The biggest problem in data center construction is errors where the building doesn’t quite match the plans. Misplaced concrete pads or mistakes in the fiber pop-ups can put a data center build behind schedule or decrease the performance of the eventual building.

Around 30 percent of any construction project is “rework” - putting right such mistakes when they have been identified.

The Atom headset from XYZ Reality can wipe out rework, by validating the building in real-time as it is being constructed, using a 3D augmented reality view of the building designs overlaid on the construction site, before the engineers’ very eyes.

“The value proposition is, build it right the first time,” XYZ Reality CEO David Mitchell said in an interview with DCD. “The industry is plagued by rework.”

Atom is a safety-certified hardhat with a built in head-up display and 16GB RAM and 1TB of storage. It connects to the HoloSite augmented reality platform and shows building plans as a 3D hologram.

It provides engineering-grade AR, with millimeter-level accuracy, able to align building information model (BIM) files with the built reality, showing the placing of electrics, pipework, and the eventual physical structure, and validating the build in real-time.

That’s a benefit which stood out for judges of the Mission Critical Tech Innovation award, sponsored by Jones Engineering Group.

The accuracy is crucial, as data centers are built with tolerances as small as 5mm. By eliminating the traditional six- to eight-week scanning and checking rework process, XYZ Reality says an Atom can pay for itself in six months by eliminating costly rework.

This also delivers a reduction in the wastage of energy and materials during the build.

PM Group deployed Atom in a beta test in November 2020, and field engineers quickly identified significant discrepancies between the design and the construction.

The system was fully deployed on-site and in 2022 PM Group made an important decision to integrate its Autodesk BIM 360 project management system with the Atom’s cloud platform, streamlining the process and enabling more inspections and swifter resolutions.

Now rework has been reduced to less than one percent of the project. 