About Vectuel

Vectuel is a French company that specializes in building interactive 3D digital twins for cities, transportation agencies, event organizers, and urban planning companies. With over 20 years of experience, Vectuel supports over 350 clients around the world and builds close to 200 projects each year, helping governments, corporations, and the public to better understand their cities using innovative visualization technology.

Rendering game-quality 3D landscapes on web

A pioneer in building 3D models of cities and territories, Vectuel knows well the technical challenges of rendering a large amount of 3D data in a performant and user-friendly way. Vectuel’s reputation is based on offering their clients the best visualization solutions for their projects. 

In 2019, Vectuel began applying their expertise in virtual reality and gaming engines to web-based digital twins. Vectuel knew they needed a web renderer that could handle large and complex 3D models with reliable high-quality performance, and that could be tailored for an easy-to-use experience for diverse audiences.

When Vectuel evaluated using the Google Maps API, they realized that it did not provide the level of fine control that they required to meet their design standards and client expectations. The Google experience flips between a 2D and an 3D map, whereas Vectuel wanted the ability to control when to have 3D at various zoom levels. Vectuel also required advanced custom styling controls in order to display 3D models at the level of quality they were known for.

Mapbox provides customizability on every dimension

Vectuel ultimately chose Mapbox as the foundation for their new Mappr SaaS platform that features all of Vectuel’s custom 3D development.

When the Vectuel team tested Mapbox GL JS, they quickly realized that it provided them the flexible and reliable foundation that they were seeking. Mapbox GL JS can render very large amounts of 3D data efficiently and smoothly. The resulting 3D maps are easy to use and easy to look at, integrating smoothly into public-facing websites and other interactive applications for Vectuel’s clients.

A key advantage of using Mapbox GL JS is that it is flexible enough to integrate with custom 3D tooling. Vectuel has a highly-specialized proprietary 3D modelling library that transforms custom 3D data and adds it into the Mapbox GL JS map. Mapbox, unlike other map solutions, was built to accommodate such highly customized applications.

At the same time, Mapbox offered reliability and scalability. Vectuel supports a global client base and powers digital twins for high-visibility projects and events, so they need a reliable mapping platform that can scale rapidly and smoothly in order to respond to rapid spikes in usage.

Millions of people explore Vectuel’s interactive digital twins through Mappr 

The ‘Grand Paris Express’ is the new Greater Paris metro line and one of the most significant urbanization projects in Europe. To create a digital twin for the project, Vectuel created 3D models for 70 new metro stations and over 2 million buildings throughout the Paris Metropolitan Area.

Built with Mapbox GL JS, the Mapbox Geocoding API, and the Vectuel 3D library, the Grand Paris Express digital twin lets users explore every neighborhood near the new stations and plan trips using the future expanded metro network. The simulator models how much time users will gain when traveling on the expanded transportation network. Even with the large number of 3D models, over 150,000 users per month, and up to 70% of users access the site on mobile, the digital twin performs smoothly and is user-friendly.

When the French government engaged Vectuel to build a transportation impact map for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with just eight months before the opening of the games, Vectuel turned to their trusted Mapbox GL JS foundation. The map was the official tool to inform businesses and residents in Paris about transportation impacts from the games, including closed areas and transportation forecast by hour, with guidance on how to navigate around the city during the Games. Vectuel used Mapbox to quickly build a polished map experience that combined data from numerous official sources into one easy-to-use interface. A total of 11 million people used the map while it was live, validating Vectuel’s confidence in Mapbox to be able to scale smoothly under heavy usage.

Fast, beautiful, and reliable digital twins built on Mapbox

Vectuel is continuing to grow as a global leader for building digital twins and interactive map experiences for cities and companies around the world. Partnering with Mapbox as the underlying map platform for their digital twin, the Vectuel team is confident in their readiness to take on large-scale, high-visibility projects. The Vectuel team enjoys building with Mapbox thanks to its technical flexibility, visual appeal, ease of implementation, and reliable performance.