The digital twin technology is a replica of a physical entity that lives entirely in a digital space. It digitally represents a building’s design, construction, and complex systems assisting project teams in feasibility analysis and adhering to the defined plan.
For example, the design and construction of an offshore wind turbine. At nearly 1,200 feet tall, and with each blade measuring nearly 300 feet in length, building these turbines at sea is full of challenges. To start, a ship carrying supplies must be converted into an at-sea platform; then, columns are dropped through the deck, raising the ship above water. From there, a crane is assembled on-site that helps move the pieces into place.
The digital twin in the construction process bridges the gap between form and function. In a blueprint, there is a space full of measurements. In order to designate that space, planners need the right direction like– who and in what way one will use that space. The digital twin catalogs this information. Also, a digital twin simulation remains an important post-construction process as It connects the design to the management of a building.
eLogicTech is a leading architectural, civil, structural, and BIM implementation service provider. We are expertise in all digital planning and construction technologies, offering a wide range of services to the architectural, engineering, and construction industries. We help our customers leverage the latest advancements in construction technology within their timelines, standards, and budget.
How and When to Set up Digital Twin
Since 2D plans remain the industry standard for construction documents, project owners ask for BIM without any means to understand what they actually need. This leads to project teams spending countless hours updating models. Even at the end of the day, these models aren’t even useful to the owner as data is trapped in files. This analog data is often an overwhelming challenge for owners and operators to check and manage their assets. But with the digital twin, this problem can be solved with all the data and insights at the owner and operator’s fingertips.
The most useful aspect of digital twin technologies actually comes during the project design and planning process. As more companies are adopting IoT and big data, digital twin technology is becoming more popular. While building the next iteration of a building, With access to the set of tools to create a digital twin, here is what one need to know and the resources one need to have:
1. Defining the System
The first step to creating a digital twin is defining the system or object to be digitized. For this, an understanding of the entity is needed, which is done through data capture. The data defines the system to be digitized and introduced into the digital space.
2. The Identity of Things
This implies that the system to be digitized must have its own unique identity. To do this, many digital twin platforms make use of decentralized identifiers which verify the digital identity of a self-sovereign object or facility.
3. An Intuitive Digital Twin Interface
To carry out the digital twin, selecting a technology or software is necessary. To do so, one needs to consider how the software handles the data flow from the IoT devices and how it recreates the physical objects in its digital ecosystem.
4. Start Small with Implementation
It is recommended you start small while using Digital twin technology. This means monitoring the performance of a single IoT device within a system and expanding it with time. It helps in understanding the function of digital twin and how it can be used to manage larger systems.
5. Understand the Security Considerations
Considering the increased adoption of digital twin technology, the connected systems around the world bring up security challenges. When creating a digital twin, a plan must be laid and executed to handle the secure communication channels across networks.
How Digital Twin Works
The digital twin technology goes beyond the simulation to help the users understand what is happening in the real world. Real-time reporting is the main advantage for carrying out the hypothetical scenarios before putting resources into a new project, which is carried out in the following steps:
- The right digital twin construction software
Choosing the right tools is essential, one can go for software like- Dassault Systemes, Procore Construction Software, Viewpoint Construction, etc.
- Designing a deal digital model
Making a robust digital model of the building is the primary step pre-construction. A basic level of planning is required with a robust digital twin recorded in the necessary computer models.
- Set up digital twin data collection tools
Digital twin data during a construction process is implemented by any number of smart tools like smartphones, cameras, Internet of Things devices, etc. In total, these tools collect the data to compare it with the digital twin model.
- Comparing data
In order to make full use of Digital twin power, the data needs to be analyzed and used during the construction process.
Short-Term and Long-Term Benefits of Digital Twin
According to a report, around 12% of organizations are implementing IoT projects using digital twins at present, and around 60% are either in the process of establishing digital twin use or plan to do so. The market of the digital twins is estimated to grow well in the next couple of years.
Factors like:- Growth in IoT and cloud technology helps in cutting cost and time for product development, which is responsible for growth in the digital twin market.
1) Accelerated risk assessment
Using Digital twin technology, engineers can easily identify any process failures before the product goes into the production stage. Improving risk assessment at the end.
2) Predictive maintenance
Since the digital twin system’s IoT sensors generate big data in real-time, businesses can identify the issues within a system. which enables them to accurately schedule predictive maintenance, resulting in low maintenance costs.
3) Real-time monitoring
Digital twin offers a real-time and in-depth view of a large physical system. It can be accessed anywhere, enabling users to monitor and control the system performance remotely.
4) Better team collaboration
Features like:- Process automation and 24×7 access to system information allow technicians to focus more on inter-team collaboration, which improves productivity and operational efficiency.
5) Better decision-making
A physical object with its virtual representation enables the integration of financial data in terms of materials and labor costs. With a large amount of real-time data and analytics, businesses make better and faster decisions.
Digital Twin Taking Construction to the Next Level
Along with architectural engineering and civil engineering, eLogicTech evolves with digital twins to bring a revolution in construction projects. Since the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) Industry went digital, we have also stayed abreast of all the latest tools to make it possible. Through Digital twin, eLogicTech helps construction and contracting companies understand, evaluate and optimize the performance of a building in real-time before construction. Tap to Digital twin technology with us to make your building smarter, more efficient.
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