Why oil and gas companies should use digital twin predictive engineering analytics

Oil and gas companies face intense pressure from volatile markets, changing regulations and demanding emissions reduction targets. To thrive in today’s unprecedented conditions, businesses can leverage digital twins for data-driven decisions and predictive engineering analytics when lacking crucial data.

What are digital twins?

Digital twins are virtual representations of a physical product or process, and oil and gas companies use them to predict a physical counterpart’s — such as a refinery’s — performance characteristics. Digital twins can be used throughout the entire lifecycle to:

• Reduce development times by simulating and optimizing products or systems before investing in physical prototypes and assets
• Monitor assets and systems in real-time
• Plan maintenance with greater accuracy
• Reduce business costs while improving operational efficiency

Discover more about digital twins by watching this clip from our recent webinar: Why leverage a digital twin in the oil and gas industry.

Use predictive engineering analytics when your digital twin lacks data

Digital twins provide a real-time digital asset representation using product data collected from smart sensors. In certain situations, data cannot be gathered or turned into knowledge, such as in pipe bed erosion or subsea equipment flows. As highlighted in the video below, you can use predictive engineering when lacking data. Predictive engineering analytics applies simulation tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite element analysis (FEA) to predict missing data to feed into your digital twin.

Simulation plays a critical role in your digital twin

With the rapid growth in computational power in recent years, oil and gas companies can simulate in greater detail while being able to simulate larger systems. But what can be predicted with today’s advanced engineering simulation tools? The answer is a huge range of physical phenomena. 

Empower your oil and gas company with digital twin benefits

Digital twins are an unparalleled tool throughout the lifecycle of oil and gas assets and systems. In the near future, they’ll become an essential part of most engineering processes and customers will expect digital assets with equipment purchases. Discover more about digital twin benefits for oil and gas companies by watching our webinar.