From concept to creation, the evolution of the design processes that incorporate astonishingly accurate digital renderings long before the completion of a build, is continuing to provide a valuable service to our clients and our collaborative teams. Being able to visualize the final results and then comparing the before and after side by side is not only fun but an opportunity to see how far and how accurate the technology like BIM (Building Information Modeling), Revit and our design team skills have come. Here are a few examples where it’s hard to tell the rendering from the final (and actual) photograph!

This two-story 36,000+ square foot science building met LEED Gold certification and includes numerous energy conservation features including solar electric power, high-efficiency heating and air conditioning systems, solar water heating, daylighting and a hands-on energy metering system that actually measures the building energy efficiency. The front plaza not only creates a dramatic entry, but is also a covered outdoor gathering and teaching space that takes full advantage of the site’s incredible views.

The renderings for this project are nearly impossible to differentiate when compared to the actual photography, look closely! This multi-award winning project is nearly 40,000 square feet and represents the idea of creating a community space that facilitates interaction and togetherness as well as providing serene passageways to promote recovery and rehabilitation. Inspired by the surrounding areas of the City of Roseville, the Town to Trail design provides connections to the outdoors through the use of materials and daylighting solutions while creating opportunities for members to meet, interact and engage with one another in a community type setting.

The nine-part imaging sequence above demonstrates just a fraction of the virtual models (and one final actual photograph at project completion) that helped the design team and the owner to visualize the process from start to finish, long before construction on the building even began at Modesto Junior College. LEED certified, this ambitious project houses not only complete science facilities for the school but the Great Valley Public Museum as well. It is not difficult to see that planning and design were absolutely integral at every stage of the project development and our team’s adept use of BIM, to render each layer of change both structurally and aesthetically, was critical to keeping the facility progress on budget, on design and on time.