flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

‘Bespoke’ VR apps give Woods Bagot an edge in presenting design ideas

Virtual Reality

‘Bespoke’ VR apps give Woods Bagot an edge in presenting design ideas

The architectural firm is finding that some clients respond quicker to proposals as a result.


By John Caulfield, Senior Editor | May 8, 2018

Woods Bagot has set up a space in its New York office where clients can view early stages of design ideas in virtual reality. The firm has been using customizable VR apps for about a year. Image: Woods Bagot

Woods Bagot, one of the industry’s oldest architectural firms, is embracing the future of design and client relations with virtual reality apps that offer customizable interfaces.

For a number of years, the firm has played with a variety of virtual reality apps for design presentations, including ones that allow for 360-degree viewing.

About a year ago, Woods Bagot, with 16 studios around the world, developed its own VR app, driven by game-engine technology, with the goal being to give clients a unique spatial and human experience “that you can’t get from a rendering or even animation,” says Shane Burger, Woods Bagot’s Principal and Global Leader of Technical Innovation.

The “bespoke” app works like this: Woods Bagot creates what Burger calls a “white-card rendering” that puts the client in the VR space and allows him or her to move from room to room. The environment is designed, but in a very early concept stage.

The apps, so far at least, have been most effective for designing interiors, says Burger.

The beauty of using VR apps in early design stages is that there’s a fairly quick turnaround so that a more refined design can be presented to the client either in Woods Bagot’s New York office—which includes a 10x15-ft space equipped with an HTC Vive headset and screen—or by using a phone app with a portable headset like Google cardboard.

One of the benefits of having clients install the apps on their phones, explains Burger, is that they can receive Woods Bagot’s design proposals right away, and that multiple people can view the design simultaneously. (The designs are accessed via a web link.)

Woods Bagot has developed apps for both iOS and Android phones.

The first time the firm deployed a customizable VR app was to bid on a project with a technology client. Since then, Woods Bagot has made a number of refinements to its platform, such as adding more interfaces that allow clients to “walk through” multiple floors of the building. Woods Bagot is now developing apps that allow users to flip through white-card and materials environments within VR.

The biggest “learning step” in virtual design, says Burger, has been “to keep our options open, and to keep the user interface really simple, because most clients don’t have a lot of experience with VR.” Indeed, when Woods Bagot walks a client through the process, it typically has the user stay relatively stationary to get used to the VR surroundings.

Burger says most users are less disoriented when they use a mobile app because the viewer doesn’t block their peripheral vision.

VR is becoming a more sophisticated design tool for Woods Bagot, whose visualization team in London has been generating renderings right from virtual reality. Woods Bagot also recently used its VR app with a client for a project in Japan with 18 floors.

Woods Bagot is striving to get to the point where using a customized VR app enables a conversation with clients “that wouldn’t have happened otherwise,” says Burger.

Related Stories

Sports and Recreational Facilities | Jul 15, 2024

Smart stadiums: The future of sports and entertainment venues

These digitally-enhanced and connected spaces are designed to revolutionize the fan experience, enhance safety, and optimize operational efficiency, according to SSR's Will Maxwell, Smart Building Consultant.

Virtual Reality | Jul 8, 2024

Can a VR-enabled AEC firm transform your project?

With the aid of virtual reality and three-dimensional visualization technologies, designers, consultants, and their clients can envision a place as though the project were in a later stage.

Healthcare Facilities | Jun 18, 2024

A healthcare simulation technology consultant can save time, money, and headaches

As the demand for skilled healthcare professionals continues to rise, healthcare simulation is playing an increasingly vital role in the skill development, compliance, and continuing education of the clinical workforce.

K-12 Schools | Apr 29, 2024

Tomorrow's classrooms: Designing schools for the digital age

In a world where technology’s rapid pace has reshaped how we live, work, and communicate, it should be no surprise that it’s also changing the PreK-12 education landscape.

University Buildings | Feb 21, 2024

University design to help meet the demand for health professionals

Virginia Commonwealth University is a Page client, and the Dean of the College of Health Professions took time to talk about a pressing healthcare industry need that schools—and architects—can help address.

AEC Tech | Jan 8, 2024

What's driving the surge of digital transformation in AEC today?

For centuries, the AEC industry has clung to traditional methods and legacy processes—seated patterns that have bred resistance to change. This has made the adoption of new technologies a slow and hesitant process.

Esports Arenas | Oct 10, 2023

Modular esports arena attracts more than gamers

As the esports market continues to grow to unprecedented numbers, more facilities are being developed by universities and real estate firms each year.

Virtual Reality | Jun 16, 2023

Can a VR-enabled AEC Firm transform building projects?

With the aid of virtual reality and 3D visualization technologies, designers, consultants, and their clients can envision a place as though the project were in a later stage.

Office Buildings | Jun 5, 2023

Office design in the era of Gen Z, AI, and the metaverse

HOK workplace and interior design experts Kay Sargent and Tom Polucci share how the hybrid office is evolving in the era of artificial intelligence, Gen Z, and the metaverse.

AEC Tech | May 9, 2023

4 insights on building product manufacturers getting ‘smart’

Overall, half of building product manufacturers plan to invest in one or more areas of technology in the next three years.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021