# Pick splat or mesh by the job.

Spatial Summit Group

https://spatialsummitgroup.com/splat-vs-mesh

Updated 2026-11-01. Access: invite-only.

A Gaussian splat represents a scene with spatial elements blended to render a view. A mesh represents surfaces with connected vertices, edges and faces. Choose by the work the output must support, and check accuracy separately.

![One camera move over a real property: the site as data points and flight paths, the scan turning it real, a dive through the warehouse door, and a route across the floor to one carton](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/landing/media/film-hero.webp)

A real site · route Planned.

[13.08 bytes per Gaussian · 2026-09-19](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/methodology#delivery) — One warehouse export · 261,645,206 bytes for 20 million Gaussians.

## Different representations, different uses.

![A warehouse record opening in TRACE: points spread through the aisles, then the full 3D model appears](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/landing/media/film-arrival.webp)

A warehouse in TRACE.

Splats suit looking around a captured site. A connected mesh supports surface editing and workflows that require faces; neither representation establishes physical accuracy on its own.

TRACE uses Gaussian records for playback, comparison and located work, delivered as PLY files and as compressed SOG for the browser.

Representation choices, not an accuracy ranking
| Question | Gaussian splat | Mesh |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What does it store? | Spatial Gaussian elements with appearance properties | Vertices, edges and surface faces |
| What does it support? | Rendering the captured scene from different views | Editing connected surfaces in compatible tools |
| Does the format establish scale? | No; scale needs reference measurements | No; scale needs reference measurements |
| What does TRACE deliver? | Accepted Gaussian PLY; checked SOG browser rendition | No general mesh deliverable is promised |

[Original 3D Gaussian Splatting research (2023)](https://repo-sam.inria.fr/fungraph/3d-gaussian-splatting/) · [Blender manual: mesh structure](https://docs.blender.org/manual/en/4.4/modeling/meshes/structure.html)

## Check the result against the job.

![A solar array measured on a building’s 3D record: 18.1 by 8.5 metres at a 14 degree tilt](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/landing/media/film-measure.webp)

Solar array: 18.1 × 8.5 m.

For visual site documentation, inspect coverage, readable details and the source footage. For an as-built deliverable requiring dimensions or surface geometry, define the reference measurements and output contract first.

**Planned:** Survey-grade measurement in TRACE.

[Read the measurements and limits](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/methodology)

## Questions, answered.

### Does a .ply extension mean I get a mesh?

PLY files can hold a mesh or points. TRACE’s PLY holds the Gaussian splats.

## Sources and access

[Methodology and dated measurements](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/methodology)

[Machine-readable capabilities](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/capabilities.json)

[Request access](https://spatialsummitgroup.com/#access).