Feasibility of delivering and demonstrating a human-in-the-loop digital twin in the construction and maintenance of GCRE (Athena)

The construction industry is one of the largest in the world but continues to face challenges to its productivity, profitability, performance, sustainability, safety and protection of resources. To streamline the construction/operation/maintenance of the GCRE facility, similar challenges must be addressed and overcome.

Digital Twin technology can solve these challenges, with uptake increasing in many complex and technologically advanced construction developments during construction, monitoring, maintenance and post-construction phases.

The human worker is a hugely important resource in construction, offering critical/irreplaceable skillsets to the construction environment-autonomy and problem-solving capabilities coupled with dexterity, sensory and decision-making ability. Human beings, therefore, need to be a major element within any future Digital Twin ecosystem that is designed to assure the effective construction and maintenance of a site. However, unlike most other resources, workforces cannot be automated or digitally replicated and the nature of construction activities presents environmental and communication challenges to optimum performance. Our consortium aims to integrate the worker inside the digital twin loop. By utilising real-time data and creating a calm, secure, protected environment for sound decision-making, we can streamline workforce efficiency, reduce costs, lower carbon footprint and enhance safety.

The Athena project will define this human digital twin and feed into the Apollo Protocol which is unifying digital twins across sectors