Minimizing Cost with Centralized Data: The Value of a Digital Asset Twin

Minimizing Cost with Centralized Data: The Value of a Digital Asset Twin Part 3 of the series Achieving Digital Transformation Through Digital Twin Maturity Levels At Invicara, we define a Digital Twin as a rich information model about a physical building, or a virtual building. With our flexible platform, we create custom Digital Twin solutions for your business that integrate data, documents, and building models and plans across multiple systems. In this blog series, we cover the five different maturity levels involved in developing a Digital Twin, detailing how each level brings a layer of insight into your building data, providing the tools needed to operate at peak performance throughout your building’s lifecycle. https://invicara.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/DTM-List-03.svghttps://invicara.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/DTM-03.png Achieving Digital Transformation through a Digital Twin allows owners to access better data faster, enabling a wide range of benefits including higher rates of efficiency and ultimately saving money throughout operations. Previously, we discussed the first two levels of Digital Twin maturity, detailing the importance of 1) a Digital Twin strategy with business outcomes clearly defined and structured information requirements and 2) a Project Twin that defines processes and provides a system to gather data for operations and sustainability. Upon completion of the project, the data and documents in the Project Twin can be delivered to the owner. Now, we’ll take a look at the third step of the maturity process, where we take the building graphics, data, and documents from the Project Twin to create a unified and living Asset Twin. An Asset Twin contains the required information for all the important elements within a building, where they are located, how they are supposed to perform, how to maintain them – essentially everything that you need to know for maintenance, operations, asset management, and more. Typically, an Asset Twin’s data model includes:

• Building graphics like 3D models or 2D plan views
• Location of equipment and other building elements
• Element geometry and dimensions
• “As designed” performance data for key equipment
• Specification data like manufacturer and model number
• “As Installed” performance data from commissioning
• Critical documents like warranties, O&M manuals, etc.

Today, most of Invicara’s clients are at this third step of digital maturity with multiple solutions in use. Our clients are building custom Asset Twin solutions for:

1. Maintenance and operations: The Asset Twin can serve as a “digital building manual,” for your internal O&M teams and external FM vendors. With all the critical information on building spaces and equipment at their fingertips, both planned and reactive maintenance is optimized.
2. Procurement: Accurate building information helps our clients optimize their FM service contracts. For example, detailed information on floor finishes and areas takes the guesswork out of reviewing cleaning estimates.
3. Transactions: We see clients using the Asset Twin as a “digital data room” for transactions. For example, one client had a tenant send them a 50-page due diligence request for the building. Since the client didn’t have an Asset Twin, the team found themselves scrambling to dig up the information, which took them months! Now, with everything in their Asset Twin, the client has expressed that they can respond much more quickly. And, of course, anything you can do to help speed up a transaction is a huge win.
4. Tenant Improvement: Having accurate documentation of existing conditions helps to jump-start a new tenant’s fit-out and get them in place (and generating income) quicker.

To sum it up, an Asset Twin acts as a single integrated information source, accessible on a web browser, so that no one has to search through different silos to find the information they need. It can be used by the internal facilities team, external vendors, leasing agents, and asset managers. As a result, an Asset Twin ultimately reduces cost because there is a single source of truth for building information that can be leveraged by multiple stakeholders. Once you have an Asset Twin – you can then take the next step toward reaching digital maturity. Join us next week as we explore the importance of the fourth maturity stage, developing a Performance Twin. Invicara

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Whatever your BIM data needs, Invicara can customize a plan to capture and maintain your building data. Contact us