Insights
Technical notes from the thread.
Practical writing on capture, modelling, design, planning and delivery: how we work and why.
- 5 November 2026
255 balconies. Four blocks. One model.
255 bespoke balconies, four blocks, one model. Every steel, precast and masonry interface settled before the workshop saw a drawing.
- 3 November 2026
Scan week: Manchester and the North West, 16 to 20 November.
The scanner is crossing over for the week of 16 November. A scan in Manchester and the North West is £1,499 instead of £2,250. Bookings close Friday 13 November.
- 27 October 2026
Clash detection that pays for itself
Running a clash test is easy. Getting value from it is not. How to set up federated coordination so the clashes you find turn into decisions before steel is cut, rather than a report nobody reads.
- 20 October 2026
A day on site with a laser scanner.
We're in Dublin this week. Here's what a scanning day actually involves, hour by hour, and the three things that decide whether it goes well.
- 14 October 2026
Final call for Dublin: Bookings close Friday 16 Oct
Dublin bookings close Friday 16 October.
- 13 October 2026
Measured survey or laser scan? Choosing the right capture for the job
Not every existing building needs a point cloud, and not every job can manage without one. How to decide between a traditional measured survey and 3D laser scanning, and what you should expect to receive.
- 7 October 2026
A scan is cheaper when it's shared.
We're taking the scanner to a different area each month. £1,499 per scan instead of £2,250, guaranteed once booked. Here is how it works and where we're going.
- 6 October 2026
Scan week: Dublin, 19 to 23 October.
We're bringing the scanner and the team to Dublin for a week and pooling sites together, so a scan costs €1,499 instead of €2,250. Bookings close Friday 16 October.
- 19 September 2026
From Tekla model to workshop: the files that actually drive fabrication
A steel model is only useful when it leaves the screen. Here are the outputs a fabricator runs the workshop on (NC files, plate profiles, drawings and lists) and why they all have to move together.
- 15 September 2026
Execution classes explained: what EXC2 asks of your steelwork
Every steel package carries an execution class, whether anyone writes it down or not. Here's what EXC1 to EXC4 control, why EXC2 is the usual answer for buildings, and what the class changes on the drawings.
- 12 June 2026
Who designs the steel connections? Delegated design, explained
On most steel frames the engineer designs the members and someone else designs the joints. Here's how delegated connection design works, where responsibility sits, and why fabricators bring it in-house with their detailer.
- 12 June 2026
Point cloud to Tekla: modelling existing steel where it really is
Most scan-to-BIM goes to Revit. When the job is structural steel (extensions, connections to existing frames, plant in live buildings), modelling directly in Tekla from the point cloud changes what the model can do.
- 12 June 2026
What ±2mm actually means in a scan-to-BIM model
Every scan-to-BIM provider quotes an accuracy figure. Here's what the number really describes, where the tolerance budget goes, and the questions worth asking before you commission a survey.