A digital twin is a virtual representation of a product or workflow across its lifecycle. A digital twin is composed of three elements:
- A physical item in real space.
- The digital twin in software form.
- Data that links the first two elements together.
To establish an effective Digital Twin strategy, each asset requires a different set of asset data services, together with engineering master data, effective visualisation tools, plus collaboration and workflow procedures:
- Create a Digital Twin model that uses accurate data feeds to help understand product or operations performance and adjust critical control points to deliver short- and long-term value.
- Identify where Digital Twin simulations and predictive maintenance can deliver the best value, for example, improvements in operations or processes, reduction in costs or risks.
- Build a Digital Twin architectural roadmap that enables program and project planning for digital transformation.
- Data insight is king. Use a Digital Twin for deployments or projects as this will expose how the organisation or project connects with its current state and how it is likely to respond to internal or external changes.
A Digital Twin incorporates data from these diverse data points, and creates countless potential benefits, including the ability to test changes to processes before they are implemented, making better and accurate decisions based on data.
Source: https://www.constructionweekonline.com/business/266292-how-the-digital-twin-is-reimaging-the-construction-sector