Relocation of Historic Log Barn with Laser Scanning and 3D Revit Annotation Modeling

by Carrie Van Loon

PMC provided scanning and modeling services for a Dallas area historic log barn. The local municipality wanted the barn scanned before they disassembled it. The reassemble team wanted to be able to identify every log location, so they could reassemble it exactly like the original building.

Anna Texas released a bid for a historic barn to be relocated from its original location to a historic area that the town was creating.

PMC’s scanning team carefully scanned each area of the 900 square-foot barn. Each log was numbered to allow for accurate placement. The benefit of numbering each log was to give the reconstruction team a way to quickly reassemble the barn at its new location.

The Challenge

When the team had previously moved historic buildings, it found reassembling the building at a new location to be incredibly challenging and time-consuming. They produced the idea to not only create a 3D CAD model, but to have all the parts numbered, so the reconstruction team could quickly and accurately rebuild the structure at its new location. Accurate measurements of the structure and a way to number each log before the structure was disassembled were prerequisites to success. So, the reassembly team could quickly and accurately reconstruct the structure in its original form. Inserting asset management information in the record model is one of many steps in accomplishing digital twins. Even this basic indexing allows the end user to be proactive in facilities management, reducing the possibility of unexpected failures, safety issues and more.

The Solution

Number each log for quick identification in the delivered 3D annotation model.

It was agreed that the project was a bit limited in scope to truly benefit from a rigorous BIM and VDC standard. PMC offered resourceful, cost-effective solutions to satisfy major project deliverables without negatively impacting the project schedule. PMC’s responsibility for the technology portions of the project allowed our partner to fully focus on what they do best – renovating critical pump stations infrastructure.

The Benefit

The benefit was that this historic barn was successfully relocated to a new location and reconstructed exactly as it was originally built. Now the barn will be authentically preserved in its original form.

Written by Carrie Van Loon
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