Built in 1898, the York County Administrative Building (formerly the York County Courthouse), is home to three large ornate domes across it’s vast slate roof. These domes feature terracotta tiles, windows to provide light, marble molding and copper weather veins. Inspections on the historic structure are vital to ensure any aging dome supports or materials are repaired as soon as possible. Historically, this has been done every decade or so. Due to the limited access of the exterior of the domes, inspections have typically meant setting up complicated scaffolding systems around the domes. An engineer would then typically walk the site taking photos and field notes, making sure to document the location of any structural concerns.
In late 2020 Terry was able to help the York County Administrative Building perform a visual inspection on their domes, both inside and out, with the use of modern imaging technology that eliminated the need for scaffolding. This process kept costs down, risks low and sped up the acquisition of valuable site information unlike any other inspection the county had performed in the past. Small unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) were used to fly around the exterior of the building and collect a vast array of images from all possible angles. Those close up detailed images served as a deep data dive for the engineers reviewing the state of the domes, but they were also used create a full 3D reconstruction of the entire roof and the domes. This model allowed the engineers to review the site in its entirety to quickly locate and potential problem areas, then drill down into the detailed photos of that particular area to have a deeper look at the structure.
For the interior, high resolution 360 degree panoramic cameras were hoisted up into the the domes to create a fully immersive, detailed view of the inside structure. This pano is able to be viewed in a mobile device, desktop computer or even a VR headset.
