How to Use a Digital Twin to Increase your ROI

Should I build a Digital Twin of the manufacturing process?

Digital Twins can help you leverage your manufacturing data to improve process, find new revenue streams, and increase operating profits. Depending on where your company sits within its OT/IT alignment and connectivity, will determine on how to best implement a Digital Twin (or multiple Digital Twins) as part of your infrastructure.  

Once you determine your level of digital maturity, specifically how much data you have historized, what you’re currently collecting, and any holes in your data knowledge, you can decide which production lines will benefit most from a Digital Twin.

Why is historical information so important?

To build an optimal Digital Twin, you need to have historical data to understand your past performances so you can then understand impactful parameters. This is where AI and advanced analytics will drive your findings with their ability to solve complex problems. You’ll be able to answer:

• Why were some runs better than others when all things seemed equal?
• What would happen if we did XYZ (i.e., ran a boiler at a specific temperature, used more bleach for a certain period of time, tried to produce boxes instead of paper)?
• Where can I save on the cost of my raw materials?
• How can I create a process for predictive maintenance?