Sustainable Plant Asset Digitalisation with Cyclone 3DR

By Yannick Stenger, Leica Cyclone 3DR Product Manager

We are very excited to introduce Leica Cyclone 3DR Plant Edition to our users. Plant Edition is an extension of the 3DR family of products that speaks to Hexagon and Leica’s vision to support the digitalisation and sustainability of key industries.

The ubiquity of plants across industries from energy to food and distribution to pharmaceuticals and chemicals creates both challenges and opportunities.

Cyclone 3DR has always been a very adaptable product with flexible features that can be utilised for many different applications, but the subset of features applicable to plant environments has yet to be collected into a single convenient license.

Despite the unique challenges each industry faces, there is one thing in common—the digitalisation of their facilities and assets can offer dividends in efficiency in production, distribution and maintenance. It is hoped that this efficiency will result in longer lifetimes for the facilities and lower operating costs, thus lowering costs to consumers.

BIM and CAD capabilities in Cyclone 3DR.

With the release of Cyclone 3DR Plant Edition, users in the Plant space can access all of the features they might need with a single license. This license will consist of existing features, including Scan-to-Pipe, Classification, the Tank Inspection module and generic BIM and CAD capabilities. Developing workflows, especially for plant applications, will become an increasing focus of Cyclone 3DR in the years to come.

Workflows to verify, model and manage plant assets will be prioritised for the Edition, drawing on Cyclone 3DR’s strong performance in analysis and meshing paired with new technologies like AI and companion products like Reality Cloud Studio, powered by HxDR.

Floor Flatness Analysis in Cyclone 3DR.

The Scan-to-Pipe workflow has clear benefits for plant applications, allowing users to quickly and semi-automatically create models of widespread piping systems, including components like segments, elbows and reducers.

Easily create a digital twin with the Scan-to-Mesh worklfow and visualise changes to industrial facilities.

Further, existing tools and workflows within Cyclone 3DR’s standard offering are well-suited to Plant applications. Meshing, the core function of Cyclone 3DR, is a perfect tool for creating a digital twin because it is fast and light. That digital twin can then be used to compare against new scans or meshes to visualise changes to industrial facilities and conduct further analysis.

QA/QC verification of meshed pipe runs can quickly identify areas of corrosion that could become costly repairs. Classification, powered by AI, can already be used to quickly segment and clean datasets of objects such as equipment.

The Tank inspection module offers great benefits to food production and energy operations to ensure the compliance and integrity of their core infrastructure. All inspections comply with the API-653 international standard.

Cyclone 3DR’s robust CAD and BIM capabilities are the perfect tool for creating as-built models of industrial facilities and conducting Clash analyses, CAD and BIM inspections, and reporting.

Quickly segment and clean datasets of equipment using Classification, powered by AI.

This selection of tools and features will be greatly valuable to our plant customers, helping to streamline repetitive tasks when modelling and managing their facilities.

As we roll out the new Cyclone 3DR Plant Edition, we will transition current Cyclone 3DR Tank Edition customers to this new license. All customers currently under a maintenance contract or subscription contract will immediately gain access to the full set of Plant Edition features through their Tank Edition license when they upgrade to version 2024.0.0 of Cyclone 3DR.

This free extension of their capabilities will allow them to expand their business and streamline their existing workflows by using their new features to clean and model their data more efficiently.

Image Experience in Cyclone 3DR.

Cyclone 3DR Plant will be offered both as an Edition and an Option, allowing existing 3DR customers to add it onto their current license.

Cyclone 3DR Plant will now sit alongside AEC and Survey to offer users a broad range of industry-specific licenses. Further, users can combine these options in Pro license to make use of cross-functional features.

Interested in learning more about Cyclone 3DR Plant Edition features and workflows? Check out our Cyclone 3DR Plant Edition Webinar or browse our dedicated Plant Edition playlist on our Cyclone 3DR YouTube Channel for tutorials, tips and tricks. 

Yannick Stenger
Product Manager, Leica Cyclone 3DR
Reality Capture Division