Viscom Focuses on Success with 3D Animation Option
29 January 2009
Multimedia company Viscom (Aberdeen) Limited has earned a strong reputation for 3D modelling with an animation team who can tackle everything from down-hole tooling and electronic components to helicopters, marine vessels and oil installations.
Bruce Milne, General Manager of Viscom said: "3D models can be viewed from any angle or position, allowing a product or location to be seen at its best and in great clarity, which is ideal for promotional or instructional purposes.
"3D used to be perceived as a time-consuming and expensive option, but with advances in software and new techniques, it is an efficient and cost-effective means of adding real value to any production, especially if a product is only at the proto-type stage or cannot be accessed due to its location".
Examples of 3D animation providing client solutions include Gulf Helicopters, based in the State of Qatar, a long standing client of Viscom for helicopter passenger safety support material. Previously, traditional video production techniques had been used to supply passenger briefings for their fleet of aircraft. In a move to 'future-proof' their material, they challenged Viscom to provide a totally animated package to cover both existing and recently adopted aircraft. This would allow representation of people and equipment without having to go to the client's Doha base where access to aircraft for filming was uncertain, and would also allow easier revisions of briefings should their operations change over time.
Capt Duleep Nachia, Safety Systems Manager for Gulf Helicopters said "Viscom are acknowledged experts in the subject matter, but we needed them to prove their expertise in this technique as well, which they readily responded to and succeeded in doing. We believe we are the first organisation in the world to be using fully animated helicopter passenger safety briefings for all our oil and gas flights ? over land and water."
Another challenge was posed by Workfox B.V., managers of the Seafox accommodation and multi-support jack up unit fleet. Workfox had contracted Viscom to provide a series of inductions for their vessels. The first induction required was for the Seafox 7, which was not available for filming purposes before its arrival at its next work location. Viscom however created a complete 3D representation of the Seafox 7, populated it with virtual crew and created a complete vessel safety induction in advance of the Seafox 7 arriving at its new location. The programme has been very well received by the vessel's crew.
Because many physical items are created in AutoCAD or similar packages, appropriate files can be imported directly into the 3D modelling software, speeding up the process and ensuring accuracy. But such files are not always readily obtainable. Bruce said: "We once created a full 3D model of an offshore installation from a single photograph of one side and a copy of the station bill. It was a real challenge but allowed our designers to use their imagination. The results turned out to be uncannily accurate."
A member of the