Digital Twins set to be game changer for businesses

Almost every problem has a solution. The challenge with identifying the best solution from among the available options is that it often requires us to answer questions such as “What will work best?”, “What if…?”, and “What next?”. In spheres such as business, industry, governance, and development, there’s little or no place for uncertainty, as a misstep could lead to a waste of valuable resources and time or have unintended consequences. So, how does one explore different possibilities, try out different permutations and combinations and compare outcomes, while minimizing real-world impact and ensuring prudent use of resources and time? How does one find a way to do more, with less?  Digital Twins technology offers a way to do exactly that. 

So, how Digital Twins work 

Digital Twins are virtual replicas or digital reproductions of real-world things, places, establishments, business processes, people, or even entire cities. These digital models can respond to live events and be queried for information. Users can monitor, diagnose, and investigate the Digital Twins data to predict or simulate how the real-world scenario in question will be impacted by specific inputs.  

The technology can not only provide visibility into how dynamic, real-world systems are performing, but also propose how to improve them and predict how they will perform in different scenarios. This helps in creating better products, optimizing operations and costs, and delivering breakthrough user experiences. Unsurprisingly, Digital Twins technology is finding increasing relevance across key sectors such as construction, manufacturing, aerospace, healthcare, energy, and utilities.   

As adoption of Industry 4.0 increases, the digital twin market is also likely to grow. Research firm Gartner has identified Digital Twins as one of ten strategic technologies for the future. In 2020, the worldwide market size for Digital Twins was estimated to be $5 billion and projected to grow at a CAGR of over 35 percent up to 2027 by market research firm Global Market Insights. 

Diverse range of applications across sectors 

Architects and city planners will attest to the usefulness of Digital Twins in designing, constructing, and operating buildings, transportation, infrastructure, and utilities. For instance, creating a virtual model of buildings using Digital Twins can enable facility managers to access real-time information on vital systems and employ predictive maintenance for all equipment. 

It is noted that Digital Twins can overlap Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) systems to collect data and simulate different virtual scenarios to see how operational efficiencies can be improved. For example, a leading real estate company built a digital replica of its building project, along with all the systems within it. It was able to combine 30 different sources of data into one model of the entire building, helping it unlock cost savings and optimize energy usage. 

Digital Twins can be leveraged across multiple sectors. For example, in the manufacturing sector, Digital Twins can help in avoiding unexpected downtime, optimizing manufacturing processes, and improving asset management performance. It can also enable integration between unconnected systems and improve supply chain visibility as well as product traceability. A leading Indian business group that manufactures glass packaging was able to reduce manual data collection by 40 percent and defects by 5% using Digital Twins.  

In the financial sector too, there has been a shift towards using financial services through mobile or desktop devices. This has heightened the need for improving customer fulfilment and satisfaction through online channels. With the help of digital twins, consumer data can be leveraged to create simulations to manufacture virtual assistants to help solve consumer problems. 

Digital Twins need computing power that allows for real-time processing of data from several sources, including sensors. To make decisions in real-time, connectivity must also be fast and guaranteed. Other than availability of skilled manpower to manage the technology, deploying Digital Twins also needs security systems that cannot be compromised given the significant amount of data and intellectual property that resides. 

The development and deployment of Digital Twins is presently at a level where it can be called an emerging technology. But there’s good reason to believe it will become mainstream given its ability to help organizations, industries, and governments meet their goals as well as further innovation and sustainability growth targets.

Himani Agrawal

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Himani Agrawal is the Country Head for Azure at Microsoft India.