Design + Innovation

At OPN, our practice is rooted in the traditional tools of trace paper and felt tip pens. It is also enhanced by today’s rapidly evolving technology landscape. We believe in using 21st century tools to design with more context to deliver buildings and spaces that elevate the human experience with precision and humanity.

This approach enables us to apply our 40+ years of knowledge and experience to help our clients “see” their spaces differently, often before a shovel hits the ground, share their stories, and celebrate the culmination of a collaboration that will be our collective legacy.

Below is a selection of the tools and services OPN offers that differentiate us from our peers:

Project Visualization & Augmented Reality

OPN employs a number of methods to help clients visualize their project before it is constructed.

Web-Based VR & Virtual Tours

Virtual reality, or VR, allows our design teams and our clients to understand room layouts, the scale of spaces, material choices and lighting. Web-based virtual reality experiences can be custom branded with inter-active flooplans, custom user interface, and Google Analytics integration.

Hololens Mixed Reality

The Microsoft Hololens 2 is used to coordinate on-site conditions during construction and to visualize the building in real life before construction.

Cinematic Renderings

Videos that “walk-through” a space using animations. We provide full video editing, post production, and branding coordination.

Google Earth Context Animations

Highlight site adjacencies and nearby amenities.

2D Renderings & Floor Plans

Photo-realistic images and rendered and/or graphically styled floor plans can be used for marketing and communication.

Videography & Photography

Our in-house videographer/photographer can document the design and construction process, including public or community events. A multimedia storyteller, with a degree and background in architecture, our photographer/videographer/licensed drone pilot, is able to capture a project’s story from every scale. He will be embedded with the design team throughout a project and will deliver imagery and/or video content that can be used for print, social media, or web platforms.

Drone

OPN utilizes unmanned aerial vehicles as a way of surveying, documenting, and collecting aerial imagery and video. Drones are excellent for inspecting building facades and roofs safely. Our certified drone pilots can conduct site surveys, 3D scanning and roof surveys.

Our sUAV drone captures 6K RAW video and 24MP images. A dual IMU and barometer creates redundancy for inflight stabilization allowing the drone to get closer to our subjects with more accuracy. A dual battery system allows for extra continuous flight time and in extreme conditions (up to -20 degrees). The sUAV also features an interchangeable lens mounting system that unlocks for us the ability to switch lenses per job requirement. The lenses range from 16mm (wide angle) for capturing the overall scope of a project or vast landscape images, to a 50mm (telephoto angle) for precise detailed investigation and surveying.

LiDAR Reality Capture (3D Scanning)

LiDAR 3D laser scanning offers a huge advantage over the traditional field verification process. In seconds a laser scan of a space or structure can collect 360 degree photographic and geometric data; a process that typically takes several minutes to hours when done by hand. Scans themselves are accurate to the millimeter, allowing our documents and designs to seamlessly integrate with existing buildings and infrastructure. The scans can be used for documentation and for as-built records.

Drone Photogrammetry Reality Capture

We use drones, video, and 360-degree photos to generate large 3D files of a site or building.