Virtual and mixed reality for construction, culture and training
EXCIT3D develops applications for VR and mixed reality headsets such as the Meta Quest 3: the IFC XR Viewer and the HolonMR platform for the construction industry, mixed reality time travel in Uslar and Saarburg, VR outings for care homes as well as virtual exhibition stands and training.
Introduction to virtual reality
Virtual reality, often simply called VR, is a technology concept that immerses users in a computer-generated, three-dimensional environment. Wearing a special VR headset creates an immersive experience that transports the user into another reality through visual, auditory and haptic stimuli.
At EXCIT3D, we use VR to make complex information understandable, to present products in a tangible way and to bring history to life.
Hardware for virtual reality
Virtual reality can be experienced with a variety of hardware devices, each designed for specific requirements and user experiences.
Use cases for virtual reality
Selected fields of application and projects.
Product visualization and marketing
In marketing and sales, VR shows products that are difficult to transport or demonstrate. This was the case, for example, in one of our projects for the tool manufacturer P.F. FREUND & CIE. GmbH, for which we simulated the use of the BOZZ tool in a virtual environment for a trade fair presentation.
In VR, 3D models can be viewed and operated at a scale of 1:1. One example is prototyping: engineers and designers can model a product in 3D and test it in a virtual environment before it goes into production.
Virtual showrooms present a product range as a walk-through space, on screen or with a VR headset.
Industry and manufacturing
In industry and manufacturing, virtual reality makes it possible to visualize and simulate products and processes. One example: in a vehicle construction project, we used the scan data of an EVEX Porsche 910 in an interactive 3D simulation.
Another scenario is mechanical engineering. Modeling complex machines in a VR environment gives engineers deep insights into the design and functioning long before real production begins. Errors can be detected early and costs saved.
There are even possible applications in the aerospace industry. Presenting the interior of a passenger aircraft in a VR simulation allows customers to explore the cabin virtually and make design decisions.
Architecture and design
In architecture, virtual reality makes it possible to create and visualize buildings and spaces in a virtual environment. Our projects with E-Gruppe illustrate the potential of this technology for real estate projects and urban planning.
Thanks to our work, the “Europagarten”, a major real estate project in Herne, is already a showcase in the virtual world. We were commissioned to develop an app with which users can place the planned building in augmented reality. In addition, the app offers 360° tours through the building that can be walked through with VR headsets.
At EXPO REAL 2022, E-Gruppe presented the digital twins of its planned buildings, including the “Europagarten”, with our support. Architects and investors could walk through the projects. For the planning of construction projects, we now have two tools of our own: the IFC XR Viewer shows BIM models with their layer structure in VR and mixed reality, developed with the carpentry company Zimmerei Merten. HolonMR combines plans, models and photos into one scene that several people can walk through together at a scale of 1:1; developed for E-Gruppe.
Medicine and therapy
In medicine and therapy, virtual reality can serve as a safe and controllable training tool for medical professionals. It is also used in rehabilitation to support patients in their recovery in a safe environment.
One example of the use of VR in medicine can be found at the Städtisches Klinikum Solingen. To give expectant parents an insight into obstetrics despite restrictions, we created a virtual 360° presentation of all relevant areas. From the delivery room and the maternity ward to the neonatal intensive care unit, parents can explore everything virtually.
This is not the first cooperation between the hospital and EXCIT3D: we have already carried out joint projects in 3D printing, augmented and virtual reality for the benefit of patients.
Education and training
Virtual reality has already found its way into education and training, offering a realistic and interactive environment. New skills and techniques can be practiced in a realistic but risk-free context.
In police training, VR technologies can be used to simulate situations such as high-risk operations, car chases or negotiations in hostage scenarios. Officers can train for critical situations without endangering themselves or others.
In the trades, for example in electrician training, VR can be used to simulate complicated installations or repairs – without the risk of an electric shock. Trainees learn faster and more safely.
- Safety training for industrial workers
- Surgical simulations for medical students
- Customer service training in retail
- Soft skills and presentation training
Tourism and virtual time travel
In tourism, virtual reality offers a way to give tourists an immersive preview of their destination. Hotels, sights and entire cities can be explored virtually before the trip is booked.
The AR and VR hiking app “Bergische Drei – Zeitreisen” invites users to explore the industrial culture and cultural heritage of the cities of Remscheid, Solingen and Wuppertal interactively. Historical characters and professions appear as 3D figures at the stations. We developed the app in an ERDF-funded project for the tourism organization “Die Bergischen Drei”. Its 16 stations feature 16 historical characters and professions, including Anna von Kleve, Friedrich Engels and Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen as well as grinders, smiths and weavers. The AR functions are based on ARCore and ARKit; because of the data volume, users choose which characters to download before the hike.
Another example is the “UslAR” app. It was developed on behalf of the town of Uslar and offers a virtual journey of discovery through the town’s history. Historical buildings are reconstructed digitally. Using GPS, the app guides users to eleven historical sites in the Solling-Vogler region, each with an AR or VR experience. Since 2025, Uslar has also had a city tour with mixed reality headsets, and at the Amüseum Saarburg a mixed reality time travel experience shows 800 years of water power.
Virtual experiences for seniors
For seniors, virtual reality offers the opportunity to relive past memories or visit places they cannot reach physically.
The SeniorVR project uses a VR app developed by EXCIT3D to give people in need of care virtual outings – to their hometown, to the coast or to distant destinations such as Australia. Virtual journeys to familiar places support reminiscence work.
We also use our 360° live streaming solution to broadcast philharmonic concerts of the Bergische Symphoniker live to care homes. Residents follow the concert from the hall via VR headsets.
Trade fairs and events
Trade fairs and congresses are essential events for many industries. Virtual reality creates new forms of presentation and interaction. EXCIT3D makes it possible, for example, to present machines that are difficult to transport in VR using 3D models. For AUMAT GmbH, a complete product portfolio was made available virtually in this way. In 2022, we added a 360° tour with 360° videos and audio explanations through the largest order in the history of AUMAT Maschinenbau GmbH: a system that automatically fills lock cylinders with pins, plates and springs and seals the openings with plugs. Design and construction took three years.
We have also created a large number of virtual exhibition stands. In cooperation with Studio Bachmann-Kern and LEDVANCE, we implemented a virtual exhibition stand for the leading trade fair Light+Building 2020 in Frankfurt, which had been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. The stand received the German Design Award in the category Excellent Architecture – Fair and Exhibition. Visitors could experience the lighting technology interactively.
During the pandemic, we also developed virtual Christmas markets, for example at Schloss Burg. Visitors could experience the atmosphere of the market, stroll through virtual stalls and even shop.
Education and cultural heritage
One example of VR in history education is our reconstruction of the Solingen synagogue. The synagogue, destroyed during the November pogrom of 1938, was reconstructed as a 3D model and can be walked through with a VR headset. This lets school classes experience history up close.
In another project, EXCIT3D developed a virtual tour through central Solingen that examines the history of the organized labor movement during the Nazi era. This tour, developed with the Max-Leven-Zentrum, guides users through the history of the movement’s buildings and offices, including the editorial offices of the “Bergische Arbeiterstimme”.
Virtual reality reference projects
Discover selected VR projects by EXCIT3D from different industries and fields of application.
More VR projects
Clients, figures and technology from further projects.
Solingen synagogue in 3D
Together with the Max-Leven-Zentrum Solingen, our 3D artists modeled and textured the synagogue inside and out. The references were old plans, historical photos and notes from contemporary witness Bella Tabak, who lived in Solingen until the age of seven and regularly attended the synagogue with her parents. The model includes the Torah ark, the lectern and the benches, on the ground floor for men and in the galleries for women.
At a press conference on March 24, 2022, we made the model available for virtual and augmented reality. In VR, users walk around the building and enter it, depending on the headset by teleporting or by walking in the real room. At the ceremony marking 150 years since the synagogue was built, we presented 3D-printed models of the synagogue and the Torah ark to Abraham Lehrer, Vice President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. The 3D printer manufacturer Formlabs and the US commercial consulate supported the 3D printing. More projects of this kind are described on our page on virtual time travel.
Virtual markets at Schloss Burg
When the Christmas markets were canceled in November 2020, we worked with the Schlossbauverein Schloss Burg e.V. to model the Knights’ Hall of Schloss Burg in 3D. We built 24 stalls, equipped them with interactive 2D and 3D products and created a 360° walk across the market. Every stall had contact details and linked product information, so visitors could order directly from the exhibitors’ online shops. The 360° website recorded more than 10,500 unique visitors and more than 26,000 page views; the news channel n-tv reported on the market.
In 2021, a virtual Easter market followed, as well as a second Christmas market, this time outdoors in the modeled castle courtyard with 11 exhibitors.
Your benefits with EXCIT3D VR solutions
What we take care of in VR and mixed reality projects.
More projects
Selected projects and products in this area, each with its own page.
Start your VR project with us
Describe your project, whether a construction project, exhibition, training or trade fair. We advise you on hardware, scope and process without obligation.