SWCA Environmental Consultants is a leader in environmental planning and permitting, cultural resource management, biological and ecological services, water resources management, air quality planning, and sustainability consulting. With a multidisciplinary team of experts, SWCA delivers innovative solutions to global environmental challenges.

Facing a Pandemic Challenge: The Search for a Virtual Solution Begin

During the COVID-19 pandemic, SWCA faced the challenge of continuing project engagement without the ability to meet in person. Many of their projects required significant public involvement, client collaboration, and critical information sharing—elements traditionally handled through physical meetings, open houses, and site visits. SWCA needed a virtual solution to bridge the gap.

From Challenge to Innovation

SWCA turned to SeekBeak’s 360-degree virtual experience platform, to address the need for a remote, yet interactive, way to engage with clients, project teams, and the public. SeekBeak enabled SWCA to provide fully immersive, virtual open houses, featuring 360-degree imagery and drone videos. This solution maintained stakeholder engagement, allowing users to explore project information through customizable hotspots such as maps, videos, and descriptions.

With SeekBeak, SWCA launched their virtual 360 experience, creating seamless virtual open houses where participants could interact with project information in a highly engaging and accessible manner. These virtual environments mimicked the on-site experience, providing a more dynamic way to share project updates, gather feedback, and maintain transparency during a time when in-person events were not possible.

SeekBeak Enhances SWCA’s Project Transparency and Decision-Making

The use of SeekBeak significantly enhanced SWCA’s public engagement process. It provided an interactive and accessible platform for stakeholders to engage with environmental projects, offering transparency and fostering more informed decisions based on real-time engagement metrics. 

Features like 360-degree imagery and analytics tracking enabled SWCA to better understand visitor behaviour and make adjustments to improve their virtual experiences. 

Additionally, SeekBeak ensured compliance with state and federal requirements for public involvement, making it easier for a wider demographic to participate in project planning. 

SeekBeak integrated smoothly into SWCA’s workflow, allowing their team to develop new processes for project intake, branding, and design without requiring extensive technical setup or deep integration with other systems. While integration with tools like Power BI would add value, the platform’s ease of use made it a standout choice for SWCA’s needs.

Features that were noteworthy for SWCA:

• 360-degree imagery and drone video embedding provided immersive visualizations for projects.
• Customizable hotspots allowed for easy access to detailed project information.
• Analytics tracking helped SWCA monitor engagement metrics, such as visitor numbers and interactions.
• Client-focused customization enabled tailored virtual open houses, improving client satisfaction by highlighting the most relevant project details.

Check out their Virtual Open House example

Collaboration & Communication

SeekBeak significantly improved SWCA’s collaboration with clients, project teams, and stakeholders by providing an efficient virtual platform for interaction. By bridging communication gaps, SeekBeak ensured continuous project progress, even when in-person meetings were not feasible, allowing SWCA to maintain momentum on critical initiatives.

SeekBeak also enhanced client satisfaction by offering a user-friendly, immersive experience that clients could explore at their own pace. The platform’s 360-degree imagery, particularly for before-and-after simulations, allowed SWCA to present complex environmental projects in a visually compelling and interactive way, leading to more informed discussions and successful project outcomes.

SeekBeak = Indispensable

SeekBeak has become an indispensable tool for SWCA, enhancing the way the company engages with clients, stakeholders, and project teams. The flexibility and ease of use of our tool have helped empower SWCA to seamlessly transition to virtual engagement, allowing them to maintain a high level of interaction and transparency even in a fully remote setting. Whether it’s through immersive 360-degree imagery, interactive hotspots, or detailed analytics tracking, SeekBeak has provided SWCA with the tools to increase public involvement, drive informed decision-making, and elevate project presentations.

The partnership between SWCA and SeekBeak has played a crucial role in this success. 

“Tim and his team have demonstrated an exceptional level of collaboration, always open to feedback and ready to provide additional resources when needed. This level of support, coupled with the platform’s continuous evolution to meet SWCA’s unique needs, has ensured that the company can continue to deliver innovative solutions in an increasingly digital world.”

Jen Rideout, Business Application Architect, SWCA

Looking ahead, SeekBeak’s adaptability positions SWCA to meet future challenges head-on, expanding the possibilities for how they communicate and collaborate on complex environmental projects. The combination of innovative technology, user-friendly design, and a responsive partnership makes SeekBeak a critical part of SWCA’s ongoing mission to solve global environmental challenges in a transparent, efficient, and engaging way.

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