Case Studies

Hanson UK

‘Develop the world’s first online brick visualisation tool, for one of the UK’s biggest companies’

The Requirement

Hanson are one of the world's largest suppliers of heavy building materials to the construction industry, with turnover in 2006 of £4.1bn. Hanson employs over 26,000 people, operating in North America, the UK and Australia.

Hanson pride themselves on being market leaders in their industry - their policy is to be technological front runners in everything they do, and this company philosophy is carried through into their online marketing.

Bloom Media took up the challenge of developing a website for Hanson that would be truly market leading, not only in its use of imaginative design but also in the sites ability to deliver real return on investment for Hanson. Bloom Media won a competitive pitch to redevelop the UK website, including a unique Brick Visualisation tool.

The Approach

The system designed for Hanson is fully content managed and uses cutting edge 3D visualisation technology; this is the most advanced tool of its kind the world over. It represents the innovative ethos of Bloom in utilising pioneering technology for real-world applications.

The Brick Visualisation Tool allows house builders and architects to visualise, in 2D & 3D, the whole Hanson brick product range. Features include:

• Fully 3D Shockwave version
• ‘Wizard’ for first time users
• Zoom in/out – multiple camera views
• Select bricks from the entire Hanson brick range
• Choose from several mortar types
• View bricks on six different building types
• Randomisation of bricks to ensure mixed bricks don’t end up with repeating patterns
• Fully architectural accurate, scale 3D building models
• Simple order process
• Print-out/email full project details and specifications
• Fully content managed by Hanson, who can add new bricks to the system as required

Bloom Media has utilised a combination of the very latest web technologies, including Ajax, Shockwave, Flash and ASP.NET to create a truly cutting-edge visualisation tool.

The Outcome

The Brick Visualisation Tool has recently won a Dadi award for ‘Best Technical Innovation’, the awards were organised by national magazine ‘The Drum’. To see the visualiser in action click here: www.hanson.co.uk/modules/BVT/index.php

The technology replaces the need for very expensive 3D visualisation programmes with a powerful system that is easy to use, completely free and accessible online from any location.  The next step for Bloom is to take the application to the global Hanson divisions in the USA and Australia with the full support of the Hanson UK team.