, builders and architects to avail themselves of the latest tool in architectural technology at an affordable price.
- An inexpensive ‘added value’ service that developers, builders and architects can offer to their own clients, to help projects progress.
Prices for 3D model plans start from €400. Interactive models can be viewed online by the client using a personal link.
For the full virtual experience Virtual Teic can present a project’s 3D models in person at their Donegal studio free. Viewing at a client’s home, on site or at an architect’s practice or developer/builder’s offices may incur a small fee depending on distance from our base. If you have or can access Oculus or Vive VR goggles the models are all Virtual Reality enabled. Photo: Clive Wasson
For more information, visit www.virtualteic.com or email info@virtualteic.com
