The Real Value of Digital Twins

What if you could test an automation system before it ever reached the factory floor? That’s exactly what digital twins are making possible. From reducing commissioning time to improving collaboration and operator training, the technology is helping manufacturers solve problems earlier and work more efficiently. During ROKLive in Adelaide this June, Trent Reimers shared where he’s seeing the biggest benefits and why digital twins are becoming an essential part of modern automation.
 

1. Can you introduce yourself and tell us what you do?
 

TR: I’m Trent Reimers. I’m a Technology Consultant with Rockwell Automation based here in Adelaide, South Australia. I look after a lot of our PLCs, controllers and automation technologies, helping customers with technical questions, concepts and queries.
 

2. What is a digital twin, and why has it become so important in automation?

TR: A digital twin is a virtual representation of an existing, or future, physical asset. The advantage is that it allows us to develop the environment and, most importantly, test things before we deploy anything physically. Think about building a plant, a factory or a machine. I can build it in a virtual environment, connect it to a virtual PLC, test my code and make sure it’s going to run correctly before I build anything physically.

If I need to change something, it’s much easier to do that in a virtual environment than it is to rebuild a plant, a machine or something similar.
 

3. What’s the biggest misconception about digital twins?
 

TR: I think the biggest misconception is that it’s very expensive. Yes, there’s some cost involved, I won’t lie about that. But if you compare it to the cost of getting something wrong on a machine and having to refabricate it or rebuild a section of plant that’s cost millions of dollars to manufacture or deploy, it’s far easier to make those changes in a virtual environment first, make sure it’s right, and then go ahead and deploy the physical system.
 

4.  Where do you typically see the most issues uncovered during digital twin testing?

TR: I’d probably pick two main areas.

The first is the physical side of a machine. It could be pipework, conveyors or something similar. In a virtual environment it’s very easy to make a change, see the impact and rerun different scenarios before anything is built. We had a customer where we proved, in a virtual environment, that we could increase the throughput of their conveyors by 53%. We were able to test that first before making any physical changes.

The second area is PLC code and HMI applications. It’s very easy to write some code and assume it’s right, then test it in a virtual environment and realise something needs to change. It’s much easier to fix that before commissioning. The other benefit is that you can have something that’s 95% tested before anyone even goes to site. That means less time on site, lower costs and less time away from family, which is always a good thing.
 

5. What’s one feature in Emulate3D that people should know about?

TR: I’m going to pick two again. The first is importing AutoCAD models, so you don’t have to start from scratch. It really accelerates development. The second is connecting to a controller, whether it’s a virtual controller or a real controller, so I can test my code and make changes as I go.

The other great thing is that Emulate3D is very controller agnostic. It’s not just limited to Rockwell controllers; it can connect to pretty much any controller.
 

6. Where do you see digital twin technology heading over the next few years?

TR: I see it as a real time-saver. People can build their virtual factory, test that everything’s okay, then deploy it much more cost effectively.

But that’s not the end of the process. Once you’ve developed that digital twin, you can ask, “Okay, what if I change this?” You can leave your production facility running and test whether a change is going to do what you expect. Can I run another product? Can I run another scenario?
I think that’s where the bigger benefit is. Virtual commissioning is one part of it, but operator training is another area where digital twins can add a lot of value.
 

7. What organisational or process changes are needed to fully adopt digital twin workflows?

TR: I think it really starts early in the process. It’s about going fully digital, integrating the different components of design, and streamlining that part of the process so you can accelerate development while taking full advantage of the digital environment.
 

8. How should System Integrators and OEMs be preparing now to stay competitive?
 

TR: One of my favourites here is virtual commissioning. You can write your code, build your HMI application and test it all virtually. You can have something that’s 95 to 98% virtually commissioned before you even leave the office. That gives you the opportunity to have multiple people working on it at the same time, complete projects faster and ultimately deliver more projects across the year.
 

9. What’s one shift happening in automation that people aren’t paying enough attention to?

TR: A personal favourite for me is digital design. We’re moving towards cloud-based tools, and we’re starting to embrace them rather than relying solely on some of the older design tools. Those tools are still very good at what they do, but I think cloud-based engineering brings a whole new level of efficiency.

Being able to have multiple people working on the same application from anywhere in the world, and having that level of collaboration, is one of the biggest benefits. I think that’s something we’ll continue to see more of.