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the planning phase ,” emphasizes Dr . Henry Bloch , Head of Product Management at Aucotec . “ These twins not only serve as accurate representations of the plants but can also be enriched with live and asset data throughout their lifecycle . This is the foundation for continuous optimization of plants and simplifies maintenance .” This opens up numerous applications , such as predictive maintenance , which ensures early error detection and reduces lifecycle costs , or efficient turnaround management , minimizing downtime through optimized maintenance cycles .
“ In the field of hydrogen production , Engineering Base is revolutionizing the development of state-of-the-art electrolyzers as the platform seamlessly integrates modular structures into the digital twin , resulting in highly efficient engineering and flexibility ,” continues Bloch . “ This saves plant operators and electrolyzer manufacturers significant time and a considerable amount of work , resulting in huge cost savings . A standardized data model that maps devices , functions , locations , and their relationships across all project phases creates the ideal basis for agile teamwork , including automation and safety systems ,” says Bloch .
Data centricity as a transformation milestone
An example of how Engineering Base can support customers is illustrated by the company Topsoe . The Danish market leader for catalysts and electrolysis technologies implemented its largest transformation project together with Aucotec and Engineering Base . Senior managers described the introduction of Engineering Base as a decisive milestone in their digital transformation , allowing them to work ‘ truly ’ data-driven for the first time . By switching to a centralized data model , planning times were drastically reduced – tasks that previously took six months now require only a few weeks . This enables significantly more projects to be executed in a shorter time frame .
Another reason Topsoe opted for Engineering Base was the minimal need for custom solutions . Instead , new developments were collaboratively created and are now standard in the Engineering Base licenses , benefiting all customers : for example , EBML for faster data exchange or the automatic data sheets from Asset 360 – both important efficiency drivers for EPCs , plant manufacturers , and operators . “ Topsoe ’ s transformation process was demanding . Never before has so much expertise and knowledge been brought together . Everyone had to adapt , but now there is a unified ‘ data home ’ for all engineering tasks . This increases flexibility and saves enormous costs ,” explains Niclas Meier , Global Account Manager at Aucotec .
Modularization enhances efficiency for hydrogen specialist
Sunfire , a leading hydrogen technology company based in Dresden , Germany , also decided on Engineering Base to unify its fragmented software landscape and establish efficient processes . The Aucotec platform supports Sunfire in developing highly standardized modules that can be easily scaled . Plants are efficiently realized by multiplying these modules . Engineering Base ’ s object-oriented data model forms the foundation for much more efficient and agile plant development as well as clear modular engineering .
“ With Engineering Base , Sunfire reduces the risk of errors through consistent data and automated change management . This improves the quality of documentation ,” says Meier . “ The ability of
42 Hydrogen Tech World | Issue 20 | February 2025