The Campaign

In NSW, building codes and planning regulations run to millions of pages. For builders and home DIY enthusiasts, they’re a nightmare to navigate. NSW Planning & Environment decided that had to change. Our idea? Convert the raw data of over 2.6 million NSW addresses into 46 interactive 3D buildings. 3D.I.Y. Interactive Buildings is an Australian first, a purpose-built website that remodels raw data from over 2.6 million addresses into 46 living buildings. Cutting-edge code renders every NSW residence and over 100 building elements into interactive 3D experiences, showing exactly what changes can be made to properties without planning approval. Interactive Buildings revealed the everyday development citizens can make without the need for planning approval. What was previously a difficult process to manage was now seamlessly intuitive. Planning controls were suddenly accessible, manageable and visual, saving residents time and money. Interactive Buildings empowered residents to get on with their plans.

Creative Execution

With the creation of 3D.I.Y. Interactive Buildings, NSW residents can now get a handle of the previously complex and difficult nature of Planning regulations. This is an Australian first: Cutting-edge code renders every residence and over 100 building elements into interactive and comprehendible models. All residents need to do is type in their address, navigate to their building instantly and straight to the planning details they need. These 3D.I.Y. models use cutting edge web technologies: Interactive Building was built with HTML5 technology including the ‘three.js’ 3D Javascript library, along with WebGL (a HTML5 3D rendering engine for modern web browsers). Combined with this cutting edge tech was interactive mapping uniting millions of data points including zoning, flooding and fire zones. Interactive buildings puts users in the drivers seat: NSW Government has empowered individuals and businesses to be active players in their own planning enquiries. Their experience has been enriched not just with knowledge, but with time saved accessing and understanding the information within the codes. Professional services like builders, architects and interior designers can spend more time on creativity, and less on compliance. Homeowners can save time engaging professional advice and can make changes to their own properties, or investigate others they may be interested in.