The architecture and design firm NBBJ announced that it has formed a partnership with a startup, Visual Vocal, to develop a virtual reality (VR) productivity platform.
NBBJ wanted a VR tool of its own to streamline its design process. The firm’s design teams create buildings using 3D modeling software, but have found it difficult to share those plans with clients. Email, for instance, is time consuming and doesn’t allow for comprehensive feedback.
VR, though, will let NBBJ include more people, including the general public, into the design stages.
“NBBJ’s decision to launch Visual Vocal is representative of our ongoing mission to find more informative and inspiring ways to engage clients in the design process,” NBBJ Managing Partner Steve McConnell, FAIA, said in a statement. “This partnership will radically shift the way design feedback is sourced and integrated into projects, and the speed at which it can be done.”
Other firms collaborate with VR companies, but NBBJ said that this is the first time an established designer worked a VR set-up into its own offices.
In addition to architecture, the arrangement could lead to advancements in aerospace, product design, biotech, and other industries that use 3D modeling.
NBBJ has designed the headquarters for several tech giants, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Alibaba. Both NBBJ and Visual Vocal are based in Seattle.
Related Stories
| May 30, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: Seven technologies that restore glory to the master builder
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), AEC technophile Rohit Arora outlines emerging innovations that are poised to transform how we design and build structures in the near future.
Augmented Reality | May 30, 2018
HoloLens used as wayfinding device to guide blind people through complex buildings
Neither training nor modification of the physical environment are required to use the system.
Healthcare Facilities | May 29, 2018
Will telemedicine change the face of healthcare architecture?
Telemedicine is a broad term that covers many aspects and mediums of care, but primarily it refers to the use of video monitors to allow a virtual face to face consultation to take place.
| May 24, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: The rise of multi-user virtual reality
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), two of CannonDesign's tech leaders present their early findings from pilot testing multi-user VR technology for AEC project coordination.
Virtual Reality | May 8, 2018
‘Bespoke’ VR apps give Woods Bagot an edge in presenting design ideas
The architectural firm is finding that some clients respond quicker to proposals as a result.
Virtual Reality | Apr 13, 2018
Integrating many voices into a single vision
There’s no question that, as opposed to a top-down process, an open process is best for an office like ours.
Architects | Apr 5, 2018
Tech Report 5.0: The Human Touch
Can studying humans at a behavioral level produce better buildings? Cognitive architecture experts are working to find out.
AEC Tech | Feb 28, 2018
Nine tips to bridge the cybernetic design gap
Unlike other technologies we have seen, augmented and virtual reality are looking to have staying power in a truly disruptive way.
Virtual Reality | Nov 9, 2017
Revolutionizing school design with virtual reality
Being fully immersed into a space allows both architects and non-architects to understand and experience a project’s size, scale, scope, and learning environment.
AEC Tech | Oct 6, 2017
How professional bias can sabotage industry transformation
Professional bias can take the form of change-resistant thinking that can keep transformational or innovative ambitions at bay. Tech consultant Nate Miller presents three kinds of bias that often emerge when a professional is confronted with new technology.
