Hospitality Renovation

Sea Watch Restaurant Renovation — Scan-to-BIM Case Study

How Heleos VDC used 3D laser scanning and scan-to-BIM to document the existing conditions of Sea Watch on the Ocean — a 50-year-old oceanfront restaurant — and deliver an as-built model the design team could trust for its renovation.

Project Facts

Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
Building type: Oceanfront restaurant (hospitality)
Architect: 5Architecture
Year: 2025–2026
Primary service: 3D Laser Scanning & Scan-to-BIM
Services used: 3D Laser Scanning, Scan-to-BIM, As-Built Documentation
Model level: LOD 400 Revit
Tools: FARO, Autodesk Revit, Navisworks Manage, Matterport, Bluebeam
Deliverable: As-built LOD 400 Revit model & as-built floor plans

Aerial Google Earth approach to Sea Watch on the Ocean, Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Project Overview

The Sea Watch on the Ocean restaurant at dusk, its two-story post-and-beam structure framed by palm trees and seagrape, with the lit 'Sea Watch' sign above the oceanfront dining deck.

Sea Watch on the Ocean has been a fixture of Fort Lauderdale's coastline since 1974. Perched on a three-acre bluff 50 yards from the Atlantic, the two-story post-and-beam landmark has served generations of guests across five decades. Its heavy timber framing, rustic oak-and-beam aesthetic, and ocean-view deck have defined the property since its founding — a deliberate expression of Old Florida coastal character the ownership has consistently chosen to preserve.

As-built LOD model render of the Sea Watch oceanfront restaurant, showing the connected building masses with gabled roofs, two-story glass curtain walls, brick chimney, and the elevated timber pile foundation.

After 50 years of continuous operation, the ownership team committed to a full renovation. The goal was straightforward: refresh and elevate the dining experience without losing what makes the building worth preserving. Before a single design decision could be made, the team needed an answer to a question common to any historic renovation: what do we actually have?

5Architecture brought in Heleos VDC to capture the existing conditions from the ground up — every wall, every ceiling plane, every structural member — and build a model the design team could trust. With no accurate as-built drawings on record for a 50-year-old building, that model would be the foundation for every construction document that followed.

Floor Plans

As-built first-floor plan of the Sea Watch restaurant produced from the scan-to-BIM model, showing dining and service area layouts, kitchen equipment, structural grid, and wall locations.

As-built second-floor plan of the Sea Watch restaurant produced from the scan-to-BIM model, showing the upper dining rooms, support spaces, structural grid, and wall locations.

Matterport 3D Laser Scan

Bird's-eye scan views and a 360° walkthrough from our Matterport capture of Sea Watch on the Ocean. Each floor is individually mapped with photorealistic texture — giving the design team remote access to existing conditions from any browser.

Matterport bird's-eye scan view of Sea Watch Floor 1, showing the full restaurant layout with photorealistic texture, structural walls, and room boundaries captured by 3D laser scan.

Matterport bird's-eye scan view of Sea Watch Floor 2, showing the upper-level dining layout, structural grid, and room boundaries captured by 3D laser scan.

The Challenge

No accurate as-built drawings existed for the building. What documentation remained from the original 1974 construction was incomplete, unarchived, or never updated through decades of minor alterations and equipment changes. The renovation team had no reliable record of wall locations, structural member positions, ceiling heights, or MEP rough-in locations.

The post-and-beam construction added a layer of complexity. Unlike standard wood-frame or masonry construction, post-and-beam framing introduces irregular column positions, non-standard bay dimensions, and exposed structural geometry that must be precisely captured to inform any interior redesign. A dimension pulled from memory or an old photo is not sufficient when the construction documents go to bid.

Two floors of restaurant space — each with multiple rooms, service areas, and varying ceiling conditions — required a thorough, systematic scan. Floor 1 ceiling heights range from 7'6" in service spaces to 21'7" in the main structural bays; Floor 2 ranges from 7'4" to 9'11". Every ceiling plane, every soffit drop, and every structural beam at elevation needed to be captured and modeled.

The stakes were clear: any inaccuracy in the existing-conditions model would propagate directly into the renovation drawings — and eventually onto the jobsite, where corrections are expensive. The design team needed a starting point they could trust completely.

Floor	Notable Spaces	Ceiling Range
Floor 1	Multiple dining + service areas (645 sq ft, 835 sq ft + smaller spaces)	7'6" – 21'7"
Floor 2	Main dining ~3,551 sq ft + support spaces	7'4" – 9'11"

Our Workflow

Laser scan both floors and relevant exterior conditions, then register the point cloud to the project coordinate system.
Author an as-built LOD 400 Revit model that captures the irregular post-and-beam geometry, verified against the point cloud.
Produce as-built floor plans documenting wall locations, ceiling heights, and structural geometry for both floors.
Publish a Matterport 3D walkthrough so the design team and ownership can review existing conditions remotely.
Hand off the verified model, plans, and point cloud reference data for the renovation design.

Before & After

Aerial laser-scan point cloud of the entire Sea Watch restaurant with the roof removed, exposing the post-and-beam structural framing, brick chimney, and interior layout of both floors captured as existing conditions. — Before — Laser Scan

As-built LOD 400 model render of the full Sea Watch exterior, showing the connected building masses, gabled gray roofs, two-story glass curtain walls, and multi-level dining wings. — After — LOD 400 Model

Laser-scan photo of a Sea Watch dining room showing the existing vaulted ceiling, exposed timber beams, wrought-iron chandeliers, ocean-view windows, and bistro seating. — Before — Laser Scan

As-built LOD 400 model render of the same Sea Watch dining room, reconstructing the vaulted ceiling, exposed beams, wrought-iron chandeliers, and structural geometry. — After — LOD 400 Model

Laser-scan photo of the Sea Watch lobby and reception, showing the brick-and-timber feature staircase, turned-baluster balcony railing, host stand, and timber columns. — Before — Laser Scan

As-built LOD 400 model render of the Sea Watch lobby and open staircase, capturing the balcony railing, columns, and curved host stand in the as-built model. — After — LOD 400 Model

Laser-scan photo of the Sea Watch upper-level dining area, showing the timber posts, dark turned-baluster railing, exposed ceiling framing, and balcony overlooking the lower floor. — Before — Laser Scan

As-built LOD 400 model render of the Sea Watch upper-level railing and stair, reconstructing the turned balusters, columns, beams, and two-level balcony geometry. — After — LOD 400 Model

Laser-scan photo of the Sea Watch covered ground-floor deck dining area, showing timber pile columns, the wood-plank ceiling and floor, ocean-view windows, and bistro tables and chairs. — Before — Laser Scan

As-built LOD 400 model render of the Sea Watch ground-floor dining area, reconstructing the structural columns, window-lined walls, built-in bench, doors, and ceiling framing. — After — LOD 400 Model

What We Delivered

Full 3D laser scan of both floors — Floor 1 and Floor 2 captured with complete coverage of structural members, wall faces, ceiling planes, and MEP rough-in locations.
LOD 400 Revit model delivered as-built and verified against the point cloud.
As-built floor plans for Floor 1 (multiple spaces totaling ~1,600 sq ft) and Floor 2 (~3,800 sq ft including support spaces), including wall locations, ceiling heights, and structural geometry.
Matterport 3D walkthrough for remote access by the design team, ownership, and other project stakeholders — no site visit required for visual reference.
Point cloud merge data (structured CSV export) for ongoing reference and future model updates.

Tools Used

FARO laser scanner
Autodesk Revit
Navisworks Manage
Matterport
Bluebeam

Results

Sea Watch on the Ocean illustrates why scan-to-BIM is the standard pre-renovation move for any building where the as-built condition is unknown or undocumented. Starting from verified existing conditions — rather than old drawings, field memory, or educated estimates — gave the entire project team a common, accurate reference point before a single design decision was committed to paper.

~60% — Typical reduction in in-field RFIs on scan-to-BIM coordinated projects

Design Confidence

5Architecture received a model they could load directly into their design workflow — no field verification, no guesswork.

Remote Access

The Matterport walkthrough let the full project team review existing conditions without requiring site visits.

Preserved Character

Precise documentation of the post-and-beam geometry means the renovation can work around — not against — the building's defining structure.

Service & Location Summary

This Fort Lauderdale project shows how Heleos VDC delivers scan-to-BIM for hospitality renovations across Florida — capturing complex existing conditions and producing a trustworthy as-built model so renovation work on landmark, occupied buildings stays predictable.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does scan-to-BIM help a restaurant renovation?

3D laser scanning captures the restaurant's exact existing geometry — including irregular post-and-beam framing and varying ceiling heights — so the renovation can be designed in an accurate as-built model before construction, reducing surprises in a landmark building with no reliable original drawings.

What services did Heleos VDC provide for the Sea Watch renovation?

Full 3D laser scanning of both floors, an as-built LOD 400 Revit model verified against the point cloud, as-built floor plans, and a Matterport 3D walkthrough for remote review by the design team and ownership.

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