Leica’s RTC360 – Why we love it, and so should you.

James Clarke our expert senior Land surveyor gives an insight into why the Leica’s RTC360 is a great surveying tool to have in your armoury.

Leica’s latest iteration in laser scanners is the compact and lightweight RTC360. A scanner that has massively improved on the successful formula of the scanners before it, versatile, easy to use and accurate.

Leica’s RTC360

But why is it so great? My first introduction to laser scanners was Leica’s C10 which comparatively is big, clunky and slow. For the time it was fascinating, and kick started my enthusiasm in laser scanning. The next scanner that I spent a lot of time with was the Leica P30/40, which was a massive improvement on the C10, it was faster, lighter and easier to use.

At this point the sky was the limit for laser scanner development, and I kept my ear to the door waiting for the next big thing. The RTC360.

The folks at Leica had obviously listened to the industry professionals and had developed a tool that just worked. One of its ‘party tricks’ is the ability to correct the scan data if the scanner is not level. Making tribrachs redundant. Although a skilled surveyor can level very quickly it is surprising the amount of time that it does save.

Point Cloud Data

And time is one of the RTC360’s best selling points, it is quicker to set up, quicker to learn, quicker to use. This allows the surveyor to spend less time setting up on site and more time capturing the data that a client requires. For some there may be trade offs in the amount of functions available, however to most people the simplified interface, integrated cameras, and processing on the go mean the advantages far outweigh any disadvantages.

At PRE Surveyors we have years of experience in laser scanning and modelling from point cloud data, which means that we can offer fast and accurate data to clients, with the use of the RTC360 we have made the process even smoother.

If you are interested in seeing some examples of what we use scan data for, see the Projects tab on our website, or if you are interested in finding out more, get in contact with a member of our leadership team.