Working with BIM (Building Information Modeling) forever changed how AEC Firms function. Â BIM shifted day to day workflows from being drawing-centric to model centric while providing a way to manage an enormous amount of project relevant information.
On the surface, digital twins do much of the same. With them, the flow of data is more manageable, documentation is more streamlined, and, as a digital replica, they can help stakeholders review project data in its entirety.
But there’s a big difference.
Digital twins use BIM data and display it comprehensively, but they’re far more than simple 3D replicas. They accurately represent assets, spaces, and systems used within projects—providing more insight into how assets work, tracking their history, and combining project data with up-to-date performance information.
BIM is a process that focuses on the best practices of building design—centering on how data is layered into the model. Whereas digital twins are a dynamic deliverable that unifies design, construction, and operational data.
In essence, digital twins are better with BIM. The correct data can simplify and streamline building collaboration during design and construction phases to craft digital twins with the post-occupancy needs of Owners and Operators in mind.
For Owners and Operators, Tandem can harness real time operational information and visualize it within the BIM data in a spatial context. And its technology is constantly maturing. Ultimately, with artificial intelligence and machine learning, digital twins will be able to acquire the behavioral awareness necessary to simulate, predict and inform decisions based on real-world conditions.
For AEC Firms, Tandem can revolutionize their workflows with digital twins while working with the tools they already know. The digital data threads found in Autodesk Tandem can make transparency an in-built part of collaboration between stakeholders. And, by leveraging Tandem’s open data platform, AEC teams can build a digital twin with their existing BIM workflows.
Autodesk Tandem brings BIM data and digital twins together, delivering deeper insights for Owners and Facility Operators who are keen to optimize how their facilities are run and maintained. All within one tool that can be integrated into AEC workflows.
Soon, digital twins will leverage the depth of BIM data that has been hand-picked by Owners and Operators to predict—and even automate—the ways facilities are monitored, supported, and maintained.
