One Small Mistake, One Expensive Problem: QA/QC in Construction Modeling
Imagine it’s a nice sunny day; you have the family coming over for a BBQ. You’ve spent the last 12 hours preparing to smoke a brisket. You’ve done everything right except check to make sure the grill was at the right temperature. Everyone arrived on time and waited to enjoy this spectacular meal that was promised; however, the brisket was ruined by this one little mistake, and now everyone is left hungry. The simple error that ruined the objective for the day is like an operator using a model that didn’t go through a QAQC process. The major difference is that messing up a brisket costs you A LOT less and doesn’t tarnish your reputation nearly as badly.
When a modeling services company lacks a QAQC process, many mistakes can go unnoticed. For example, if the 3D model was created from an outdated plan set, the project will reflect the wrong design- leading to too costly rework and angry customers. To avoid this issue, working with a modeling services provider that has a defined QAQC process allows engineers to catch any discrepancies before files are loaded into the machine and buckets touch the dirt. To ensure a thorough QAQC process, there should be at least two engineers involved: the one who built the model and the one who conducts the quality check review. Now, the primary engineer should always double-check their work, but sometimes when you are too involved in something, things can go unnoticed. Having a different set of eyes allows them to look through the data and model to identify anything that might look off or needs additional work.
Some of the primary elements that the reviewing engineers are looking for is ensuring the project is in the right coordinate system, verifying that the linework CAD designs match the PDFs, and that the surface is accurate, so it doesn’t negatively impact fine grading. QAQC is also crucial when producing takeoffs and mass data processing. When creating a construction quantity report, you must have the right volume calculations. If a cut and fill analysis is generated with the wrong scale, it can be detrimental for the project.
No matter what an engineer is working on whether it’s building a surface model, digital terrain model, LIDAR processing, point cloud processing, or GPS Linework, an engineer should always have someone double check their work. Even if they have years of experience, mistakes can still occur. Having that extra layer of scrutiny on all your projects should be a requirement of any services provider you partner with. At ECI, it comes standard at no extra cost.
If you have any questions about ECI’s QAQC process and its importance in the construction industry, call 877.572.3414 or email us at info@eci3d.com!