Inside Vaai Ltd's 3D Streetscape Modelling Workflow: Performance & Practicality
Introduction
At Vaai Ltd, our streetscape and infrastructure modelling process is more than just digital modelling – it's a systematized, performance-focused workflow tailored for civil contractors, urban planners, and traffic management professionals. Rooted in practical build staging and traffic management experience as well as advanced computational rendering, our process delivers reliable, clear, and high-impact 3D outputs for tender submissions, staging diagrams, traffic management plans, and stakeholder communication.
Here's how we do it.
1. Defining the Scope & Capturing the Road Environment
The very first step is understanding our client needs: whether it's a traffic management plan in 2D/3D, build staging (4D), or a general site context visual. The scope of our model depends on the job brief. For TMPs, this might require capturing several hundred meters of road and footpath to visualize detours or vehicle movements clearly. For smaller projects, we narrow the scope to the working zone to optimize performance and speed.
We begin by referencing multiple sources:
GIS extracts (screenshots or full .DWG files from local council platforms)
Trimble SketchUp’s built-in map importer (with topography disabled for flat 2D base)
Google Earth (as reference street view and aerials exported directly into CAD/Sketchup)
Site visits – the most effective way to grasp the complexity and nuance of a site, particularly for traffic-heavy projects
Point cloud - A powerful but rarely available resource, typically provided by our largest clients who require scan-to-BIM service. This data is incredibly valuable for a wide range of tasks, including traffic management, temporary works design and layout, as well as precise construction set-out. We treat point cloud workflows as a specialized service collaborating closely with surveyors to ensure that modeled elements align accurately with on-site control points.
Its important baseline information is gathered before we touch 3D modelling.
2. Clean Geometry Imports & Layering Discipline
We import only clean, filtered polygon geometry into SketchUp. Stray lines, untagged components, and messy layers are avoided at all costs. We often find it faster to start from scratch than fix someone else’s CAD file if it is unorganized.
We follow a strict tagging convention that aligns with our CAD systems and help with visibility and performance control. For example:
VLTD_ARCH_EXISTING_BUILDINGSVLTD_ARCH_EXISTING_ROAD_SURFACE
This structure allows us to maintain visibility control, filter elements during heavy load workflows, and maximize computer performance during modeling and rendering.
3. Modelling with Purpose & Performance in Mind
A key principle we follow: "Every action should consider your computer's limits." SketchUp, AutoCAD or any other CAD Modelling platform for that matter slows down dramatically with bloated geometry and undisciplined tag/layer management. This is further excacerbated if your system is at the minimum standard hence why CAD stations are often specialised machines with customised components suited to heavy loading.
Hardware Considerations – Not All Machines Are Created Equal
There’s a common saying that “gaming machines are good enough for CAD,” and while that holds true for some tasks, the real answer depends entirely on the performance demands of your specific project. For example, a small residential design may run smoothly on a mid-tier setup. However, large-scale commercial projects, especially those involving rendering or animation, require much more robust hardware—typically a minimum of 32GB of RAM and a dedicated RTX-series GPU.
When rendering is a key deliverable, high-end GPUs become essential, and in some cases, we also utilize cloud-based or networked render farms to distribute the load across multiple systems. These platforms dramatically reduce rendering time and allow for complex computational tasks to be processed without overloading a single workstation.
We model assets intentionally:
Existing conditions are layered under architectural tags
Massing is kept simple unless detail is critical
Kerbs and edge treatments: Profile Builder 4 (Mindsight Studios)
Parking layouts: Smustard’s Parking Plugin
Quad surfaces & terrain: Artisan 2
Repetitive features: Draft in 2D, then populate with Profile Builder or 1001 Bit Tools and tag to layer
Profile Builder 4, in particular, is a double-edged sword: fast and powerful, but risky if not paired with strict layer and scene control.
4. Texturing, Context, and Staging
We apply textures from real-world image captures or pull from high-quality resources like Architextures. This brings familiarity to our models for local councils or contractors reviewing them.
When staging construction sequences, we isolate geometry into:
Base (existing model, most time-consuming)
Proposed works (split into phase folders as tags and scenes)
We simulate construction stages using:
Scenes & Tags (SketchUp)
Timeliner (Navisworks)
Phasing Animation (Lumion)
This separation allows us to present project progression clearly and adjust any single stage without affecting the entire build-up.
5. Rendering & Animation
We render and animate concepts using either Lumion or Twinmotion. It's crucial to note that these tools in their present stage are for presentation and not simulation. They provide high-quality visuals to communicate proposed conditions, sequences, or TMP impacts, but isn’t designed to validate engineering assumptions - we recommend Infraworks or VISSIM for simulation.
Our Lumion workflow:
Keep shadows and effects off while modelling (F1)
Work in Low or Draft quality for speed
Only switch to Ultra at the final render stage
Animations are powerful but GPU-heavy. We balance performance with visual quality and always update clients using:
Snapshot previews
Early-stage stills or draft renders
Never wait for final animations if you can update the client earlier.
6. Communication and Versioning
Client updates are tied to key milestones:
Completion of base model
Draft staging phases ready for review
TMP visualizations available
Clear file naming and versioning keep communication smooth and errors minimal. We typically provide CAD files, PDF stills, and MP4 animation exports as needed.
7. Bonus: Model Hygiene & Simulation Integration
We maintain high model hygiene:
Check model statistics regularly
Purge unused components and tags
Vet 3D Warehouse/Turbosquid models carefully (avoid high-poly or bugged components)
For simulation-level traffic work:
Use AutoCAD Vehicle Tracking for swept path analysis
Use Infraworks for large scale highway modeling and simulation of traffic conditions
Prove large vehicle access for closures or detours using swept path analysis
Use the animation output for AutoCAD vehicle tracking to pair with our animation output from Lumion for robust presentation of a solution
Also, system optimization is a must:
Keep GPU drivers updated (e.g., NVIDIA Studio Drivers)
Clean C-drive and clear SketchUp/Lumion/AutoCAD caches
Avoid stacking effects too early during rendering sessions
Final Word
Our streetscape modelling services are not only about pretty pictures. We bring together real-world construction insight, optimized modelling workflows, and cutting-edge visualization tools to deliver outputs that actually support your methodology to achieve project's success.
Whether you're bidding for a multi-million-dollar contract or planning a local road closure, we make your vision buildable, and understandable.
