The Parks at Walter Reed Reality Capture for Construction Monitoring

Construction monitoring is a pivotal component for this project’s success, allowing for timely, easily accessible updates on a regular basis. Our client is able to track project progression and compliance, making sure their investment is on track.

The Parks at Walter Reed (TPWR) is a 66-acre land development of the historic Walter Reed Army Medical Center site that when fully developed will contain 3.1 million square feet of new construction and adaptive reuse of historic structures, including retail, for-rent and for-sale multifamily, townhomes, office, healthcare, a school, and a hotel.

The Challenge

The Parks at Walter Reed will include new roads and infrastructure alongside nearly 20 acres of parks and plazas, with energy saving and water conserving technologies across the site. The nature of the phased construction necessitates aerial imagery to stay up to date on inventory, activities, and progress occurring. Unfortunately, the project resides within the DC FRZ, which is a restricted airspace for all manned and unmanned crafts.

Our Solution

First, we collaborate with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to gain approval to fly in the restricted FRZ. Our flight experience and prudent operation facilitates the request for authorization, which is required to properly image the site.

Next, we provide a unique form of aerial imagery for the client to continuously monitor onsite construction and infrastructure development. In order to capture the site in its entirety, we acquire 360ׄ° aerial imagery at an altitude of 250 feet above ground level. This altitude provides a viewshed of the project location that the client can utilize to visually understand the project’s status and progress. Our reality capture staff processes the imagery and develops it into a virtual site that allows our client to access the imagery online via PC, tablet, or smartphone. The virtual site is updated with new imagery every month to capture ongoing progress. It has two interactive features: a dropdown box and a site navigation map. The dropdown box allows users to select the date of the imagery they are currently viewing. This allows viewers to review past site conditions and visually understand the progress occurring onsite. The site navigation feature allows users to travel to different photo locations on the site. The locations are overlayed onto a PDF of the Hartland development and employs a radar feature to show users what way you are currently facing within the 360° imagery. This site not only organizes the imagery and provides access to the client no matter their location, but also provides a visual timeline of the project’s lifespan.

The virtual site:

*Close out of the project description pop-up box using the red “X” to view entire site.

This site allows our client to access the imagery online via PC, tablet, or smartphone. We update the virtual site with new imagery every month to capture ongoing progress.