Enterprise Building Capture is a Metaroom workflow that allows you to digitize large, multi-floor buildings by combining multiple individual scans into a single unified 3D model. It is designed for sites that are too large to capture in one session — such as hospitals, office complexes, or multi-floor buildings.
With this workflow you can:
- Scan different floors or sections with multiple people simultaneously.
- Merge individual scans into one complete building model in the Metaroom Workspace.
- Align floors precisely using the built-in Transform Tool.
- Export the combined model as 2D floor plan or any other available export formats, including IFC files.
Please note: Enterprise Building Capture is currently in beta. Most export formats are supported, and additional formats will be enabled as the feature continues to develop.
How do I prepare before scanning a large building?
Good planning is the foundation of a successful large-scale scan. The bigger the site, the more time you should invest before scanning begins. Follow these steps:
- Familiarise yourself with the layout and plan your scan accordingly. Old plans, fire escape plans, or other building records might be helpful here.
- Use the previously collected information to map out which sections each team member will cover, and cross off rooms as they are scanned to avoid duplicates or missed areas.
- Divide the building into sections and assign each person their area. Name your scan projects clearly during setup — this makes combining them in the Metaroom Workspace much easier.
- Prepare your equipment. enable Do Not Disturb or Flight Mode on your iPhone to avoid interruptions, and bring a power bank if you are planning to scan a large area.
- Plan which Snapshot type to use (for instance, yellow for specific objects, blue for general reference) so that your team applies them consistently.
How do I scan a large building?
The scanning process for large buildings follows the same principles as standard Metaroom scanning, with a few important additions:
- Scan room by room, using separate sections for each room. Avoid scanning large open areas in a single continuous section — the smaller and more focused each section is, the more precisely details like wall protrusions are captured.
- Enable Do Not Disturb or Flight Mode before you start. Incoming calls, notifications, and apps running in the background can interrupt the scan and reduce quality.
- Use Large Scan Mode, which activates automatically after approximately 400–500 m² scan. The app continues to capture the same data, but the on-screen visualisation becomes lighter to free up processing resources.
- Take Snapshots of small wall details, protrusions, and any surfaces that may not be fully reconstructed automatically. These can be used as references when refining the model in the Metaroom Workspace.
- Name your projects clearly so that when you bring multiple scans together in the Metaroom Workspace, you can easily identify which scan belongs to which floor or section.
Please note: Scanning accuracy of ±1% is achievable when you follow Metaroom best practices: scan room by room, close sections properly, and perform loop closures where possible.
How do I create a multi-floor project in the Metaroom Workspace?
Once you have completed the scanning of the building, you can navigate to the Metaroom Workspace and start with the Enterprise Building Capture workflow. We divided the workflow into 3 main steps, follow these steps to set it up:
1st Step: Create Empty Project
- Open the Metaroom Workspace and go to Projects.
- Click on the three dots next to the search bar, and click Create Empty Project.
- Enter a name for the project and search for the site address, then click Save button.
Please note: An empty project is the required starting point for combining multiple scans. You cannot merge scans into an existing single-floor project. When creating a new multi-floor project, start with the lowest floor and work your way up. It is also possible to add a new submodel in the same floor.
2nd Step: Add the first floor to the project
- Once your empty project is open, you can see the list of all your projects in your account.
- Select one project you need to start with.
- In a 3D preview window, select in the Model Tree if you want to insert the whole scan (select Floor from Model tree) or a specific room (select a specific room from the Model tree). By holding the Shift key, multiple selections are possible.
- Click Insert. Review the preview and bring the data into your project by clicking (✔) Confirm button on the Transform Tool.
- Click Save button on the upper toolbar to save the changes in the project.
3rd Step: Add additional floors to the project.
- To add a second (or third) floor, navigate to the Model Tree inside your project, click on the three dots next to the Building, select Insert → Insert New Floor.
- Select one project you want to insert.
- In a 3D preview window, select in the Model Tree if you want to insert the whole scan (select Floor from Model tree) or a specific room (select a specific room from the Model tree).
- Click Insert.
- To align the second project (floor / room) with the first project (floor / room), use the Transform Tool in the upper toolbar:
- After inserting a floor, the Transform toolbar appears at the top of the screen.
- Select the Quick Transform tool from the toolbar.
- Use the controls in the centre of the 3D view to adjust the floor position:
- Arrows — move the floor along the X, Y (vertical), or Z axis
- Arcs — rotate the floor around the respective axis
- Squares — move the floor freely within the selected plane (for example, the XZ plane)
- Adjust the position until the floor aligns visually with the one below. Use Undo / Redo in the toolbar to correct any mistakes.
- When satisfied, click (✔) Confirm to apply the transformation.
- Click Save button on the upper toolbar to save the changes in the project.
Repeat the Step 3 above for each additional floor. After adding another floor to the project and confirming the alignment with the other floor, click Save in the upper toolbar, so that all the changes are saved in the project. after inserting each floor.
All data from the original scan is preserved — room names, objects, snapshots, and notes all carry over into the combined project.
Please note: Quick Transform is ideal for a fast, approximate alignment. For precise alignment — for example, matching exact wall corners — use the Move and Rotation tools instead. Learn more about the Transform Tool.
How do I set the vertical gap between floors?
After aligning floors horizontally, you may need to adjust the vertical spacing so that floors sit at the correct height rather than directly on top of each other. Follow these steps:
- Select the Move tool from the Transform toolbar.
- Open the Axis Toggle in the toolbar and disable the X and Z axes so that only the Y axis (vertical) is active.
- Click an anchor point on the upper floor.
- In the Smart Input field, type the vertical distance — for example 0.5m — and press Enter. The floor moves up by exactly that amount.
- Click Confirm, then Save.
Pro Tip: Use the Axis Toggle whenever you need to move a floor in one direction only. Locking the axes prevents accidental movement in other directions while you fine-tune the position.
What export formats are available for multi-floor projects?
After combining your floors into a single project, you can export the model in the following formats:
- 2D DXF
- 2D Floor Plan (PDF)
- IFC:
- Allplan
- ArchiCAD
- Autodesk AutoCAD MEP/Architecture
- Autodesk Revit
- BIM2Share
- BricsCAD
- CASCADOS / E-CAD
- Catenda
- DDScad
- DIALux
- IES Virtual Enviroment
- IFC 2*3
- IFC 4
- nPoint Plugin for Revit
- Palette CAD
- Ranplan
- SirkBIM
- SketchUp Pro
Additional export formats are being enabled progressively. The most commonly used formats on the platform are already supported, and all formats available for single-room scans will eventually be available for multi-floor projects as well.
