Digital Twin providers are an essential component of the digital twin market. These providers supply and build the underlying technologies that make up digital twins. Specifically software-focused, companies such as Siemens, NVIDIA, and Bentley Systems are all building digital twin software stacks that enterprise users and stakeholders use.
The European continent is especially abundant with providers, with a myriad of software development companies working on building these twins. This article will outline Europe’s top ten digital twin providers and how they work with partners to develop and use the technology.
1. Siemens
Siemens is a leading digital twin company known for using advanced digital technologies, such as digital twins, to create purpose-driven technology that benefits its customers. Siemens works with leading stakeholders across sectors globally to make their workflows more efficient and productive.
One way the company accomplishes this is through digital twins. An example of this is the company’s work with automotive giant Mercedez Benz, who has utilized Siemens’s extensive portfolio of digital twin development to build an energy twin that looks to achieve 100% renewability in the Mercedes-Benz production line within the next couple of decades.
Similarly, Siemens most recently announced a collaboration with Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn, or Hon Hai Technology Group, to increase the sustainability of its operations. These are two examples of how Siemens develops digital twins for its clients, with the list ever expanding.
Siemens is also collaborating with NVIDIA to integrate its Siemens Xcelerator platform with NVIDIA Omniverse. Utilizing Siemens physics-based digital models and AI from NVIDIA, the merge is transforming the development of digital twins.
2.Bosch
Bosch is another major provider of digital twin technology within Europe. Known for producing appliances such as washing machines, the German-based company is building digital twin solutions across its workflows. Bosch is currently developing what is known as a ‘Digital Fuel twin.’ The Digital Fuel Twin is a cloud-based data platform that enables those maintaining and operating fleets of vehicles to track fuel properties across the entire supply chain.
The company has developed the ‘digital handshake,’ a data exchange between the platform, vehicle, and suppliers. Through this solution, stakeholders can instantaneously track what fuel is being used, carbon emissions, and fuel properties, aiding companies in reaching their sustainability targets. Bosch’s development of the Digital Fuel Twin shows the company’s commitment to developing digital twins.
3. AVEVA
Based in the UK, AVEVA is a world-leading software provider for the industrial space. AVEVA has been at the forefront of rapid technological change within the manufacturing sector, working with partners to develop digital twins for clients. Examples include AVEVA’s work with SGC Chemicals, one of Asia’s largest pharmaceutical companies, to construct a digital twin. Employing AVEVA’s predictive analysis software and Performance Management tool kit alongside a suite of other software provided by the company, SGC created an operational digital twin that mitigates supply chain issues, improving asset reliability by 98%.
Furthermore, AVEVA has worked with global fuel provider bP to build the ACE Digital Twin, a fully cloud-based digital twin constructed in five months. The twin aimed to digitally replicate the bP Azeri Central East factory before the plant was built. ACE enabled stakeholders to undertake onshore maintenance, improving safety and decision-making time, increasing collaboration, and saving costs.
4. Dassault Systemes
Like AVEVA, the French-based Dassault Systemes is a key software provider in the industrial landscape. As you might expect, it is also knee-deep in digital twin provision. Dassault has developed its digital twin platform, the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, to give its customers the edge when undertaking their workflows. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is one of these clients that is using the platform to create digital twins of its vehicles. JLR is looking to onboard around 18,000 staff onto the platform to develop these virtual twins. JLR aims to bolster its supply chain’s sustainability and efficiency through 3DEXPERIENCE to save time and costs.
5. SAP
SAP is another core technology provider of digital twin software. It operates the technology within its portfolio, specifically within asset management. SAP also integrates other software, such as SAP Predictive Engineering Insights and SAP Predictive Maintenance and Service, with its digital twins to provide customers and clients with leading digital twin software.
The leading enterprise software developer also collaborated with Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to lay out the concept behind a finance digital twin. The study found that digital twins can overcome the challenges facing finance, such as the ever-growing complexity of managing finance in a rapidly developing business world.
6. Hexagon AB
Hexagon AB is an industrial technology company that, like the other providers on this list, is well-versed in building digital twin solutions. Last year, Hexagon AB partnered with NVIDIA to integrate its HxDR reality capture platform and Nexus manufacturing platform with NVIDIA Omniverse. The collaboration positioned both providers as leaders in the field of digital twins. Hexagon AB has also developed its own digital twin platform, ‘ Smart Digital Realities.’
The Smart Digital Realities platform allows users to create digital twins that blend the physical with digital using data. The platform is just one software service the company uses to develop immersive digital twins for clients.
7. Atos
As mentioned earlier in this article, Siemens has collaborated with many partners in the pursuit of building fully-fledged digital twins for customers. One of those collaborators is Atos, a leading French technology consultancy. Atos collaborated with Siemens to create a pharmaceutical digital twin. The twin looked to improve the sustainability and efficiency of pharmaceutical manufacturing, and the result was a digital twin for vaccine development. The digital twin enabled faster vaccine development times due to improved efficiency and sustainability. Atos is working with global leaders such as Siemens to develop digital twins for industries worldwide.
8. Schneider Electric
The digital automation company Schneider Electric is another major player in the digital twin space. Like many prominent providers, Schneider Electric has a dedicated proprietary digital twin platform. Coined ‘EcoStruxure Machine Expert Twin, ‘ the software provides Schneider’s customers with the tools they need to build twins that capture the entire life cycle of machines.
According to Schneider Electric, the platform can cut commissioning time by 60%, go to market by 50%, and increase cost savings by 20%. The platform helps manufacturers build better and more efficient machines virtually before they hit production, making the tool invaluable for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).
9. Nokia
The second-to-last provider on this list is telecommunications giant Nokia. Once known for its sturdy mobile phones, Nokia has developed digital twins such as the ‘Network Digital twin.’ The Network Digital twin is a virtual replica of communication networks, enabling stakeholders to monitor their network operations instantly while mitigating disruptions in production workflows.
The twin gives Nokia’s customers the power to optimize network performance, ensuring that industrial processes are not hindered. Nokia is one of the key leaders in the space-building twins for customers, working with partners to use its telecommunication expertise to assist development.
10. ABB
ABB is the final provider on this list and a critical partner of French software provider Dassault Systemes in developing digital twins. In 2019, the two companies partnered to build world-class twins that utilized Dassault Systeme’s customer base and ABB’s industry knowledge.
Since then, the company has built numerous digital twins for clients. For example, ABB has built twins ranging from robot models using its RobotStudio platform to virtual factories. The case studies are endless, and so are the use cases for the technology ABB is deploying.
This article has outlined the top digital twin providers currently operating in Europe. For more information on the companies mentioned in this article and the impact of digital twins on a regional and global scale, check out our intelligence platform. Our platform documents digital twin providers across Europe and beyond, as showcased in the image below. Click here to learn more.
