Digital twins will determine our future in all areas of technology. The future starts now, and we are inviting you to join us on an exciting journey through the opportunities that digital twins are offering the construction industry.
In October 2018, a Fortune article was already predicting the rise of the use of digital technologies in the architecture, engineering, construction and owner (AECO) industries. In the light of high cost pressures and international competition in a high-risk industry with tight profit margins, the AECO sector is finally getting to grips with the large-scale application of digital technologies. But what does all this mean, and how will the adoption of such technologies transform AECO businesses?
For some time now, the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) by the AECO sector has represented a major step towards the digitalization of building construction planning. There is already no question that the use of BIM is essential to the planning process. But what comes after the planning phase? It is well known, especially in the construction industry, that planning and reality tend to diverge as the actual construction process proceeds. A ventilation duct is introduced where it was not planned, pipes have to be re-routed, weather delays require resource replanning. There is no end to the reasons why something may go wrong. Moreover, certain risk factors are assigned different weights during construction due, among other things, to hazards on construction sites that were impossible to predict during the planning phase.
Currently, such situations are handled in site offices and at the construction company on a case-by-case basis as the need arises. Regular construction site inspections and a lot of manual work, carried out by many highly competent and experienced people, are required to monitor construction work. Nevertheless, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture. Details may go unnoticed and errors may occur during the transfer of measurement data.
But, what if:
- everything could be measured automatically?
- all details were clearly recognizable?
- a direct transfer of the as-built state into a digital equivalent could enable an automated comparison with the BIM plan?
- subcontractors could be remunerated based on current construction progress?
- hazards could be recognized before they occur, and construction site personnel warned in good time?
- weather reports could be included automatically in advance planning, and if resources could be managed optimally in the medium term?
- construction site personnel could contact each other and site suppliers in real time using easy-to-use communication systems?
We propose that all these challenges and many others like them be addressed by means of the real-time digital twinning of entire construction sites!
Perhaps you are sceptical?
An EU-funded R&D project called BIMprove is bringing the concept of digital twins to the AECO sector, and by doing so is creating an entirely new way of working on building sites and in construction offices throughout the entire life cycle of a building.
Do you want to know more? Download our whitepaper from here and share your opinion with us through our LinkedIn or our Twitter communities!