Twin-Win-Situation

Leveraging the digital twin to lead change

Companies are facing intense pressures to create truly innovative new products that not only must be smarter, brought to market more quickly and manufactured more efficiently, but also must be more sustainable. Companies who have not embraced the comprehensive digital twin as a core part of their sustainability initiatives will not be able to fully leverage the rich data required to meet today's global challenges.

Digital twins as a service. The simercator vision

The simercator founders Philipp Stelzig and Benjamin Rodenberg are developing a technology that permits companies to securely share simulation digital twins across company boundaries – without having to distribute them.

Digital Twin – The Single Source of Truth

A Digital Twin works on the concept of attaining that moment in an enterprise organisation when a decision-maker or user is equipped with a single source of truth derived from many data streams.

The meaning and purpose of standardising digital twins

With regard to the megatrend of the "digital twin" in industry, and especially for Industry 4.0, the following applies: The advancing digitalisation in all companies as well as the data integration via cloud and edge infrastructures reaching deep into the shop floor require new standards for the successful introduction and beneficial implementation of digital twins.

Individual solutions also need standards

For HARTING, the implementation of the digital twin by way of the asset administration shell is the logical way to bring corresponding components into interaction with higher-level applications and thereby supplement a system with new functionalities.

SMEC – HARTING’s Smart Electrical Connector

With the Smart Electrical Connector (SmEC), HARTING is providing an innovative connector concept featuring an active asset administration shell – making the connector directly addressable. This means that the SmEC is clearly mapped as an "instance" in the asset administrative shell - with a fundamentally expanded functions and communication range.

The backbone of the digital twin

A product lifecycle management (PLM) system is the basic precondition for linking digital product data, implementing digitised processes and controlling product-related information flows throughout the entire lifecycle of products. Ensuring data quality and efficient processes from design and development through to production, as well as professional product care, maintenance and spare parts assurance are important steps towards the successful implementation of digitalisation. Consequently, a PLM system is also a necessary precondition for the digital twin.

Higher-level functions will be crucial for the success of connectors

Norbert Gemmeke, Managing Director Harting Electric, on the influence of digital twins on the development of industrial interfaces.

Simulation: Reusable digital asset for value creation

It is important to adapt the design to customer demands and wishes by being able to access the right mix of simulation tools.

Two Perspectives

Regarding the next level of value creation at HARTING, we will now focus on production and explore the perspective the digital twin offers from the manufacturing viewpoint.

Spotlight on digital integration

When it comes to the sales activities of HARTING, the various perspectives mentioned at the beginning of this issue are particularly valid: in this subdomain of ​value creation, we are users, producers and enablers of the digital twin.

Asset administration shells and digital twins: significant elements for tomorrow’s mechanical engineering

Dr Volker Franke is Managing Director at HARTING Applied Technologies, the business unit for tool and special machine construction. Dr Franke and his team are potential users of the asset administration shell and the digital twin at HARTING. The digital twin of various components is used to generate a higher digital twin of machines, systems and plants. He spoke to tec.news about practical experiences and future prospects.

Importance of the digital twin in the engineering of machinery and equipment

Interview with Timm Hauschke, Director Master Data Business at Eplan. Having started as a consultant at Eplan in 1999, Hauschke later moved to Product Management in the Automated Engineering division and has been active as Head of “Master Data” since the end of 2018.

A spirit of optimism

Meik Billmann has been active as Executive Director of the Industrial Digital Twin Association (IDTA) since April 2021. At the ZVEI, he conceptualised the IDTA together with Gunther Koschnick and the VDMA and launched the organization. Seven years prior to this, he promoted and advanced the topic of Industry 4.0 in the ZVEI Automation Association. In an interview with tec.news, he spoke about the challenges and tasks of the IDTA.

Real Time Individualisation

The configurator provides HARTING customers with a selection tool within a modular portfolio. It supports users in bringing together and coordinating the individual components so as to ensure that they are functionally and technically aligned and viable.

Industrial Ethernet Week - HARTING attracting IIoT pioneers

The IoT is the crucial technology for bringing assets onto the internet, thereby creating the foundation for the digital twin. At the same time, the digitalisation of processes and the digital connection of assets present major challenges for industrial users. What are the next necessary steps for your own company and which technologies should you rely on for the successful networking of your own machines? What strategies are other companies pursuing on the markets? In order to clarify and provide answers to these and other exciting questions, HARTING invited guests from February 21 to 23 to the second Industrial Ethernet Week. Every year, pioneers and thought leaders from industry and IT convene and deliver the right answers on the road to IIoT.