Efficiency and smart operation with digital twins
Do you have conservative employees who are skeptical about using new technology? The efficiency gains, through smart operations and the use of digital twins in your properties, are worth the time it will take to persuade them.
Simply explained, a digital twin is a virtual representation of something that exists in reality. So you have a physical object, in our case a building, which is recreated in a 2D version using BIM (Building Information Modeling). However, this is not enough. The great thing about digital twins is the ability to exchange data between the two objects, the property in reality and the 3D model. Without this ability, it is not a digital twin.
The interesting thing only happens when you, via sensors, can connect to the physical building's data about, for example, heating, cooling, light, water or air. You collect the information into the digital twin and can thus analyze the data. Then you can make informed decisions about, for example, energy use.
What if there is no building information model? Good news! The digital twin is within your reach also without it. I will get back to that. First, I want to explain why there is an urgent need for digital twins in the construction and real estate industry.
Read more about digital twins in the real estate industry here!
The construction and real estate industry uses outdated systems
The industry is generally conservative, and outdated systems are used, especially in operations and management. This limits the ability to make informed decisions. A lot of different systems are used that do not talk to each other. There is a great need for digitalization and new technology to streamline the ways in which work is done. There are endless possibilities, and it does not stop with more efficient energy use as mentioned in the introduction.
A digital twin offers endless possibilities compared to traditional operating and management systems that dominate the industry today. The obvious benefit is to do something with this data.
The benefits of efficient and smart real estate management
- You have all the information about your property in one place. The digital twin collects data from sensors and SD systems.
- You can analyze all data in one place and get customized reports.
- With artificial intelligence and machine learning, you can create automated processes for operation and get self-governing buildings.
- You can also enter machine-readable product and system data.
- The digital twin can contain statutory property documentation, such as drawings, installation and operating instructions, service manuals, and rescue plans.
- You have a full history and overview of who has done what and when and how much time is spend on each task.
- You have a user-friendly and easy-to-read user interface, that gives you a clear overview of your property portfolio.
Predictive maintenance
Predictive maintenance is the cherry on top of the cake. With the introduction of digital twins, you can eventually replace time-consuming maintenance backlogs with predictive maintenance. The digital twin will notify you when maintenance is required. Then you have the opportunity to take action before problems arise.
For example, a digital twin can see when there is a 97 % chance that the water boiler will break down within the next 6 month. This is because you have an overview of the margins of error from the manufacturer. The manufacturer's data indicates that if you run a 30 degree water heater at 90 % capacity for more that 24 hours per day, then the margin of error is X. By combining the manufacturer's margins of error with sensory data and the maintenance that has been carried out, machine learning is used to predict when the boiler will stop working.
Another example are common products in a building such as windows, doors, pumps, fire extinguishers, etc. The products have an installation date, an expected lifetime and a warranty period. With a digital twin, you do not need to check warranty times manually. The twin will automatically create maintenance tasks, so you can take a condition check before the warranty period expires. This gives you the opportunity to complain to the supplier in time.
Important message: you are not dependent on BIM
Many people think that you need to have a perfect BIM model to reap the benefits of a digital twin. That is not true. Most property owners do not have a BIM model of their existing buildings today. We recommend that the industry moves towards using BIM also for property management. We can help you to get started easily with a slimBIM. A slimBIM consists only of the most important building parts, and you will be able to quickly gather the low-hanging fruits of efficiency and smart property management.
Digital twins are the first step towards self-governing buildings and a digitally sustainable future.