London’s premium boutique architecture and design firm, Lees Associates, has today launched a new website to showcase the new arm of its business, its bespoke architect-led measured building surveys service, LA Surveys.

LA Surveys

Vishal Baichande, Associate and Director of LA Surveys, explains: “The idea for our unique architect-led service came about following an office team meeting where every project reported issues with its third-party survey. What came across time and again was a lack of understanding about what an architect actually needs from a survey and also how late delivery affects programme at the critical outset of a project.

“These inaccuracies and lack of detail often only come to light well after design commences and frequently cost us and our clients time and money. It was a lightbulb moment: ‘why don’t we do them ourselves?’, So we made the decision to start surveying our own projects, which quickly evolved into a standalone service, branded as LA Surveys. The launch of the new website reflects the rapid success of this new venture.”

LA Surveys has gone from strength-to-strength as clients quickly began to recognise the level of skill and expertise Lees Associates’ team of architects were able to bring to surveying, providing them with an unrivalled level of insight into their projects and reliable, prompt delivery.

Vishal continues: “The new website allows clients and fellow consultants to fully explore the bespoke service we provide, from initial consultation to handover. It illustrates how we use 3D scanners to carry out point cloud surveys with a high degree of precision, more accurate than any traditional surveying technique. It also provides visuals to demonstrate and explain how we create a BIM model of the buildings we survey, which we like to call their ‘digital twin’.

“Over time, case studies will be regularly added to the website to show how our streamlined service is being used by everyone from contractors to interior designers, who recognise that the accuracy and detail that we can provide at an early stage ultimately helps provide cost certainty sooner than normal.”

So highly do Lees Associates value the importance of having a precise and reliable BIM model at the outset of a project, if a client later appoints the firm as Architects, they refund the cost of producing the BIM survey model.