Tool prepares workforce for digital twins

Digital twins – virtual replicas of physical systems – allow organisations to test scenarios faster and more affordably than real-world trials.

Digital twins have been used for some time in the maritime industry, with Lloyd’s Register developing a tool based on the technology back in 2022. ABS and Siemens announced last year that they were working together to promote digitalisation such as the use of twins.

To help employers understand what digital twinning means in practice, researchers are creating a Human Capital Readiness Index for Digital Twinning. The work is part of TransiT, a national digital twinning research hub jointly led by Heriot-Watt and the University of Glasgow, which focuses on rapidly decarbonising the UK’s transport system.

“Because digital twins change how decisions are made, adopting them is not just a technical challenge,” explained Dr Muhammad Shujaat Mubarik, a researcher with TransiT and Associate Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management at Heriot-Watt University’s Edinburgh Business School.

“It also demands new skills, mindsets and ways of working across organisations.”

“Our Human Capital Readiness Index will help us understand what specific human resources are needed in an organisation for digital twinning and what kinds of behavioural capabilities are required.”

The prototype index is expected to take the form of a simple online tool. Organisations will enter key information about their workforce and operating context, receiving an indicative readiness score alongside practical recommendations on skills development, recruitment and training.

Dr Mubarik highlighted both technical and behavioural considerations. “If a logistics service provider wants to adopt our transport digital twin, their employees might need expertise in areas like cybersecurity, analytics or artificial intelligence,” he said. “But digital twins can also become counterproductive if information is overwhelming, so we look at the capabilities needed to interpret that information and act on it.”