Success Story
Descon Conveyor Systems
Building Better Conveyor Systems Starts with Seeing Every Detail
At a Glance
Challenge
- Improve site documentation and collaboration for complex conveyor system projects.
Solution
- Matterport Pro3 Digital Twins
Key Outcomes
- Better project collaboration
- Faster engineering decisions
- Reduced return site visits
- Improved customer communication
- Greater visibility throughout the project lifecycle
Introduction
Every conveyor system tells a different story.
Some facilities have been expanded over decades. Others have been retrofitted multiple times to accommodate new production lines, new equipment, or changing customer demands. Pipes, structural columns, utilities, and machinery all compete for the same space, creating environments where every measurement—and every overlooked detail—can influence the success of a project.
For Descon Conveyor Systems, understanding that environment has always been the foundation of great engineering.
As a leading designer, manufacturer, and installer of custom conveyor systems for the food and beverage industry, Descon knows that successful projects aren’t built by making assumptions. They’re built by asking the right questions, gathering the right information, and ensuring every decision is based on a complete understanding of the customer’s facility.
That commitment to precision has shaped the way Descon works for decades. Yet even the most experienced engineering teams know there is one challenge every project shares.
You can only design as well as the information you have
When Experience Isn't Enough
Before Matterport became part of their workflow, Descon’s engineers approached every site visit the same way they had for years—with laser measuring tools, notebooks, photographs, and video.
The process was disciplined because it had to be.
A single site visit could generate hundreds of photographs documenting every corner of a facility. Back at the office, those images were sorted into project folders, reviewed by engineering teams, and referenced throughout the design process.
Most of the time, everything the team needed was there. But engineering doesn’t happen all at once.
New questions emerge days—or even weeks—later, often when layouts are being refined or installation details are being finalized. That’s when the limitations of traditional documentation began to appear.
Jamie Cooper, Director of Engineering, remembers those moments well.
“We used to take hundreds of photos. They had to be archived into project folders and sorted. Then you’d go looking for one detail—and sometimes you just didn’t have the right picture.”
Sometimes the team could make an educated assumption.
Sometimes they called the customer.
Sometimes another trip to site became unavoidable.
None of those scenarios reflected the level of precision Descon strives to deliver on every project.
The Opportunity They Weren't Looking For
The turning point didn’t come from an internal initiative or a technology roadmap.
It came from a customer.
During a project review, one of Descon’s clients shared a Matterport digital twin of their facility. As the team explored the virtual walkthrough, they were impressed.
They immediately recognized something much more valuable.
Instead of searching through disconnected photographs, engineers could virtually return to the site whenever they needed. Every room, every conveyor, every clearance, and every surrounding detail remained available long after the site visit had ended.
Matterport wasn’t replacing engineering expertise. It was giving that expertise better information to work with.
Not long afterwards, Descon invested in its own Matterport camera. Within days of receiving it, the team was using digital twins on active projects, and within only a few site audits it had become a natural part of their engineering workflow.
A Better Conversation Starts with Seeing the Same Thing
What surprised the team most wasn’t how easy Matterport was to learn. It was how quickly it changed the way people worked together.
Within only a few projects, capturing a digital twin had become as routine as taking measurements. Engineers back at the office could begin reviewing the facility while field staff were still on site, allowing questions to be answered immediately instead of waiting until everyone returned.
As Brent Johnson, Project Engineering Manager, explains, capturing the scan as early as possible allows the entire team to begin collaborating while the site visit is still underway.
“We use it as early in the process as we can so we can have that Matterport file posted back at the office while our team is still on site.”
As projects progressed, the digital twin became far more than documentation. It became the common language between everyone involved.
Today, Matterport supports collaboration throughout the project lifecycle by helping:
- Engineers refine layouts with complete visual context.
- Mechanical and electrical teams coordinate from the same site information.
- Installation crews arrive with a clearer understanding of existing site conditions.
- Vendors gain earlier visibility into project requirements.
- Customers visualize proposed changes within their own facilities.
Originally intended as a tool for the initial site survey, Matterport is now referenced throughout the entire project lifecycle because it provides the fastest path to clarity whenever questions arise.
The Real Value Was Never the Camera
When people think about digital twins, they often think about technology. Descon thinks about communication.
Engineering projects involve countless conversations between designers, project managers, vendors, installation teams, and customers. Every one of those conversations depends on everyone sharing the same understanding of the existing environment.
Matterport changed those conversations.
Instead of describing a space from memory or searching through folders of photographs, teams simply open the digital twin and explore the facility together.
Questions become answers faster.
Design reviews become more productive.
Customers gain confidence because they’re looking at the same information as the engineering team.
As Cooper explains:
“The biggest advantage right away is that it gets people aligned much faster because we’re looking at a picture. You get so much more out of a picture than you would by talking.”
Johnson shares the same perspective.
“As a communication tool, that’s where it really shines.”
The Small Decisions That Shape Every Project
One of the most interesting observations from Descon wasn’t about a single project.
There wasn’t one dramatic moment where Matterport prevented a catastrophic mistake or saved weeks of engineering time.
Instead, its value appears in dozens of smaller moments throughout every project.
- An engineer confirms a clearance without leaving the office.
- A project manager answers a customer’s question during a meeting instead of scheduling a follow-up.
- An installation team reviews site conditions before arriving on location.
- A vendor gains clarity before equipment is manufactured.
Individually, these moments may seem small. Collectively, they help projects move forward with fewer interruptions, fewer assumptions, and better-informed decisions.
As Brent Johnson explains:
“You can collect a thousand data points during a site visit. If you’re operating at 99% efficiency, you still might miss 10. You don’t know whether those 10 are high impact or low impact. Matterport lets us focus on those potential areas and determine whether they’re really an issue before they become one.”
Rather than measuring success by hours saved or return visits avoided, Descon measures it by the quality of the decisions their teams can make every day.
Engineering with Greater Clarity
Every successful project begins with understanding the environment you’re working in.
By combining engineering expertise with Matterport’s digital twin technology, Descon has created a workflow where information is easier to access, collaboration happens more naturally, and decisions are made with greater clarity.
The technology hasn’t changed how Descon engineers’ projects—it has strengthened the information every decision is built upon. From the first site visit through design, manufacturing, and installation, every stakeholder is working from the same visual understanding of the space.
For Brent Johnson, the value is straightforward.
“It allows for confidence within ourselves and within communication with our customers.”
For Jamie Cooper, the impact extends even further.
“We look more professional and confident—like a vendor that the client wants to use and continue to use.”
Technology will continue to evolve, but Descon’s approach remains the same: understand the environment, eliminate uncertainty, and give every project the strongest possible foundation.
Because at Descon, better engineering doesn’t begin with assumptions. It begins with seeing the complete picture.
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