Thought Leadership

Published article: Validating machines with virtual commissioning

By Blake Snodgrass

In a recently published article in Plant Engineering Magazine, Bill Davis, Solution Director of Industrial Machinery and Heavy Equipment Industry for Siemens Digital Industries Software, discusses the need for sophisticated machine design for customized products. The answer is for manufacturers to supplement their machines early, in development, with a validating process that includes virtual commissioning, thus meeting demands rapidly, efficiently and cost-effectively.

Bill Davis
Bill Davis, Director of Industrial Machinery and Heavy Equipment Solutions at Siemens Digital Industries Software

Virtual machine simulation and commissioning validate the virtual world’s software code before deploying it on the factory floor.


Simulating the code on a machine’s virtual twin is crucial to producing a considerable surplus in time and resources. Therefore, virtual commissioning validates the software in a managed environment, where machine builders simulate and link the software to the modules specific to the machine.





Some essentials to the virtual commissioning process include:

  • Upfront automation linking to machine behavior. 
  • Behavior model drives code generation.
  • Closed-loop feedback visualization.
  • User experience implementation.

These processes result in notable benefits, including compressing time, saving costs and minimizing risks.

Manufacturers must consider current trends in the industrial machinery industry and update their processes to new consumer preferences in building machines for a broader range of products. Software implementation can address these changing trends for greater flexibility.

Using the Xcelerator portfolio, a suite of services from Siemens Digital Industries Software Solutions helps manufacturers create a comprehensive digital twin while integrating simulation within the machine design to be flexible, capable and adaptable.

Learn more from Bill Davis about validating machines with virtual commissioning in the Plant Engineering Magazine article.

Bill Davis is the Solution Director of Industrial Machinery and Heavy Equipment Industry for Siemens Digital Industries Software. His experience and insights have been acquired from a career spanning 30 years in engineering and operations management with machinery and heavy equipment companies.  Bill holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Marquette University, with a concentration in Operations Management and Strategic Marketing, as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Milwaukee School of Engineering.

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This article first appeared on the Siemens Digital Industries Software blog at https://blogs.sw.siemens.com/thought-leadership/2020/09/04/published-article-validating-machines-with-virtual-commissioning/