High-Definition Survey of the Penn-Wyatt Historical Mansion

PBS&J performed a detailed high-definition survey of roof conditions at the historic Penn-Wyatt Mansion.

PBS&J’s high-definition surveying expertise was used to perform a detailed roof survey for the historic Penn-Wyatt residence located in Danville, Virginia. The pavilion located in front of the residence is the showcase of the neo-classical mansion built in 1876 by a tobacco merchant. The work was performed for Ludowici Roof Tile, Inc., an industry leader in custom roofing materials.

PBS&J used a Leica HDS-2500 3D laser scanner to safely and accurately record the existing conditions of the complex cone-shaped roof and convex patio skirt that had been demolished by a tornado in 2004. Leica Geosystems Cyclone software was used to process the point cloud data and to apply a detailed wireframe to the data. This detailed "mesh" was provided to the client for use in the fabrication of custom-fit roofing tiles that were installed with no field rework. PBS&J continues to prove laser scanning to be a cost-effective, accurate, and safe method of rapidly collecting as-built data for use in historical reservation and renovation.The benefits of using laser scanning for this project included:

• Faster data acquisition.
• Safer working conditions by scanning from the ground or on patios.
• Value-added benefit of capturing detailed data beyond the initial scope that can be used in the future to replicate historical architectural artifacts.
• A detailed 3D model was created from the Registered Point Cloud which the client used to create custom roof tiles and install with no field rework.