{"id":778,"date":"2020-06-24T10:47:42","date_gmt":"2020-06-24T14:47:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/partners\/?p=778"},"modified":"2026-03-26T12:48:54","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T16:48:54","slug":"how-do-i-get-the-design-right-the-first-time-using-a-digital-twin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/partners\/how-do-i-get-the-design-right-the-first-time-using-a-digital-twin\/","title":{"rendered":"Get the design right the first time using a digital twin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

First attempts at any project or product development rarely result in the final deliverable version. Using the NX suite, Solid Edge and Mechatronics Concept Designer can get you there faster without ever having to build \u2013 and rebuild \u2013 the hardware<\/a>. Just ask Solution Partner ACAM Systemautomation GmbH<\/a> (ACAM), who did this for a custom industrial equipment manufacturer, Willingshofer. Using Siemens solutions, ACAM helped create a digital twin to verify and optimize machine designs<\/a> over several iterations for maximum productivity and uptime without first building any hardware.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NX trifecta for machine designers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For computer-aided design (CAD), Willingshofer used Siemens Solid Edge<\/a> for its ease of use and comprehensive 3D capabilities. They leveraged computer-aided manufacturing software NX CAM<\/a> because it can pull 2D and 3D data from Solid Edge and other CAD systems that have varying file formats to create programs that are easily modified during the manufacturing process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, within the NX suite, Willingshofer chose Mechatronics Concept Designer (MCD)<\/a> to work the best for modeling and simulation for its ballistic design concept. They realized that unlike a model-based tool, MCD allows one not only to see what the design looks like but validate that it works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Multi-disciplinary digital twin design functionality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ACAM and Willingshofer put the combo of technology to the test for a parquet flooring manufacturer client who needed a fully automated floorboard production line that could accommodate not only different sizes and weights of wood but multiple three-dimensional material movements. It was also important to have a tool that could verify and optimize designs for predictable results using a digital twin of the production line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We actually dismissed designs that were not sufficiently tolerant of irregularities in upstream processes.”<\/p>Johannes Huber, design engineer at Willingshofer<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n