To combat the climate crisis, global industries are innovating new methods to reduce their carbon footprints and eliminate waste. For CGI Furniture, developing high-fidelity 3D product models for international clients is part of an effort to curtail the environmental impact of modern production with a more affordable and efficient design-to-retail process.
An early adopter of virtual prototypes for retail marketing, CGI Furniture specializes in high-end, photoreal 3D renders of product models for clients spanning retail industries, with recent projects including ergonomic economy seating for Zephyr Aerospace, sustainable décor for van de Sant, and luxury watch designs for Julien de Bourg.
Revamping traditional product merchandising and production with a virtual pipeline affords a range of benefits for CGI Furniture clientele. High-quality 3D product models are more cost-effective and faster to produce than manufacturing a physical prototype, requiring less resources for creation and limited physical space or room for storage. Versatility enables 3D renders to be showcased in any virtual room, lighting condition or environment, with the ability to change product fabrics and materials on the fly. Using 3D product models, retailers are able to react to consumer trends and demands with more immediacy, and test new prototypes without losing any time-to-market if products fail to sell.
Production begins with CAD or DWG files, drawings or blueprints of product designs from the client, in addition to reference images or physical swatches of materials and textiles. Clients also provide details on the background environment or opt to choose from CGI Furniture’s creative library of more than 6,500 pre-modeled lifestyle scenes. Once reference materials are reviewed, artists import relevant files directly into 3ds Max to begin modeling, lighting, texturing and animation.
“3ds Max is the backbone of our creative pipeline. It’s multifunctional, agile and used throughout all stages of production for any task,” said Dmitriy Pastushenko, Chief Integration Manager, CGI Furniture. “3ds Max is also extremely useful for architectural visualization, which is integral to the development of lifestyles or environments that our final product models are positioned in.”
Versatile interoperability with different file formats, compatibility with robust plugins and a customizable and simple-to-navigate user interface helps speed production in 3ds Max. Interactive rendering enhances efficiency by enabling teams to view model adjustments and make changes in real-time. Artists have open communication with clients and receive feedback throughout all stages of production, and final delivery of photoreal product models are showcased in natural environments tailored to the client’s brand or audience preferences.
Dmitriy concluded, “We’re entering a new industrial revolution, where major industry players in the furniture market are looking to grow their business with computer generated imagery. Transitioning to 3D renders is a critical step towards reducing pollution, eliminating waste and saving trees and other limited resources, rather than producing merchandise that may never be sold. Widespread industry adoption of digital prototyping has the potential to make strides towards saving our planet.”
