Digital Twin for Construction

Construction digital twins are distinct from operational digital twins — they represent the construction process itself, tracking the evolving state of the project from groundbreaking through substantial completion. The twin integrates the design model, the construction schedule, field progress data, and quality records into a unified real-time view of the project.

Progress monitoring is the primary use case. AI compares the actual construction state (captured through site photos, drone imagery, and field reports) against the planned state (from the 4D schedule model) to quantify progress objectively. Rather than relying on a superintendent's estimate that steel erection is "about 60% complete," the digital twin shows exactly which members are erected, which are set but not connected, and which are still at the fabricator.

The look-ahead planning capability leverages the digital twin's current-state data. AI projects the current progress rates forward through the remaining schedule to predict where the project will be in two weeks, four weeks, and at key milestones. When the projection shows a trade falling behind, the project team has time to reallocate resources, adjust sequences, or negotiate schedule recovery before the delay compounds.