At one of the world’s leading chemical manufacturer and materials science company’s, project teams are responsible for keeping complex industrial sites running safely while planning for maintenance and future projects. Getting clear answers often means time on site, walking areas to confirm conditions, and reconciling what was documented with what was in place.
To make that work easier, the US-based company hired Matrix Technologies, Inc to scan one of it sites, with a clear request: digitally capture the entire facility in enough detail that teams could work more efficiently from an up-to-date map. The goal was not just to collect data, but to create insight that could be used day to day for planning, coordination, and decision-making.
This customer success story shows how the expert team at Matrix Technologies, Inc used FARO INSIGHT solutions to deliver the clarity this company needed, turning a complex environment into a shared, reliable view that they return to as work evolves.
Delivering Insight That Informs Action
With accurate insights, engineers, planners, and operators have a shared view of existing conditions, allowing questions to be answered before any future work begins. Spatial relationships, access constraints, and system interfaces are understood in context, turning uncertainty into clarity and supporting informed planning.
Greater insight reduces the reliance on repeat site walkthroughs and assumptions. The team can virtually walk through project areas and anticipate challenges without interrupting operations or incurring travel costs. For a facility with limited historical documentation, the scan also delivers confidence that decisions are based on what exists today, not what is assumed to exist.
But how was this mass information captured and converted into usable data?
Establishing Context of the Real-World Environment
The facility the team at Matrix Technologies, Inc were tasked with capturing spans 6.4 acres and features intricate networks of piping, tanks, utilities, and structural systems. A site of this complexity required well-thought-out planning to ensure complete coverage and high-accuracy data. The project team worked closely with facility personnel to establish safe access and maintain operational continuity during scanning.
And, over the course of four weeks, they used three Focus Premium laser scanners from FARO INSIGHT to capture 931 scans, creating a precise digital replica of the facility. In addition to the advanced 3D laser scanners, the team utilized GPS survey equipment to establish accurate site control for georeferencing. Aided by the Stream app, which connects directly to the scanners, the on-site team monitored coverage, remotely operated difficult scans, and pre-assembled data portions on-site. This method helped ensure complete capture during fieldwork and improved data processing efficiency.
Once the field capture was complete, the team began processing the extensive data collected and registering it in SCENE to create a unified, high-resolution point cloud. The final dataset, along with 360-degree RealView imagery, was uploaded to FARO Sphere XG, granting key stakeholders transparent access to the information. The chemical manufacturing company now has virtual navigation of project areas, collaborates on the work, and makes decisions without the need for repeat site visits.
“Facilities that lack legacy documentation often face challenges when planning upgrades or repairs. By creating a detailed digital model of the site, we’ve helped the client establish a reliable reference that supports everything from maintenance planning to major capital projects.”
Nathan Vallade, Project Engineer, Facilities Engineering at Matrix Technologies, Inc.
Early Wins and Long-Term Planning
The chemical plant scan has already assisted with various engineering and planning initiatives. These efforts include developing Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs) based on existing conditions, planning for infrastructure repairs, conducting asset relocation studies, designing cooling towers, enhancing water treatment systems, installing new tanks and pumps, verifying vessel geometries, studying stormwater management and parking, planning for warehouse expansion, and designing truck scales.
“The value of a project like this extends well beyond the initial scan. The digital model becomes a living resource that helps teams evaluate ideas, align stakeholders, and plan improvements with a level of clarity that simply isn’t possible with traditional documentation.”
Travis Wenning, Senior Project Engineer, Facilities Engineering at Matrix Technologies, Inc.
During early planning, some areas of the site were excluded from scanning due to lower anticipated project likelihood. Over time, several of those areas became the focus of new engineering efforts, reinforcing the value of broader capture when feasible. As new initiatives arise, Matrix Technologies, Inc is confident that it can perform additional scans to maintain and extend the current digital model, ensuring it continues to reflect current conditions for long-term planning.
Supporting Safer, Smarter Decisions
The data has been a clear step forward in the planning and execution of work at the facility.
Reliable spatial insights strengthen the company’s commitment to people by enabling earlier risk recognition and better preparation. When teams can review existing conditions virtually, potential hazards and access constraints are understood before work begins. This clarity supports safer execution, clearer communication, and shared responsibility across planning and field teams.
This insight also reinforces environmental commitments by enabling infrastructure repairs, modifications, and installations to be planned with a clear understanding of existing systems and site conditions. With accurate documentation in place, teams can evaluate impacts more thoughtfully and reduce the likelihood of unintended disruptions to surrounding processes and environments.
Innovation is also supported by digital reality data, which changes how teams collaborate and plan work. Virtual access to the facility enables faster evaluation of ideas, better alignment of work, and efficient coordination, allowing engineering teams to explore solutions and move forward with confidence.
Finally, accountability is strengthened through a shared, verifiable dataset. Process, piping, civil, structural, architectural, and electrical teams work from the same source of information, reducing misalignment and rework. Decisions are grounded in documented conditions rather than assumptions, supporting transparency and consistency across disciplines.
Building on Insight
By combining reality capture with disciplined execution, Matrix Technologies, Inc delivered insight that their client has and continues to build on. The sitewide scan supports safer planning, clearer coordination, and confident investment decisions, all grounded in verified conditions rather than assumptions.
For engineering, surveying, and reality capture firms, this project demonstrates what is possible when capability and credibility work together. Data is delivered in a way that earns trust, strengthens client relationships, and creates long-term value beyond a single project.
FARO INSIGHT solutions enable companies like Matrix Technologies, Inc to turn mass information into insights that their clients can build on and return to repeatedly. They just need to trust the process and take the first step.
Book a virtual or in-person demonstration with a FARO INSIGHT specialist. See the solutions, ask questions, and establish if this approach to reality capture would benefit your own projects, and join a growing network of companies using data and insight to stand out from their competitors.
