Four Japanese companies—Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line), Kyokuyo Shipyard Corporation, Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding, and Sumitomo Heavy Industries Marine&Engineering—have joined the collaborative cross-industry Digital Twin Project, an initiative that aims to accelerate the adoption of digital twins.
This expansion marks phase three of the project which seeks to create a secure data-sharing framework between shipyards and shipowners to advance the use of digital twins throughout a ship’s lifecycle, contributing to improved operational efficiency and safety.
As informed, the participants will engage in detailed discussions around the feasibility of increased data sharing between stakeholders, with the aim of tackling some of the hurdles around sharing sensitive design and operational data.
Through close collaboration between a diverse range of stakeholders, the project aims to develop a new platform to allow the 3D models created during the ship design stage to be shared in a secure, access-controlled digital environment. It can also allow operational data to be fed back to shipyards, providing invaluable insights. This could create a new revenue stream for shipyards and solution providers, as well as mechanisms to share benefits between stakeholders.
The Digital Twin Project already includes some of the largest shipowners and shipbuilders in the world. The four new companies will join the original members, including shipowners Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), NYK Group company MTI, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), Marubeni Corporation (Marubeni) and Marubeni Group company MMSL Japan, shipbuilders Imabari Shipbuilding, Japan Marine United Corporation, and Usuki Shipyard, software and data services provider NAPA, and classification society ClassNK.
