3 Incredible New Ways VR Buildings are Impacting Facility Management
In recent years, virtual reality (VR) has become incredibly popular, even making appearances in movies and video games. It’s no wonder why many people love the futuristic feel of VR. Users can wear headsets and goggles to interact with realistic, 3D environments. When immersed in virtual reality, people get the opportunity to have fun and explore their imaginations.
Virtual reality isn’t just for the entertainment industry. Did you know that VR is one of many building technologies that can be used in facility management and design? Let’s take a deeper look at VR and how this technology can make your facility safer.
Virtual Reality in the Building Industry
Virtual reality can be an invaluable tool that instantly brings design concepts to life in a true-to-scale environment. VR can be useful to a variety of people, including:
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With VR, individuals can explore buildings and spaces exactly the way they are intended to be built. For example, an individual can use VR technology to design and map out facility design plans. Stakeholders can view these plans virtually and gain greater clarity on design intent.
VR has proven to be more effective at communicating design intent than 2D or 3D models alone. Having the ability to preview design plans before construction begins can be a huge advantage for facility managers and their teams.
Three Ways Virtual Reality Can Make Your Facility Safer
Virtual reality tools have become more affordable, powerful and useful than ever before. VR can be used by construction crews, building owners ands safety managers to mitigate facility risk. Here are three ways VR can be used to make your facility safer.
- VR technology allows for more frequent quality checks. As a result, construction teams are more likely to discover errors earlier in the construction process. Teams can address errors by developing strong solutions that minimize risk.
- VR technology can integrate with 3D software that facilities may already use. Because of this, facility managers may find VR helpful with internal design review. Facility managers also can import VR data into facility management software. This data can come in handy, especially as a facility ages and requires upkeep.
- VR technology allows facility managers, safety managers and other personnel to perform virtual walkthroughs of a facility. Virtual walkthroughs can help users visualize a facility’s layout and assets. Potential risks and hazards can be spotted before construction even begins.
Industry Expert Spotlight – IrisVR
IrisVR, a New York-based virtual reality company, offers immersive VR software that takes facility management, pre-construction and design to the next level.
IrisVR says one of the greatest benefits of virtual reality is having the ability to expedite model coordination and decision-making during construction projects.
“Using VR, individuals can work off a shared interpretation of the building information modeling,” says Shane Scranton, CEO of IrisVR. “This reduces project delays, confusion in pre-construction, and rework during execution.”
IrisVR says that VR tools have become more affordable, powerful and easy-to-use than ever before. IrisVR offers two main options for immersive VR experiences:
- Prospect – A desktop software that brings 3D models into VR for collaboration and design review in 1:1 scale. Prospect works with SketchUp, Navisworks, Revit, Rhino, and more.
- Scope – A mobile app that makes uploading, storing and viewing VR panoramas easy.
Want to learn more about the capabilities of VR and the future of facility modeling? Check out IrisVR’s website or take advantage of a 45-Day Free Trial of IrisVR’s virtual reality products.
As facilities and construction industries continue to move towards digital workflows, VR products are projected to make a big impact on facility safety. VR companies, like IrisVR, continue to prove that virtual reality tools can be effective at teaching building design. Facility managers, alongside construction teams, can harness the power of VR to mitigate risk in facilities and keep occupants safe.
Discover More Ways to Mitigate Facility Risks
Want to discover more innovative ways to keep your facility safe from harm? AkitaBox offers a free 2019 Facility Safety and Security Plan Guide. This comprehensive ebook focuses on maximizing safety and security not only in your facilities department, but also throughout your entire organization. Find out what you’ll learn and get your free download here.
