Amanda Zaslow Presents Your Secret Weapon: DIY vs. Pro Documentation at AIA Tri-State Fusion Conference

Amanda Zaslow, Brand Marketing Manager at Existing Conditions, a GPRS Company, and Sarah Drake, Principal of Sarah Gordon Drake Architect, gave an insightful presentation at the AIA Tri-State Fusion Conference at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, Pennsylvania. They spoke about the pros and cons of DIY building documentation compared to professional reality capture services.

What Reality Capture Challenges Do Small Firms Face?

Small architecture firms often struggle to document existing buildings because they have limited staff and resources. They need to decide when it makes sense to hire a professional service provider. In their session, Zaslow and Drake provided the audience with guidance on when it makes sense to do so.

Session Highlights

Sarah Drake: Architect Case Studies

To break down the topic, architect Drake presented real-life case studies to give the audience an architect’s point of view. She spoke about projects where she hand-measured with multiple staff, and then ultimately purchased the BLK2GO.

Drake’s examples showed how utilizing a professional service provider can save time, money, and resources. It also helps adjust to project changes without needing extra site visits because all the data is right in front of you on our GIS-based infrastructure and facility management software, SiteMap^®.

They showed side-by-side examples comparing the time and cost differences for documenting and modeling projects, from single-family homes to apartments.

Their presentation explained when it’s worth hiring a professional like Existing Conditions and when DIY might be enough to get you the information you need. For example, measuring a small apartment for a simple floor plan could be done on your own. Larger spaces or those needing detailed as-built drawings requiring a lot of time and resources, hiring a professional can be a logical choice.

Existing Conditions Case Studies

Once Drake concluded with her case studies, Zaslow highlighted two real-world examples to show how professional documentation services can benefit architecture firms.

The first case study featured David Torrey, Principal of Torrey Architecture. The project discussed was the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, built in 1836, which had no original as-built drawings, posing challenges for traditional restoration methods. Existing Conditions used 3D laser scanning to deliver accurate exterior elevations. Torrey compared them with historic photos, which provided a reliable base for restoration planning and avoided the risks of manual measurements.

The next case study featured our client, Sally Degan, Principal at SpaceCraft Architecture who focuses on residential design. For this small architecture firm, previous traditional documentation methods were time-consuming and prone to errors, often requiring additional site visits. By using 3D laser scanning technology, Existing Conditions delivered accurate data right from the start, which saved time and eliminated the need for costly return trips for her projects.

These case studies show how professional reality capture services can help small architecture firms improve efficiency, reduce costs, and avoid mistakes in their documentation process.

Making the Right Choice for Your Project

Whether you're working on a small renovation or a big project, knowing the pros and cons of both methods helps small architecture firms decide the logical way to document their spaces.

Want to learn more about this topic? Check out this in-depth article.