Defining Value Cases
Value cases are the result of costs and benefits provided by digital twins as added value services to your organisation. As digital twin technology can potentially be used to service the broadest possible audience of stakeholders, it’s important to balance the costs and benefits as SMARTly as possible.
An important part of prioritizing a catalogue of use cases into a digital twin roadmap is establishing which cases can add the most value to an organisation, measured against:
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ROI – costs vs benefits, not only in terms of time or money for a specific use case, but also with a holistic view on where added value can be provided (as illustrated in this chapter).
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Associated risk – calculating the consequences of action or inaction.
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Policy or image of an organisation – with associated aspects of corporate social responsibility, sustainability, circularity, etc.
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Regulatory compliance – verify compliance with permits and safety, quality, and performance standards throughout a product's lifecycle. Examples are: simulate and monitor emissions, track energy usage, and optimise processes to meet regulatory standards for carbon emissions, air quality, or water management.
The definition of a value case therefore goes beyond the definition of a business case, as it’s the sum of the multiple values (such as financial, social, and sustainable) experienced by stakeholders.
To properly define value cases for digital twins, we use the infinity loop (introduced in Our Vision, as it provides starting points for assessing a value case in the design, engineering, and development phase or the operational phase. One important clustering aspect of use cases into value case categories is the maturity level of an organisation and the associated cost to:
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Build 3D models of and retrofit data-gathering capabilities into an existing operational situation
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Design, engineer, and develop a new solution from scratch to replace an old one
Benefits in the design, engineering, and development phase stem from regulatory compliance, more relevant insights, design optimisations, risk reduction, and improved development planning (4D / 5D). Benefits in the operational phase include adjusting to new organisational policies or desired image, agility in servicing the market, improving product design and development, optimising production processes, reducing maintenance costs and downtime, and improving supply chain management and logistics.
These examples show that digital twins are among the few concepts grounded in technology that provide the basis for end-to-end and all-pervasive implementation of an organisation’s principles. This means that each value case aspect needs to be expressed in terms of an organisation’s strategic goals: ROI, appetite for risk, brand image, and attracting and retaining staff. People may be hesitant to work in a potentially hazardous environment without the added safety that digital twins can provide.
A good example of deciding on an overall strategic value case is the purpose chart that Royal HaskoningDHV uses as part of its mission: enhancing society together. The chart is used to reflect on the impact a proposal, project, product, or service has on Royal HaskoningDHV’s five strategic key themes (covering 13 of the 17 UN Sustainable Development goals).
