Industry
3D scanning for metal fabrication, by a fabricator
Zombra is the reality-capture arm of Futura USA, an architectural metal fabricator. We give fabricators field-verified geometry for stairs, railings, façades, canopies and custom assemblies, so shop drawings match the building instead of the drawing set.
Common problems in architectural metalwork
Stairs, railings, façades and canopies are made in the shop for a building that was measured on site. The usual causes of rework:
- The drawing set does not match the building.
- Tape measurements drift, and small errors add up across a floor or a façade.
- Fabricated parts arrive on site and don’t fit.
- Field conditions are off, and nobody finds out until the part is on site.
- A half-inch error in the field can decide whether a part fits.
- Repeat site visits cost time, especially in occupied buildings.
How scanning helps fabricators
Every project starts with a 3D laser scanning survey, registered to 2–6 mm and measured against a total-station control network. That is our approach to 3D scanning for fabrication: one measured record, then the geometry your shop needs.
Field-verified geometry
We measure the opening, the structure or the existing piece and deliver geometry that fabrication teams work from, so the part is made for the building as it stands.
Shop drawings that match the building
Shop drawings are taken off the scan. We deliver flat drawings through as-built survey and drawing services, or a Revit model through Scan to BIM services, at LOD 350 where fabrication depends on it.
Rebuilding what already exists
Where a stair, a railing or an ornamental piece has no drawings, we rebuild it as clean, dimensioned CAD. See 3D scanning for reverse engineering.
Checking fabrication and installs
We verify fabrication and installs against the same record, so a part is checked against the building before the next trade arrives.
Built by a fabricator, for fabricators
Zombra is part of Futura USA, an architectural metal fabricator in Miami. Working alongside a fabrication shop changes what we deliver. We know where tolerance actually matters, which dimensions get taken off the model, and what happens on site when a field condition is off by half an inch.
Deliverables leave here fabrication-ready, not just visually correct.
- Based at the Futura workshop in Miami, with projects across the United States.
- Occupied and live sites, scheduled around operations, with nights and weekends on request.
- NDA on request; data retained and shared on your terms.
Deliverables
Typical deliverables
for fabricators.
Every delivery ships with a registration report: accuracy measured against control, not assumed.
Fabrication geometry
DWG
Shop drawings, shop-ready DWG
Point cloud
E57 · RCP · RCS · LAS
Reference and verification
Mesh
OBJ · FBX · STL · GLB
Fit checks and verification
Questions
For fabricationteams.
Straight answers on shop drawings, LOD and accuracy. Anything else, ask the capture lead directly.
Ask a questionHow does 3D scanning help a metal fabricator?
It measures the building as it stands, so shop drawings and parts are made to the real conditions, not the drawing set. That means fewer parts that arrive on site and don’t fit.
Do you work with fabricators other than Futura?
Yes. Zombra works with architects, general contractors, MEP engineers, facility managers, developers and fabricators. We are part of Futura USA, and its workshop in Miami is our base.
What do you deliver for shop drawings?
Fabrication geometry and shop-ready DWG drawn from the scan, or flat as-built drawings and a Revit model where the project needs them. Tell us what your shop takes off the model when you request a quote.
What LOD do you model to?
Scoped per project: LOD 200–300 for coordination and LOD 350 where fabrication depends on it. The LOD is stated in the proposal, so you know what each element will carry before modeling starts.
How accurate is a registered point cloud?
Scans are registered to 2–6 mm, measured against a total-station control network and reported per project. Our registration reports typically average about 4.5 mm (0.015 ft). Every delivery ships with a registration report, so accuracy is measured, not assumed.
Show uswhat’s real.
Send the address, the object or the drawing set. A capture lead replies within one business day with the method, the deliverable and a fixed price.
- Reply within 1 business day
- NDA on request
- Occupied & live sites