Extended reality technology is giving companies the freedom they need to reimagine the future of work. Consider how much easier it could be for you to fix an issue on a complex machine if you were able to overlay directions and instructions onto the device itself. Think about how much more immersive training could be with holographic content to guide you.
The Trimble Connect for HoloLens solution is an excellent example of how Mixed Reality technology can transform productivity, efficiency, and even safety in the workplace. Designed for the leading HoloLens headset from Microsoft, the Trimble Connect software allows users to visualize, review, and share 3D content like never before.
Built specifically for the construction site, Trimble Connect for HoloLens is a purpose-built solution for making the most of your workforce.
Trimble Connect for HoloLens Review: Features
Trimble Connect is the software component of the HoloLens offering from Trimble. Created for construction sites looking to invest in the new age of extended reality, the software ecosystem interacts perfectly with Microsoft’s leading flagship technology for mixed reality.
According to Trimble, Connect was built with the work site in mind, to close the project loop for stakeholders with on-site and in-office requirements. Through clean, contextual 3D content, companies can provide actionable, enhanced collaboration experiences, boosted by mixed reality. The mixed reality components of Connect include:
- 3D design review with access to structural, MEP and geo-referenced assets
- Project coordination with building lifecycle guidance
- Collaboration tools (chat and conferencing) for teamwork on the job
- Fabrication sequencing tools and step-by-step guidance
- Support for .SKP, .DWG, .RVT, .IFC. and .DXF models
- Immersive integration with Trimble XR10
The Connect for HoloLens solution from Trimble can work with any HoloLens device as standard. However, it’s particularly effective in the construction industry when paired with the custom-made Trimble XR10. This is the only HoloLens 2-compatible solution with an industry-standard and certified hard-hat, intended for use in environments where safety is a critical concern.
Trimble Connect for HoloLens Review: Benefits
Trimble’s Connect offering responds to a changing environment where businesses need to find more ways to enable employees, without relying on having multiple staff members and tools cluttering the same site. With Trimble’s Connect solution for HoloLens, it’s easier for professionals in complex environments to see the information they need to make intelligent business decisions. This can significantly improve not just efficiency and productivity, but safety too.
According to one of the customers of the Trimble team, The Beck Group, the ability to see existing utilities, and the routes of new utilities at the same time helped their employees to plan for excavations more effectively, while avoiding costly mistakes. Because the Trimble is built specifically for HoloLens, you also know it’s got the best-practice standards of Microsoft’s Mixed Reality system in mind. Benefits of the Trimble Connect for HoloLens include:
- Improved efficiency: Employees can visualize and interact with 3D content like never before, while they’re active on the field. This has a direct influence on how quickly and effectively work gets done, as well as how well your team can stay on schedule, avoiding extra costs and the time-consuming task of recovering from errors. You can easily build new ways of working, with MR support throughout the building lifecycle to empower your team.
- Enhanced productivity: When employees in any environment have the information and guidance they need, they can complete tasks at a much faster rate. The Trimble Connect technology for HoloLens boosts productivity encouraging real-time collaboration and information sharing among stakeholders. You can reach out to anyone in the directory for your company in no time, and ensure each job is going according to plan.
- Improved context: Often, getting extra guidance on a job would mean stopping the task and finding the right documentation. However, with the Trimble Connect for HoloLens, you can see design intent on your jobsite like never before, empowering field workers to make the right, most informed decisions. The Trimble Connect for HoloLens technology allows users to review structural, MEP and other assets in real-time by overlaying them into the real world environment.
- Better project management: Managing projects just got a lot easy. The Connect solution for HoloLens from Trimble helps managers and supervisors to guide their employees in a range of risky and crucial tasks, without having to physically watch over each staff member. You can even create RFI management to-do lists, so the teams in your office and on the field can stay on the same page about the work needed to be done.
- Flexibility: The Trimble Connect for HoloLens software is a highly flexible and versatile solution, designed to give companies sequencing tools for step-by-step guidance to support their employees in every stage of construction. Support for multiple model types including .DWG and.IFC means every company can upload the content required for an immersive mixed reality experience.
Add all oft these benefits to the advantage of having one of the world’s most advanced mixed reality systems for your headset, and it’s easy to see why the Connect system is so effective. When paired with Microsoft’s state-of-the-art, lightweight and powerful mixed reality headset, the Trimble Connect for HoloLens successfully blends the virtual and real world environments your employees use every day.
Trimble Connect for HoloLens Review: Verdict
The Trimble Connect for HoloLens technology is an excellent example of how vendors in the extended reality space can introduce the world to new kinds of workflows. With tools like this one, companies will be able to provide on-the-field workers with the information and context they need to work faster, more effectively, and even more securely.
Trimble Connect for HoloLens blends the real and virtual world in the construction landscape, to empower the crucial workers of tomorrow, enabling better collaboration, knowledge sharing, and training in a matter of moments. With the added bonus of the HoloLens hardware, this could be the most exciting innovation for construction in XR for many brands.
