How Leveraging Site Animation Technology Can Drive Your Project Forward

07 June, 2018

Imagine if you could not only see, but experience how a proposed project will transform a vacant or neglected site into a vibrant space. Developers are now using 3D models and site animations more frequently to create these experiences for their projects. This is helping to make more informed design decisions, garner community and municipal support, and attract more buyers and tenants throughout the early development phases.

In a matter of days, design professionals can transform a flat drawing into a 3D model, perspective rendering, or site animation. Using conceptual plans and GIS data, your project will come to life with “before” and “after” perspective views and site drive-throughs.

Here’s how to use this technology to advance your project:

Make More Informed Design Decisions

With the guidance of your design consultant, use 3D models to more fully understand and visualize the impact of design choices. Additionally, you can bring these models to your non-technical decision-makers to illustrate complex design options. For example, a 3D model can bring a proposed retaining wall to life, demonstrating the creative solution to a site’s grading challenges. It can also illustrate different landscaping options to simplify the decision-making process.

Build Community Support for Your Project

Experienced developers know the stress of a heated public hearing or community group meeting. Address resistance up front with a site animation of the proposed development so the public can experience the site transformation and community improvement measures virtually. You can also work to ease concerned neighbors with a perspective rendering that shows how visual buffers like trees, fences or walls will block the view of a building, signage, or new traffic patterns. These visuals can have a powerful effect on perception and help to garner critical community buy-in.

Better Presentation Could Lead to Smoother Approvals

Most municipal officials are embracing the technology. Presenting with site animations and 3D models gives your project a professional, polished and impressive look, differentiating it from the rest. This can open doors to negotiation and compromise that may have been closed with a flat, 2D plan set.

Attract Potential Homebuyers and Tenants

A good broker knows the best way to sell a home is to get the potential homebuyer to envision living there. For residential projects, a virtual drive-through of the development allows prospective residents to tour the neighborhood and “feel” what it would be like to live there. For commercial projects, a site animation enables you to start attracting tenants before shovels hit the ground. For retail tenants, use the animation to effectively illustrate a retailer’s visibility from the shopper’s perspective. With a site drive-through, prospective tenants can uniquely view signage and store fronts from the front seat of a car approaching the entrance.

Site animation technology is readily available – use it to your advantage. Be sure your consultant is well-versed in the site layout, topography, and roadway improvements. This will render a more realistic and reliable representation that will help to drive your project forward.

Contact us to discover more about the benefits of utilizing site animation and 3D models on your next development project.

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