Posted On: JUL-2023 | Categories : Manufacturing and Construction
Businesses are looking for innovative solutions to improve their operational processes and gain a competitive edge in an era of fast digitalization. It is now possible for businesses to harness real-time data and derive insightful information due to the Internet of Things (IoT) and the integration of innovative technologies like AI and ML.
Digital Twin stands out even among such transformational technology. Businesses can use automation and virtualization thanks to Digital Twin, transforming a variety of industries. The applications of Digital Twin systems are extensive and span industries like manufacturing, healthcare, communication, automotive, and aerospace.
Digital twins enable businesses to optimize manufacturing processes, expedite product design, exercise precise process control, monitor risks, and drive superior performance management by seamlessly copying actual assets, processes, and systems into virtual models.
In 2021, the digital twin market was worth USD 6.30 billion, and by 2030, it will reach USD 131.09 billion, growing at a 40.1% CAGR.
• 75% of companies have started investing in digital twins in the past few years, 3/4th of enterprises have already employed digital twins, and 77 % of companies are utilizing IoT.
• 75% use digital twin to better inform new product development, 86% use digital twin to meet sustainability goals, 52% use digital twin to monitor real-world objects in real time, and 50% use a digital twin to create smart objects.
• The UK aerospace and military industry will grow at a 40% CAGR by 2027 due to the rising need to improve the shortcomings of present fleet management procress.
• Digital twins will be used in autonomous machinery, robotics, or vehicles by 27% of organizations will use digital twin in robotics, machinery, or vehicles.
The number of devices linked to IP networks will be 3 times more than the world's population in 2023, indicating a sharp rise in IoT usage. Real-time data is gathered from physical things by IoT devices. By connecting to IoT technologies, digital twins can use this real-time data to update & create virtual designs, increase efficiency, and improve maintenance.
According to the most recent statistics, 75% of companies that use IoT claim to either benefit from or plan to adopt digital twin technology within the next 12 months
By 2030 the AI market will be worth USD 15 trillion, & By 2025, 91% of commercial apps will use Artificial intelligence.
AI and ML algorithms can help digital twins in the following ways:
· Continuously gather & evaluate data
· Simulate & make accurate predictions.
· Evaluate the effectiveness of the visualizations.
For instance, Unilever created a digital twin driven by AI for about 300 factories in order to closely monitor their manufacturing processes, apply real-time adjustments, boost efficiency, reallocate commodities, and cut waste. The findings indicate that the intelligent digital twin project saved up to USD 2.8 million, increased output from 2% to 4%, and reduced energy consumption.
Additionally, digital twins can be helpful for teaching AI since they offer a database of simulations about the physical model.
Virtual reality (VR) produces three-dimensional (3D) artificial environments for users to explore and interact using specialized equipment like headsets. Through the use of a camera-equipped smartphone and AR software, augmented reality (AR) projects digital content into the physical world. Customers can enhance their purchasing experience by visualizing the furniture on the IKEA website.
The AR & VR market has grown rapidly and by 2030 it will be worth USD 1.4 trillion. 56% of companies have adopted AR or VR technology & 35% of companies will use AR or VR technology. VR and AR offer immersive experiences, enhancing the visualization of digital twin models.
Customers and government agencies have been demanding for sustainable services & goods. For instance, 85% of customers want to do business with sustainable organizations. For particular industries like manufacturing, supply chain, and construction, digital twins can guarantee adherence to sustainability requirements. According to a survey, 57% of businesses believe that digital twin technology is a key instrument for enhancing sustainability.
Digital twin can:
· Monitor and optimize energy usage.
· Make environmentally responsible judgments by evaluating the sustainability of each production-related material
· Simulate sustainable city reconstruction following natural disasters
· Determine how objects behave and relate to one another, such as how earthquakes affect a foundation.
· Analyze and project the financial and environmental effects of projects
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By 2024, investments in blockchain technology will increase to $19 billion. The blockchain market will integrate further with other technologies like process mining, RPA, and digital twin systems known as BlockTwins over the coming years.
BlockTwins, or autonomous digital twins can: Take note of & save transactional details on blockchain. Such information can help supply chain companies be more agile, Store digital twin instances & models to communicate with other virtual models and business applications. By such efforts, Physical assets can be converted into NFTs that can be exchanged on the metaverse, and Improve transparency & security of data for simulated models.
A large number of businesses have emerged to develop and deploy digital twin solutions due to the rising popularity of digital twins. Some of the top manufacturers of digital twins are listed below:
Siemens offers digital twin technology for variety of industries like energy, manufacturing, and transportation. With the help of the company's digital twin platform, Xcelerator, businesses may make digital replicas of their systems and products to improve performance, cut costs, and increase efficiency. Siemens Digital Twins have been used in automating machine tool manufacture, expediting crop protection agent production, and reducing product revision time by 20 to 25%.
Microsoft’s digital twin platform azure provides a mechanism to develop and maintain cloud based digital representations of real-world environments like towns, factories, and buildings. Azure builds models of real world surroundings using IoT. To better understand and manage actual objects, structures, and even entire organizations, users of this IoT platform can create digital replicas. Customers learn things that will lead to better goods, more efficient operations, lower prices, and revolutionary customer experiences.
ANSYS offers simulation software to create digital replicas of real-world systems and objects. The purpose of this software is to transform corporate processes through the use of data driven and simulation-based digital twin technologies. Ansys digital twins can be employed in real-time system analysis for scheduling predictive maintenance and performance improvement. The Hybrid Analytics capabilities of Ansys enables engineers to attain a level of predictive analytics accuracy by fusing ML-based analytics with a physics-based approach.
With the help of GE digital, platform Predix, companies can build and maintain digital twins of their systems and products in order to analyze data and boost productivity. GE Digital operates in Manufacturing, Aviation, and Power Generation. Proctor & Gamble, Qantas, and Alabama Power are a few of their customers.
Bentley networks provides digital twin solutions that provide real-time data and insights to aid in better decision-making for infrastructure projects like buildings, bridges, and transportation networks. The company works on creating virtual planning, management, and control systems for on-site construction using digital twins. The business also works with performance digital twins to optimize maintenance using insightful data. The Doosan Wind Farms and the drinking water system in the District of Columbia are two examples of projects that have made use of Bentley's digital twin capabilities.
Dassault Systemes provides virtual twin solutions for sectors like aerospace, automotive, and manufacturing with a variety of tools for simulation, modeling, and analysis. As the market opens up to new possibilities due to the rapidly developing metaverse industry, the company focuses on the distinctions between digital twins and virtual twins. Traditional businesses like healthcare researchers and private persons renovating their homes are among their clients for the virtual twins. Dassault Systems offers 3D models that have an impact on everything around you, and it tests and simulates them to make sure they are flawless.
Use cases and benefits of digital twin in healthcare
In the healthcare industry, 60% - 65% of organizations invest in the digital twin due to its ability to duplicate workflows, staffing systems, capacity planning, & care delivery models. Hence, the market is driven by an increase in investment in digital twin. Digital twin is an advancing technology that can help with therapeutic results, resource optimization, & lower operating costs. At the CES in January 2022, Dassault Systemes showcased 3D virtual models of human cardiac implants.
Use cases for healthcare can be divided into two categories:
· Increasing the effectiveness of healthcare operations operationally
· Enhancing individualized treatment
In order to provide individualized care, such as specific medications for each patient, healthcare providers, and pharmaceutical corporations can employ digital twins to mimic the genomic code, physiological traits, and lifestyle of patients.
Researchers can experiment with various scenarios & tactics using a digital twin to observe how the real-world creature could react. For instance, by building a digital twin of a diseased organ, researchers can examine how various drug combinations affect the course of the illness. Scientists can use digital twins to see the entire disease's lifetime and carefully examine how it develops. They can also model various internal and external processes to explore how different elements affect the disease. Research in the field of healthcare is very costly and resource-intensive. The National Institutes of Health allocated most of its $45 billion funding for 2022 to medical research in the US alone. The processes occurring in patients' bodies are simpler to comprehend because of digital twins. This lessens patients' anxiety about the unknown & encourages them to work more successfully with healthcare professionals and adhere to treatment recommendations.
Healthcare sector is using digital twin to enhance healthcare organization performance, personalized medicine, and innovative drugs and devices. The concept of digital twins is still developing, but because to advancements in real-time data feeds, machine learning, and AR/VR, it is growing swiftly. Digital twins could therefore fundamentally alter how we identify and treat patients, as well as help realign incentives for health improvement.
PrediSurge offers simulation technologies to build digital twins of patient anatomy. The startup creates 3D reconstructions of patient specific anatomy using medical photographs. In order to execute automated computational simulations of the intervention, surgeons first choose the desired digital models of medical implants from their database. These simulations help surgeons make more informed choices. The solution also provides patients with individualized and improved care.
Patients are frequently advised to have whole body scans, which offer more precise diagnosis and treatment options, to help medical experts. These scans are expensive & involve a lot of radiation, and can increase the risk of cancer. Recent technologies such as digital twins and AI-based examinations are being adopted to reduce these risk. Patients may access them more easily, and they offer a more thorough and secure method of diagnosis.
The Q Bio Gemini is a clinical digital twin platform created by the US-based Q Bio. The Q Bio Mark 1 whole-body scanner powers the software. It takes 15 minutes to scan an entire body without putting them at risk for radiation exposure or claustrophobia. Additionally, the technology offers medical practitioners thorough real-time insights via dashboards that are safely shared. These capabilities both increase patient safety during the full body scanning procedure and enable doctors to get thorough results instantly.
Using their data-driven platform, the German firm Virtonomy.io is revolutionizing clinical trials for medical devices by creating virtual patients for both people and animals. The business creates virtual patients, or v-Patients, using a variety of technologies, including statistical analytics, simulation, and digital twins. These models replicate human anatomy, helping producers of medical equipment in the process. These models replicate human anatomy, helping producers of medical equipment in the process. Additionally, during the entire process of product development, digital evidence takes the place of clinical evidence, saving money and resources.
Twin Health creates personalized digital twins of each person's metabolism for the purpose of battling chronic metabolic illnesses like diabetes. The digital twins are created using continuously updated information from activity trackers, glucose meters, and self-reported medical histories.
The solution is offered as an app that provides individualized recommendations for exercise, breathing, sleep, and diet. It links patients with a human healthcare professional.
95% of the test subjects in the Twin Health clinical trials with 199 diabetic patients saw lower blood sugar levels, the researchers discovered. In addition, after utilizing Twin Health for 90 days, nine patients who were insulin-dependent were able to discontinue injecting.
Digitalization of Healthcare Sector
Digitalization is improving healthcare in tremendous ways. Digital twin is enabling healthcare industry to scan whole body, create virtual models of human, brain, scanning body evaluate human body without any close contact, and many more. Precision medicine is gaining popularity recently as it is fulfilling the needs of patients in terms of medical therapies and decision. Digital twin plays a major role in the rising popularity of precision medicine.
Below are few examples how digital twin is boosting the potential of personalized medicine:
To examine the evolution or the response of diseases to new therapies, medications, or surgical interventions, several suppliers have been working on virtual hearts that can be tailored to individual patients and updated.
The epidemic has contributed to the expansion of e-health services that use AI to assist individuals diagnose and treat basic medical ailments. For instance, Health data is captured into digital twins by Babylon Health's Healthcheck App. It utilizes manually supplied information including health histories, symptom tracker, a mood tracker, and automatic data collection from wearables like the fitness trackers & Apple watch. In order to address more severe or persistent illnesses, the digital twin can either give basic front-line information or help direct priorities and contacts with medical professionals.
To enhance surgical operation planning and evaluate the results afterward, a Boston hospital has been collaborating with Dassault Systèmes digital heart. The digital twins also assist them in creating the geometry of an artery-heart cuff.
To increase patient safety during aneurysm treatment, Sim&Cure's Sim&Size is a digital twin that assists brain surgeons. Blood vessel growths called aneurysms can cause clots or strokes. By employing catheters to insert specialty implants, these digital twins can facilitate the planning and execution of minimally invasive surgery. Simulations that operate on an embedded simulation package from Ansys can be tailored with the help of data from specific patients. The necessity for additional surgery has significantly decreased as a result of preliminary findings.
The manufacturing sector is where digital twins are employed the most frequently. Manufacturing relies on expensive machinery that produces a lot of data, making creating digital twins easier.
Designing Products
Digital twins are used as virtual prototypes during product design to test various simulations and revise or re-design as necessary before the manufacturers construct the physical prototype.
Process Improvement
Manufacturers can find new ways to optimize production and lower variations thanks to digital twin technology. A digital twin can also assist firms in locating the core of problems by studying processes and crucial performance indicators when used in conjunction with manufacturing analytics.
Quality Control
The digital twin is utilized to model production related materials & processes to identify and improve areas where flaws exist.
Maintenance Planning
Because digital twins are modeled using historical information about a product's or machine's construction and functioning, manufacturers can anticipate the need for maintenance or preventative repairs before a significant issue arises.
Predictive Modeling
A manufacturing company's digital twins can be used to forecast:
· Workloads (i.e., how work is distributed among departments).
· Requirements for tool calibration or assessing the precision and consistency of measuring tools through comparison with reference calibrating apparatus.
· Cycle times, or the overall amount of time it takes to produce and ship a good.
Digital Twin Manufacturing Companies
The list of businesses employing digital twins to improve their production processes as of right now includes:
The French automotive giant creates virtual versions of actual vehicles before they are created using the product digital twin methodology. The virtual car design is created first, to start the product journey. Once the design is complete, virtual model of every technological component, including the engine, electronics, mechanics, and navigation systems is built.
Renault can test their automobiles and assure optimal safety by creating a digital twin this comprehensive before the actual verified design and engineering draft goes into production. Before assembling the finished product, the producers can determine if the vehicle's modules adhere to current standards and make changes as needed.
Another manufacturer adopting digital twins is the German company that manufactures and provides services for compressors. Kaeser employs digitization to broaden its selection of products. The company switched to an as-a-service business strategy rather than selling compressor units and leaving consumers to run them. Kaeser can create predictive maintenance plans for their products and solve issues before they arise thanks to the digital twin technique.
Boeing, largest aerospace company in the world uses digital twin in engineering, modeling, & designing of aircraft. Boeing developed a digital twin of each system and asset used in production as a result of the requirement to organize, analyze, and extract information from massive amounts of data. Boeing intends to communicate the findings of this important initiative to those involved in the supply chain.
The DTs are now assisting the airspace giant in planning repairs and replacements by forecasting how product components will operate under certain scenarios. Calculating load balances for the best and safest use of cargo space inside the aircraft is one of Boeing's additional manufacturing use cases for digital twin technology.
Bridgestone, a leading producer of tires & rubber in the world uses product DTs to predict how different circumstances, like driving habits, would affect their products. Thus, the use of DTs extends the useful lives of products and shields the wheels from damage.
Additionally, the business tests and designs its products using virtual models. Bridgestone's production is accelerated by roughly 50% when tests are run in a virtual environment. The corporation can also share virtual twins of their prospective items with partners for approval thanks to the DT application.
FMC Technologies, an oil and gas service provider, is using DT in the energy industry to enhance the quality of their operations, identify & remove operational bottlenecks, and schedule output in advance to satisfy future market demands. The business initially used DTs to boost output and adapt its production lines to higher product volumes.
The organization can investigate and optimize operational processes, assess resource needs, lower risks, and make well-informed equipment investment decisions as a result of the digital twin implementation. A 50% increase in production throughput was achieved by FMC Technologies thanks to digital manufacturing.
Businesses can access various advantages, including improved data analysis, preventative maintenance, and significant cost savings, by deploying a supply chain digital twin in the logistics industry. According to McKinsey study, digital twins can increase revenue by 10%, cut the time to market in half and improve product quality by 25%. According to a PwC survey, 86% of organizations believe they should increase their technology spending to monitor, analyze, and assess supply chain risks. It provides benefits like enhanced decision making, optimized fleet management, lower operational cost, supply chain transparency, real time risk management, & predictive maintenance.
Digital Twin in Logistics
Digital twin technology uses the IOT & machine learning to imitate the behavior of structures, systems, and devices. Logistics use DT to achieve goals, like simulating clad rack building behavior digitally, forecasting how to handle demand peaks, & obtaining a 3D perspective of the warehouse & operator operations.
Examples of digital twin logistics:
• Use of digital twin in Port of Rotterdam
The Port of Rotterdam is using IBM's digital twin technology, Container 42, a shipping container with sensors & communication equipment that continuously logs information about its location and status.
• Digital Twin of distribution & warehouse
DHL collaborated with the food packaging company TetraPak to duplicate all operations & equipment in a digital twin of one of their warehouses. This enabled them to study package movement and equipment performance to increase productivity.
Top digital twin Startup Company in logistics
• Logivations
For precisely building the digital twin of a logistics network, German company Logivations provides Web to Modeling & Optimization software based on AI. By adjusting and adjusting the network, the designed supply chain is continuously optimized. An AI algorithm is coupled with the digital twin to direct simulations and optimize distributed network structures.
• SenSat
SenSat provides real time simulation of real world settings through cloud based digital twin technology. This makes it possible for businesses to use simulations of the warehouse to optimize space, manpower, & material transportation.
• Cognition Factory
CognitiveFlow, a digital twin solution powered by AI from Cognition Factory, simulates the warehouse. The configuration, planning, and continual improvement of mobile robots and systems for handling materials in the warehouse are done using simulation software. Data from inside the system and outside it are both integrated by this solution.
· Brands are using digital twins to build virtual spaces. They might build twin versions of customers' living rooms to learn how various furniture designs look and function.
· Twins are a tool that other businesses use to perfect the aesthetics of their products. Fashion companies are creating libraries of remodelable 3D elements. They can significantly save the time it takes to bring products to market by having models of every design.
· Another area where twinning is having an impact is packaging. The performance of packing during and after delivery can be modeled using digital twins. Additionally, they can model how goods will fit in retail spaces or storage facilities.
Digital Twin in retail & E-commerce
• Lowe
The leading home improvement retailer in the United States, Lowe's, employed digital twin to design and build intelligent stores. The store's digital representation adjusts and changes in real-time. To train AI models inside the store, there are 3D store maps and e-commerce-style data. Robots move through aisles of stores and sound an alarm when a store assistant is needed or when a product is out of stock.
• French Supermarket
Intermarché, a French grocery operator, used data from IoT-enabled shelves and sales systems to build a digital twin of a physical shop. Inventory can now be readily managed, and multiple store layouts may be tested for effectiveness.
• Walmart
Walmart makes use of digital twin technology & experiment with various layouts and designs to maximize their retail layout. They can evaluate product positioning and aisle design in the store by simulating various layouts. Their inventory management system makes advantage of the technology.
In the construction industry Sensor data, 3D models, & real time performance data are combined into a single platform to produce digital twins.
Real life example of digital twin in construction:
• The shard
The Shard, a 95 story tower in London, optimized its energy use & decreased its carbon impact using digital twin technology. The building's energy efficiency was simulated using the digital twin to find areas for improvement.
• Crossrail
Digital twin technology was utilized by London's Crossrail, a significant infrastructure project, to track construction progress & spot possible difficulties before they become a major issue. The construction process was simulated using the digital twin, and resource utilization was optimized.
• World Trade Center
In the construction of One World Trade Center digital twin was used. Using digital twins, architects & engineers were able to evaluate the structural integrity of the structure and forecast its effects on the environment. This technology was essential in ensuring the building's systems, such the HVAC and lighting, operated at peak efficiency for the course of its life.
Asia Pacific
The growing use of IoT devices in the manufacturing industry is also contributing to the need for digital twins in the Asia Pacific region. The increasing number of smartphones, rising internet penetration, and the emergence of technologies like AI, machine learning, & blockchain all contribute to the expansion of IoT across many manufacturing industries ranging from automotive to aviation.
The process support & service segment of the Asia Pacific digital twin market will grow at a 35.1% CAGR due to growing need for low cost maintenance services.
In 2020, the manufacturing industry accounted for over 25% of the Asia Pacific digital twin market, driven by a growing IoT and linked device adoption throughout production facilities. Digital twins for industrial IoT enable remote product diagnosis and commissioning, enhancing customer happiness and reducing service costs.
Europe
Europe digital twin market is driven by the presence of several organizations utilizing digital twin technology, & favorable government policies.
The Europe digital twin market in 2022 was USD 8.75 billion, and by 2030 it will reach USD 137.85 billion, growing at a 44.2% CAGR.
By 2026, the machine & health equipment monitoring segment will hold significant market share because of swift growth of the manufacturing, healthcare, & automotive industries.
Germany and Italy have the highest revenue shares. The presence of major manufacturers & a robust automotive sector in these countries is driving growth in the digital twin market. The increased usage of technological advancements also contributes to the growth of the local economy.
North America
The North American Digital Twin Market in 2022 was USD 4.5 billion, and by 2030 it will reach USD 14.8 billion, and expand at a CAGR of 20.2%. Technological advancements and the rising use of digital twin in AI and IoT technology, which aid in monitoring real-time insights on the performance of physical assets in sectors like healthcare, manufacturing, and aerospace, have stimulated the demand for North American digital twins.
In 2019, the product design and development sector held a 52% of revenue share because of the growing need for products to operate effectively & detect problems more rapidly. North America's aerospace & military sector will expand at a CAGR of 30% due to the need for less casualties and for guns & other equipment to function properly. The digital twin technology will boost product efficiency, provide predictive maintenance to prevent defects, & detect equipment breakdowns in real time.
The United States is the biggest market for digital twins in North America due to the nation's quick uptake of cutting-edge technologies like IoT, big data, & AI. With a rise in the demand for smart city solutions & digital transformation in industries like manufacturing, healthcare, & energy, Canada is another major market for digital twin technology. The need for the digital twin market will increase in the North American region as a result of such variables from these two nations.