Gallery

Wagstaffs, Vertex Modelling, GIA

VUCITY – London at your fingertips

VUCITY, the first digital interactive 3D model of London, was launched in 2015. A joint venture between Wagstaffs and Vertex Modelling, VUCITY uses ground-breaking interactive technology to offer London’s developers, planners, architects and Boroughs, a visual tool to assist in future proofing London’s built environment, transforming the planning and communication process around new development, at a macro level.

VUCITY covers 120 square kilometres of Central London, currently covering five Boroughs: Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea, Westminster, The City and Tower Hamlets, with this coverage continuing to grow by approximately 7km per month. The ability to overlay data in the model is critical to planning London’s future, unlocking how development and infrastructure is tackled, in a more holistic way.

The VUCITY London model has been created using stereo photogrammetry from high resolution aerial photography combined with terrestrial photogrammetry and laser scanning at ground level. It is highly accurate, with a building height tolerance of +/- 15cm at Level of Detail 3 and 4 models. We have a continuous revision workstream to maintain the high levels of accuracy and detail.

Features of the VUCITY dashboard include sunlight paths, transport routes, LVMF and riverside protected views. By placing camera points into the model at ground level, the user is able to complete preliminary assessments on verified views requirements, creating a more efficient route through the planning process.

It not only accurately shows the current built environment, but also allows users to toggle between existing, consented and proposed developments, showing the development pipeline in London and helping to establish how the future city might look. In one interactive model it is possible to understand the impact of development clusters across London, from the City and Blackfriars, to the Isle of Dogs and Kings Cross. By visualising London in 3D, and giving the ability to integrate data digitally, VUCITY is the key to unlocking how we tackle future development and infrastructure planning.

The first London Borough to sign up to using VUCITY was LB of Barking & Dagenham. Darren Rodwell, leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, told the RIBA Journal in a recent interview: ‘I see VUCITY as the future. It enables us to give developers and investors a better understanding of opportunities available in our borough and it gives members of the council and the wider public an understanding of how the whole borough is developing. It’s the perfect tool for us to tell a story, and to match where the community wants to go to the investment we require.’