Interview
Digital Twin : virtual model with potential
Bayer and LESER have been collaborating on digital twins . The two experts interviewed are Marc Westphal ,
Subject Matter Expert for Technical Asset Management and Materials Management at
Bayer AG , Division
Crop Science , Dormagen site , and Hendrik Wormuth , Manager Product
Sales Solutions , LESER GmbH & Co . KG .
Text and images by Bayer-LESER
For many years now , there has been a close cooperation partnership between Bayer and LESER . The scope of this cooperation extends across a number of projects , including a long-standing initiative dedicated to digitalisation and the use of digital twins in the German process industry . Considering that these topics are still in the development stage , without any industry standards available as yet , the cooperation partnership is doing pioneering work . In the Digital Data Chain Consortium ( DDCC ), the two companies are developing standards and technologies jointly with other partners from the process industry . What results have they achieved so far ? What are the next goals ? What are the challenges that must be overcome ? This interview provides some answers to these questions from both , the equipment operator ’ s and the manufacturer ’ s perspectives .
What is your definition of a digital twin ?
Marc Westphal , Bayer : A digital twin is a comprehensive digital representation of an identifiable asset . It is an entity that not only represents the current state of the asset but can also store historical data , for example data covering the entire lifecycle of the asset . It may also reflect links to digital twins of other assets . Even though the term ‘ digital twin ’ was first defined some 20 years ago and became a hot business topic five years ago , we are only now able to begin reaping the potential of this technology . Open platforms and industry standards such as the Asset Administration Shell , or AAS , support these efforts . They are actually prerequisites for implementing digital twins . Unfortunately , the definition of an asset administration shell is technically complex , scaring off some companies and getting in the way of industrial digitalisation . There are two approaches that can help simplify this . The theoretical approach defines the digital twin on the basis of specific maturity levels during the product lifecycle . It differentiates between how an asset was designed (“ as engineered ”), how it was manufactured (“ as built ”), and finally , how it is being maintained (“ as maintained ”). At each maturity level , new or additional information becomes available that is digitally linked to the asset . If we apply all this to safety valves made by LESER , it would mean that for every safety valve delivered to us as the customer , a digital twin would be available at the lowest maturity level , the “ as built ” level , which comprises manufacturing bill of materials information ( MBOM ) as well as information about spare and wear parts . When LESER provides us with maintenance information , the maturity level will advance to “ as maintained ”. What is actually of greater interest to the industry as a more pragmatic approach would be a version of the digital twin based on its possible implementation , i . e . as an asset twin , product twin or line twin . This approach places greater emphasis on the application aspect and the interlinking ( or collaboration ) of the digital twin with various ‘ partners .’ An asset twin , also referred to as a master data or information twin , reflects the initial and most basic composition of the asset . It is a purely digital representation of the entity as manufactured and supplied . This implementation ,
28 Valve World February 2024 www . valve-world . net