What is the Digital Twin in AEC?

Ask ten AEC experts to define the digital twin, and you’ll hear nine definitions.

The Digital Twin Consortium (DTC) defines the digital twin as “a virtual representation of real-world entities and processes, synchronized at a specified frequency and fidelity.

”John Niles, a technology consultant for Gafcon Digital, defines the digital twin in more practical terms. “It’s a digital version of a physical asset. It takes spatial data, asset data, and other information and puts it together to offer a true picture of the asset in the real world.”

What does that look like? “If you’ve ever sat inside a Tesla, you’ve seen a digital twin,” he says. “The dashboard shows you a 3D digital visualization of the car. If you hit the brakes, lights come on to indicate that you’ve hit the brakes. The digital twin will show you how much torque is on each wheel and tell you if the air conditioning is on.”

But this is only “the simplest version of the digital twin,” Niles says. Once you move beyond this version, the concept becomes more difficult to define. Some industry studies say there are ten or more definitions of the digital twin, and some say there are more than 200.

THE DEFINITION DEPENDS ON YOUR GOALS

The incredible variety of digital twins has convinced many AEC experts that defining the concept might be impossible—at least for now. “I think the term digital twin is still in its infancy,” says Michael Warren, AECOM’s director of digital practice and technology. “There’s no agency around the country that can agree on what a digital twin is.

”“I don’t know if I would even try to define it,” says Nick Hughes, Amsted Rail’s manager of emerging technology. “I would just think about what you’re trying to do with it.”

In other words, your definition of “digital twin” will depend heavily on your industry, assets, business goals and challenges, and use case.

• If you’re in vertical construction, your digital twin might need to be in 3D. However, the asset owner might get huge value from using the model in 2D.
• In civil construction, you might need your digital twin to include GIS data about surrounding structures and utilities. A company in manufacturing might be happy working with models that have no geolocation data.
• In facilities management, you could be successful with a one-way data flow from the real-world asset to the digital twin. An energy firm may need a bi-directional data flow.

Your digital twin might differ from another digital twin in several ways – even within your own AEC industry. And that’s not even considering industries like commerce, sports, automotive design, and the military.

WHAT TECHNOLOGIES ARE USED TO BUILD A DIGITAL TWIN?

Though it may not be possible to define the digital twin—at least not right now—we can define the technologies used to build one.

• A spatial representation of the asset. This model might be a point cloud, mesh, BIM, CAD model, CAD drawing, PLM, or any other precise visual representation. Note that the data does not have to be 3D – there are plenty of 2D digital twins.
• Data sets mapped to that model. That would likely include historical data like you would find in a BIM as well as data from systems like MEP or water. Some digital twins include local weather reports, GIS data, or traffic flow data. A digital twin can include nearly any data source you can imagine.
• Sensors to update the data in real time. You might use IoT sensors to track temperature, moisture, heat, or other parameters. Or, you might use smartphone sensors carried by workers.
• Digital twin software applications that handle tasks like data processing, data mapping, aggregation, dashboards, simulation and prediction, monitoring, alerts, and more.

HOW ARE AEC FIRMS USING THE DIGITAL TWIN?

Exploring real-world applications can also help us gain a much deeper understanding of the digital twin. Here are just a few ways that innovative AEC projects are using digital twins to improve their processes and optimize projects.

Live “as is” modelingThe most common use of a digital twin is to reflect the real-world conditions of the project. Where a BIM only updates when a human adds more data manually, digital twins use IoT sensors and other live sensors to update the model automatically at specified intervals. The result is a literal twin of the project in the digital realm.

‍Next-gen data accessBecause digital twins add live data sets from sources like IoT sensors, they offer stakeholders significantly more real-world context than a static BIM. This makes digital twins a much more intuitive way to explore project data and an effective tool for extracting new insights.

Kelly Watt, founder and CEO of Visual Plan, explains: “With a digital twin, we don’t have to extract data from reports, spreadsheets, emails, and verbal communication ourselves. I can use a digital twin to look at a real-world object, manipulate it, and extract all the information in a much more concise way than I can with traditional formats.”

‍Remote problem solvingKyle Daughtry, digital reality (3D and XR) capability architect at ExxonMobil says that digital twins can be an extremely valuable tool for remote collaboration throughout the asset lifecycle.

“A digital twin brings process and data and visualization together to allow people to access that information remotely,” he says. “Having a digital twin is having this always-on, always-connected environment. A remote operator or road engineer in India can see the exact same thing as the field office on site. And they can collaborate in real-time. “Anytime, anywhere” is one of our big slogans.”

‍SimulationThe most basic digital twins are like a BIM of an asset that updates automatically. Some organizations take their digital twins further and build fully functioning virtual simulations.

“A digital twin isn’t just a 3D model,” says Michael Warren, director of digital practice and technology at AECOM. “If we have a true digital twin, it can function the way the asset functions. Think of a bridge. How does the wind affect cars? What kind of information can we get from its systems about vehicle flow and traffic?” Think of a building. We can use all this information from IoT sensors and building automation systems. We can use computational fluid dynamics to simulate how it reacts to the wind.”

This enables AEC professionals to look into the future of their assets and use that information to make smarter decisions in the present.

Problem predictionOver time, digital twins index huge amounts of historical data on an asset, process, or system like MEP. These data sets offer the means for training machine-learning classification algorithms, which can predict future faults before they become a problem.

This helps organizations work proactively rather than reactively. Construction project managers can monitor conditions on site and adjust processes or schedules to ensure that work proceeds at pace. Asset owners can stop performing preventative maintenance on a regular schedule, and start making repairs based on actual need.

‍Design optimizationAs AEC companies continue using digital twins across their portfolio, they will build a historical record of how their designs perform in the real world. This data can help designers evaluate potential designs for upcoming projects, train algorithms to test “what if” design scenarios, and optimize their designs long before construction begins.

THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL TWINS IN AEC

In AEC, digital twins offer much more information and real-world context than the most advanced BIM. This extra information is powerful. It helps reduce rework, shorten timelines, solve problems, reduce costs, and maximize efficiency.

Digital twins are even more impressive when you consider that they are still relatively young and that the AEC industry has yet to realize their full potential.

Imagine having access to a digital twin not just for one asset but for the city block or even the whole city. Consider what a digital twin that moves closer to being a 100% accurate reflection of the physical asset. Think about connecting digital twins together in a network to create an enterprise metaverse of various assets that can offer even higher-level insights, simulations, and predictions.

The concept of the digital twin may be complicated to define, but one thing is clear: The digital twin is already changing the AEC industry for the better, and the future potential is limitless.  

‍