BIMScaler Blog – There’s huge potential for digital twins applications, from predictive maintenance in manufacturing to optimising urban planning in smart cities.
This is an area where we can look forward to a future where the digital and physical worlds work together to drive innovation.
For Australian businesses, using digital twins can help us work more efficiently, cut operational costs, and make better decisions.
Digital Twin Applications in the AEC Industry
In the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, digital twins are set to be a real game-changer.
In the paper, “Review of digital twin about concepts, technologies, and industrial applications,” Mengnan Liu and colleagues show how digital twins can make the design process more efficient, and allow for continuous improvement and virtual evaluation.
Let’s say you utilising a digital model of a new skyscraper in Sydney.
It would let architects and engineers test different design ideas, check the building’s strength in different weather, and even see how much energy it uses before it’s even built.
This not only speeds up project timelines but also cuts the risk of expensive mistakes and extra work.
Also, Martin Robert Enders and Nadja Hoßbach say in “Dimensions of Digital Twin Applications – A Literature Review,” that digital twins can be useful in facility management.
The digital twin can help with predictive maintenance and make building operations more efficient.
Diego M. Botín-Sanabria et al., discuss the integration of Building Information Modelling (BIM) with digital twin technology as an exciting development in “Digital Twin Technology Challenges and Applications: A Comprehensive Review.”
BIM gives you a detailed digital picture of a building’s physical and functional features, while digital twins add the ability to access real-time data and run simulations.
This combo can help you make smarter decisions throughout a building’s lifecycle, from design and construction to operation and maintenance.
Digital Twin Applications in Manufacturing
The manufacturing sector has seen the biggest uptake of digital twins.
A report by Botín-Sanabria et al., shows how digital twin applications are used to make manufacturing processes more efficient.
Digital twins help us predict when machines might fail, so we can avoid downtime and make sure our operations run smoothly.
For example, sensors in machinery can send real-time data to digital twins, which then simulate potential breakdowns, enabling preventative measures.
In Australia’s mining and manufacturing sectors, digital twins have been a key tool in making supply chains more efficient and reducing operational bottlenecks.
By combining AI and machine learning, manufacturers can test out production processes to make sure that every step is as efficient as possible, which helps to cut down on waste and boost productivity.
Digital Twin Applications in Healthcare
The healthcare industry is also a great place for digital twin technology to make an impact.
Liu and others point out how digital twins could be used to predict when medical equipment needs to be maintained and to help identify and diagnose faults.
Also, as Botín-Sanabria et al., point out, the idea of the Human Digital Twin (HDT) is becoming more popular.
An HDT is a virtual copy of a patient’s physiological and biological systems. It’s a great way to make personalised medicine and treatment a reality.
It’s still early days, but the HDT has huge potential to transform healthcare.
This means we can get more accurate diagnoses, tailored treatment plans, and even virtual testing of medical interventions.
Just picture a digital twin of an MRI machine in a Brisbane hospital, keeping an eye on its performance and spotting potential issues.
The goal is for the paramedic to keep providing top-notch care to our patients while cutting maintenance costs.
Digital Twin Applications in Smart Cities
Digital twins are also making a big impact on the development of smart cities.
These virtual copies of urban areas let city planners try out different scenarios, like traffic management and environmental sustainability projects.
Enders and Hoßbach also point out how digital twins can help improve urban infrastructure by providing real-time data on things like energy consumption, water usage, and waste management.
Cities like Melbourne and Brisbane are looking into digital twin technology to make urban planning more efficient and improve the quality of life for their residents.
For example, Melbourne’s smart city project uses digital twins to model traffic flows, improve public transport and cut emissions.
By letting city officials try out and see what future development projects might look like, digital twins help them make better, more sustainable decisions about how to plan the city.
Learn more: Digital Twin and IoT: Process, Types, Applications, and Combine on Budget
Digital Twin Applications in Aerospace and Defense
The idea of the digital twin isn’t new in the aerospace and defence sector.
As Liu et al., point out, NASA’s Apollo programme was one of the first to use the ‘twin’ concept, but in a physical rather than digital form.
These days, digital twins are used a lot in this sector for things like design, simulation, predictive maintenance and mission planning.
Boeing has been at the forefront of the aerospace industry, using digital twins to simulate and optimize new aircraft designs, reducing time-to-market and enhancing safety protocols.
Botín-Sanabria et al., give the example of a digital twin being used to simulate the structural life of an aircraft.
This meant engineers could predict potential fatigue issues and plan maintenance activities proactively.
In the defence sector, digital twins are used to simulate what it would be like to be in a battle and to keep an eye on military equipment.
By collecting data in real time from IoT-enabled vehicles and weapon systems, we can make military operations more efficient and reduce risks.
Learn more: AWS IoT TwinMaker: A Guide to AWS Digital Twin for Your Data & Projects
Digital Twin Applications in Energy and Utilities
Liu et al., look at how digital twins can be used for real-time monitoring and control of power grids.
This lets you predict when equipment might need replacing and make sure energy is distributed as efficiently as possible.
Imagine you operate a digital twin of the entire Australian power grid.
You can get real-time insights into energy demand and supply, spotting potential bottlenecks and even predicting equipment failures before they happen.
This can help make sure energy is distributed more efficiently and reliably, which reduces the risk of blackouts and makes sure homes and businesses across the country have a stable power supply.
In Australia, digital twins are a must for managing the country’s huge renewable energy networks.
A number of energy companies have started using digital twins to manage their solar power installations.
This helps them to make the most of the energy they produce by looking at weather data and how well the equipment is working in real time.
Digital Twin Applications in Automotive Industry
By making digital copies of cars, manufacturers can test how different driving conditions affect safety and performance without using physical prototypes.
Using digital twins helps bring products to market faster and cuts costs by spotting potential design issues early on in the development process.
As Jacoby and Usländer point out, car manufacturers like Tesla and BMW are using digital twin technology integrated with IoT to keep an eye on how their vehicles are doing and to make their autonomous driving capabilities better.
IoT-enabled sensors provide real-time data that helps us track vehicle performance, predict mechanical failures and optimise fuel efficiency.
For Australia’s automotive industry, which is already pretty focused on research and development, digital twins are a great way to stay competitive in global markets.
How to Get Digital Twin with Limited Resources
It’s not always easy for companies when they first start using a digital twin system.
The cost and complexity of implementing digital twin technology can be a big obstacle.
The good news is you can still get the benefits of digital twins even if you don’t have a lot of resources.
One way to get around this is to team up with a service provider specialising in this kind of thing, like BIM Scaler.
At BIM Scaler, we offer practical solutions for businesses looking to adopt digital twin technology without the need for a big upfront investment.
We can help with Revit modelling, digital engineering, model auditing, and content and template creation.
What does that mean for you?
Your business can tap into the expertise and tech you need to create and manage digital twins without having to splash out on expensive software and infrastructure.
When you’re ready to see the difference for yourself, just head over to our BIM Management Support page to find out how we can help.
Or, let’s grab lunch – no sales, no pushy pitches; just a friendly chat about how to make your complex digital dreams a reality, one step at a time.
Just drop us a line to arrange a time that suits you.
In Closing
The digital twin is a pretty powerful tool these days, and it’s transforming industries all over Australia and the globe. But as with all great new technology, the digital twin has its challenges.
That’s why we’re here at BIM Scaler to help you get started with digital twin applications. With BIM Scaler, you can start small and focus on the areas where you’ll get the biggest impact.
