On 17 November, the Apollo Protocol team launched the Apollo Forum for manufacturing and the built environment by hosting their first event at the University of Sheffield AMRC’s innovative Factory 2050, showcasing the benefits of cross-sector digital twins. Su Butcher reports on the Value Hack and explains what value there is in joining future hack sessions
Digital twins unlock value and enable better quality decision making. Individually, they provide better insights, but when connected cross-sector digital twins could increase their value exponentially.
The built environment and manufacturing sectors should talk to each other about digital twins. The Apollo Protocol white paper explains why. We have developed different standards and have different (related) definitions for digital twins, yet the major challenges of our age (climate change and the drive to net zero carbon, the skills shortage, the performance gap) require us to think cross-sector. To succeed, we need to break out of our silos and learn from each other.
While writing the white paper, we looked at how our sectors use digital twins and why. It became apparent how big the language barriers were, how different (yet equally valid) the approaches were, and how much we could learn by talking about the differences.
What is the Apollo Forum?
The Apollo Forum is the home of a cross-sector conversation about cross-sector digital twins and information management; in this case between manufacturing and the built environment, supported by the expertise of the tech sector. The forum isn’t a smoke-filled room where hand-picked individuals get to choose how the world is. It’s an open, collaborative environment with plenty of opportunity for all interested parties to take part.
To kick off such an open community, we’ve received funding from Innovate UK to run a series of events between now and March. There are four in-person hacks, each followed by an online hack for people who can’t attend in person. Each hack is a hybrid between a hackathon (but without the code) and a roundtable (but without the grandstanding). Designed to be practical and creative, we’re encouraging everyone to contribute their experience and ideas through a wide range of online and offline tools.
What happened at the first hack?
The Value Hack (which took place on 17 November at the AMRC in Sheffield and online on 24 November) explored the concept of cross-sector value chains of digital twins. We started by interrogating what we mean by value, how value can be released in data and information management between our sectors and then we began mapping out a network of value. We grounded these conversations in the participants’ own experience of real-life examples of data needs and opportunities.
The network, or Value Knowledge Graph, acts as a working document of potential opportunities for cross-sector value chains of digital twins. We’ll be growing and using it throughout the work of the Forum, as a tool to identify all sorts of existing and potential use cases and projects for digital twins between our sectors.
Should I take part?
If you’re working in a digital twin or information management problem space that crosses the sectors between manufacturing and the built environment, you would benefit from joining our hacks. You might be an asset manager for property, a technical manager in manufacturing or a sustainability professional facing a data challenge.
We welcome participation from everyone interested in looking at practical real-world examples of data and information management sharing. Please join us and benefit from talking through the challenges and opportunities with your peers.
How do I get involved?
We’re running three more Hacks in person and each hack also has an online version. All are now open for registration:
The Performance Hack – MTC/AMTC Coventry, 12 December 2022.
The Performance Hack Online – 1pm-4pm 15 December.
The Circularity Hack – IET Birmingham Austin Court, 19 January 2023.
The Circularity Hack Online – 1pm-4pm 26 January 2023.
The Human Capital Hack – IET London Savoy Place, 9 February 2023.
The Human Capital Hack Online – 1pm-4pm 16 February 2023.
The Apollo Protocol project is supported by BEIS and funded by Innovate UK as part of the move to develop the UK’s Cyber Physical Infrastructure. It is a collaborative project between the IET, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult, the Construction Innovation Hub, the Digital Twin Hub, techUK and the Alan Turing Institute.
