Hamburg tech startup creates 3D digital twins
VTS founder & CEO John Chawlibog demonstrates a walkthrough of a digital twin that his Hamburg startup created for Timber Wolf Lake Young Life Camp in Lake City. Jennifer Timar/Livingston Daily
By: Jennifer Timar Livingston Daily - September 20, 2020
A Hamburg Township tech startup is in the business of creating 3D "digital twins," as company officials say.
In the last year or so, Brighton husband and wife John and Kelly Chwalibog's 3D technology company Virtual Technology Simplified has secured a foothold in what they say is an untapped market.
Three-dimensional walkthroughs are not brand new. Real estate agents use them to entice home buyers. The use of 3D technology by industry professionals such as architects and designers has been around for a while.
John Chwalibog forecasts the growth of his company will be due to a service gap he discovered. Much of what the company does is documenting industrial and manufacturing facilities for risk management and insurance purposes.
"The visual context is critical," Chwalibog said.
When a catastrophe like a hurricane or building explosion occurs, dealing with insurance claims and reconstruction costs can be the next nightmares companies face. By duplicating a damaged facility in highly-detailed, interactive 3D models, professionals such as insurance adjusters can virtually walk through it almost as if they were there in person.
The company uses high-tech laser scanners, camera and drones to capture virtually each inch of the interior and exterior of buildings.
The 3D, interactive computer models VTS creates for clients allow "virtual analysis of the extent of the damage and the cost to get back up and running," Chwalibog said.
Alex Nalepa shows a 3D digital twin at the VTS office in Hamburg Township. Jennifer Timar/Livingston Daily
He said capturing 3D representations of facilities cuts down the time it takes a company and insurance adjusters to assess damages and costs, so reconstruction can happen sooner.
VTS documented damage from an apartment fire in the Bronx in a couple of days, as opposed to weeks, he said.
Beyond documenting damages, the technology can create images of building at any moment in time for a company to reference.
The "digital twins" can also include embedded information, things to click on for more imagery or data. A home or business owner could access embedded information about features in their building such as maintenance logs.
"They can be offsite, looking at the property from the comfort of their own home," he said. "It's a true representation of the damage."
Kelly Chwalibog said the traditional method of taking a thousand photos of facilities is limiting.
"Usually with pictures, it's hard to know where you are in space," she said.
Roger Goble, a physical therapist and partner at the Legacy Center Sports Complex in Green Oak Township who is also involved in VTS, said the tech startup is operating in an untapped market.
A 3D image of VTS office in Hamburg is an example of a point cloud image capture technology.
"That tech is being utilized by a lot of people in real estate, but nobody is doing this in that space," Goble said.
VTS recently formed a partnership with Koch Project Solutions, which John Chwalibog said will be a major boost to his business.
"They do a lot of reconstruction work on large losses. There was a massive refinery explosion in South Africa, and they will rebuild that facility. ... We'll provide the data to assess the damage," he said.
"In catastrophic events, the carrier is writing a check every day while business is interrupted. We understand the massive impact of cost reductions by enabling a facility to rebuild faster,” Koch Project Solutions president Paul Switzer, said in a release.
“It is essential for insurance appraisals, claims processing and facility operations to reduce the time and money spent on manual processes. VTS Precision Data Portal is a valuable investment in assuring the industry’s long-term competitiveness.”
VTS is also working for the Great Lakes Water Authority to document its waste water treatment plants in the state, among other major clients.
As the business grows, their goals include launching an online subscription portal for clients, which is in the works.
They also want to get involved in vocational training for veterans and young people to learn the emerging trade of 3D image capture.
As new technologies emerge, Chwalibog said he thinks augmented reality — where users view digital imagery superimposed on the real world — will be the next big thing.
Read the Livingston Daily article
Contact Livingston Daily reporter Jennifer Timar at 517-548-7148 or at jtimar@livingstondaily.com
About VTS: After 25+ years working for leading manufacturers of 3D virtual technologies, John & Kelly Chwalibog understood how valuable 3D and reality capture would be for solving problems in key industries. They left the corporate world and founded VTS in 2017 to build transformative and easy-to-use 3D technology tools.