Glossary

What is a digital twin?

When companies, laboratories, design, or production departments create a digital representation of a tangible or intangible object or process, this is referred to as a digital twin. Principle: A digital copy of a physical system is created with the goal of optimizing the physical system using insights gained from the digital twin through data analysis.

This process utilizes algorithms and data from business intelligence and business analytics. The result is a realistic digital representation of assets, processes, or systems. Companies that successfully use digital twins can be found, for example, in the process industry. In chemical production, physical and chemical changes can occur unexpectedly, and any errors in the system can affect the end products. Microorganisms, for example, consistently behave differently, so scientists must conduct up to several hundred thousand tests before they arrive at a valid final result that can be implemented in production. The digital twin drastically shortens such processes.