Navigating large, high-traffic environments such as hospitals, railway stations, and public facilities can be difficult, especially as these spaces are constantly changing. Ensuring that guests, service users, and employees can move through them efficiently and confidently is therefore a critical requirement.
To understand more about this use case, we interviewed Thijs van Herpen, Director at BIMnD, and Victor van Dinten, CEO at naext, about the collaboration between BIMnD and naext to develop advanced indoor wayfinding solutions for sectors such as healthcare and public transport, as well as the role of NavVis technology in enabling the efficient digitization of complex indoor environments through its high level of speed, accuracy, and scalability.
Project environments: Hospitals, railway stations, and other public environments (including Eindhoven Central railway station, The Netherlands)
Victor van Dinten, Co-Founder and CEO, naext
We were tasked with delivering clear and reliable indoor navigation for hospitals, railway stations, and other public environments, where visitors, patients, and staff must be able to find their destinations quickly and easily.
To achieve this, BIMnD and naext collaborated on innovative indoor wayfinding solutions for sectors including healthcare and public transport. NavVis technology powered this mission by providing the speed, precision, and efficiency required for the digitization of these complex environments.
naext contributed its expertise in smart indoor navigation solutions and indoor spatial computing platforms, combining AI, computer vision, and immersive experiences to guide users intuitively through buildings.
BIMnD was responsible for the accurate measurement of all locations and for converting point cloud data into BIM models of the existing structures. To support this process, NavVis mobile mapping systems were used to efficiently capture interior spaces, supplemented by static scanners for exterior areas.
Thiljs van Herpen, Director, BIMnD
A key contributor to the project’s progress was the ability to efficiently scan demanding environments. These spaces present unique challenges, as departments and public areas are often in use 24/7, making it imperative that clinical processes and passenger flows remain undisturbed. Consequently, a significant portion of the surveying was conducted outside regular opening hours.
Thanks to NavVis mobile mapping solutions, BIMnD was able to capture vast areas rapidly and efficiently without requiring prolonged closures or causing disruption to patients, travelers, and staff. The combination of speed, high precision, and immediate data processing allowed complex buildings to be fully digitized within limited timeframes.
One of the key results was the successful conversion of the point cloud data collected by BIMnD using NavVis technology into 3D BIM models in Autodesk Revit. These models subsequently served as the foundation for naext’s solution.
This integration of rapid, accurate 3D data acquisition, BIM modelling, and intelligent navigation demonstrates how digital twins and spatial computing can significantly enhance the user experience within busy built environments.
The project highlights how fast and reliable reality capture is essential for creating a scalable digital foundation for solutions designed to transform the way people experience complex environments.
This foundation not only improves accessibility and user experience today, but also supports the future development of smarter and more connected buildings.
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