part of the site-specific design to take advantage of this specific site’s features. “I’ve been involved in hundreds of projects over my career and some projects are more complex for many reasons,” says Mike. “This was a complex project and a tribute to the architect. We stepped up to the challenge. It was brilliant watching it come together. Passion is part of every project.” The people at Destination Living are also passionate about technology. “I came into the building industry 30 years ago via software for the building industry,” says Mike. “We’ve been waiting for Virtual Reality for a long time. We’re the first to use the software in Victoria. We developed it as part of our process.” Early in the design process, Destination Living creates the client’s home in VR. The client then puts on a headset and walks through it before the job goes to the field. “It’s a phenomenal exercise. It feels like you actually exist in the space,” says Mike. The second the client puts the goggles on, they get the architect’s vision, seeing the sense of space and every last detail so the client knows how it will feel to live in their home. The VR experience is a powerful tool for Destination Living’s design vision. “It’s proved to be wonderful part of our practice and important to help our clients collaborate with us in evaluating design options and eliminating errors.” The company took this a step further last year and started testing out Augmented Reality. “We were going around and putting barcode tags on the building site, then putting on a headset and walking around at the framing stage and seeing the house as a completed project,” says Mike. “It’s one more little thing we’re using to help communicate and make informed decisions for the design. We’re even taking drone footage around the site so clients can imagine looking through their windows and seeing the views outside.” JULY 2024
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