To be the first in digitizing the construction sector, Estonia is working to create a digital twin for the entire country, Includes geographical, urban, traffic and environmental data, To provide an accurate picture of any building or site, And at any time.
The science of construction and urban planning provides answers to various questions about how people live, interact and move. And the methods of delivering their necessities, surrounding them with a healthy environment and meeting their living, economic, social and cultural needs.
In Estonia, The construction sector accounts for 7% of GDP, With more than 11,000 active companies employing one-tenth of the country’s workforce. But the sector is facing increasing challenges, From poor productivity to lack of efficiencies that places a heavy burden on contractors to complete projects in a timely manner and within budget. Traditional processes cause significant waste of resources, particularly at the stages of obtaining permits for the construction and use of buildings, which may exceed 20,000 annually, Documents are uploaded in unorganized two-dimensional formats, This makes updating them a difficult process.
In line with its pioneering experience, The Estonian government is collaborating with the private sector to digitize the construction sector and make it more efficient, accurate and responsive to the requirements of the century.
With the advent of a new generation of technologies, The Estonian Urban Registry has introduced a change that represents the backbone of the new way of working through the development of Building Information Modeling. It is a smart process based on a three-dimensional model of planning, designing, building and managing buildings and infrastructures.
Drawing on this process, The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications (MEA) has collaborated with a private sector company to establish a three-dimensional electronic platform for construction. Known as the digital twin, It is a two-part digital simulation. The first is three-dimensional models of buildings established according to their information in the urban register, The second involves more detailed models based on laser measurements taken by drones via the Land Board.
While the digital twin represents virtual reality, It is upgradable to augmented reality, by connecting the digital simulation of a site to sensors that are already in it, This makes digital information integrate with the real environment.
Among the recent updates to the platform was the three-dimensional mapping application established by the Land Council, Which allows the user to review any building in Estonia through images from upper and side perspectives covering all angles and providing the totality of accurate geographical data of the building and the surrounding trees, rocks and natural elements, In addition to the pipes and cables that extend beneath it, All documents and permits related to it that ensure its compatibility with laws and regulations, and even geological data related to mineral resources. For example, Building residents or maintenance officials can view the form to know the number of solar panels used, their capabilities and their vulnerability to weather conditions such as rain and snow. These assessments can be carried out at the level of each building, neighborhood or town.
Because real innovations are born in the labour market, The role of the government is to provide the appropriate environment for its development, therefore, It opened the door to sharing data and digital platforms with companies, designers, local governments, government entities and even amateurs who used them for simulation and animation.
The authorities of the capital, Tallinn, She had her first experience with this technique more than 10 years ago, When it created three-dimensional models of the buildings of the Old City in order to attract tourists to the area and organize their activities in it.
Going forward, Digital models will be further developed to allow exploration of building lighting and interior design of their rooms, Users will be able to enter their digital forms and apply for permits.
The government has also developed several future plans to develop its digital twin, Such as the use of scanning and mobile laser imaging techniques to collect annual road data, including traffic signs, road advertisements and traffic signs, or increase the efficiency of asset management by providing them with subterranean equipment networks across the city, Implementation of the last plan will begin this year, The workshops have completed the installation of sensors that will monitor traffic and energy consumption in government buildings.
The Estonian government has also collaborated with its Finnish counterpart on a project to collect environmental data, develop digital tools for residents and NGOs to contribute their views and suggestions for urban planning and establish an extended reality facility to host collective innovation activities.
For business success, The data must meet certain specifications, the most important of which are accuracy and comprehensiveness, otherwise, They can hinder achievement and cause losses. According to estimates, Insufficient or unreliable data has cost the global construction sector more than $1.8 trillion in losses in 2020 alone. This is what complemented the challenge of designing complex processes, Planning is often a local authority procedure.
On the other hand, The sector suffers from a shortage of partners and developers capable of developing new digital solutions and meeting growing needs.
If you pass these challenges, Establishing a culture of digitization in the construction sector, Digital twins will establish a more efficient process by facilitating their various elements of spatial planning, monitoring, remote control and maintenance, It will also lead to a realistic mechanism that takes into account the needs of the population, opens the door for intersectoral cooperation and enhances the economic role of the construction sector.
References:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbuil.2022.834671/full
https://www.sorainen.com/deals/the-estonian-construction-industry-is-moving-towards-digitalisation/
https://www.sorainen.com/deals/the-estonian-construction-industry-is-moving-towards-digitalisation/
https://e-estonia.com/can-you-build-houses-out-of-pixels-and-bytes/
