ENGINEERING TECH
Simulation | July 12, 2021
A digital twin is a virtual replica of a building, such as a data center, that will offer comprehensive simulations of how it will perform and operate throughout its life, whether planned or already built.Though still in their early stages, digital twins provide a means for companies to build data centers more effectively and sustainably from the outset.
Firms can optimize how their facility is built, understand how it will function, and identify possible problems using these full digital doppelgängers before a single server is deployed.Companies can use simulation software to predict, visualize, and quantify the effect of every change in their data center before implementing it.
While such simulation software offers potential advantages for continuing operations of existing data centers, it also enables businesses to understand how their facilities will operate in the real world. Companies can improve data center designs by optimizing hardware layout, power and cooling, and airflow. It is even possible to adjust the positioning of solar panels on buildings.Before the foundations of a facility are built, firms can identify possible problems such as hotspots or fire hazards.
A major advantage of a digital twin is that it incorporates physics such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD); liquids, gases, and temperatures in 3D spaces are brought into the image, providing the company with a far more detailed perspective of how a data center will behave.
When coupled with virtual or augmented reality technologies, a digital twin can show buildings in their full glory before construction and assist in the development process.
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IOT
Autodesk, Inc. | March 30, 2022
Autodesk, Inc. today announced the release of Bridge. This new collaboration tool enables construction teams to share only relevant data with project stakeholders, regardless of whether they are in the same team or working on the same project in Autodesk Construction Cloud. Bridge empowers teams to maintain control over their own project data sets by allowing them to share selected sheets, folders, and files with collaborators without sharing all project data. Bridge's enhanced collaboration capabilities eliminate manual data transfer and administration, ensuring that everyone is working from the same set of facts, minimizing rework and immediately impacting teams' bottom lines.
"Communicating relevant information with each stakeholder in a timely manner can be a manual and time-consuming process that often leads to data loss and miscommunication, putting us at risk of rework, increased costs and extended timelines, On the other hand, sharing entire projects with team members can compromise privacy and requires tedious permission setting. Autodesk Construction Cloud's Bridge gives us the flexibility to automatically share relevant information with stakeholders, while still maintaining control over our project data. Bridge radically simplifies our collaboration across teams and projects so we can deliver work on time and within budget."
-Luis Angel Garcia, BIM specialist, SSOE Group.
"Every construction project is different and our customers need flexibility to collaborate according to the needs of each project, Additionally, different stakeholders need to maintain agency of the data pertinent to their work on a project. Bridge introduces a transformational new collaboration capability that gives teams the autonomy and flexibility to manage their own data. Project stakeholders can maintain their own project instances and save on the time, cost and confusion that often results from having to manage external collaborator permissions and manual 'send and receive' workflows."
-Sameer Merchant, vice president of product development, Autodesk Construction Solutions.
The Bridge Connects Internal and External Teams' Project Data
Bridge provides project members with the freedom to share critical information across teams and projects using Autodesk Construction Cloud, enabling smoother collaboration and the completion of projects on time and within budget.
General contractors now have a straightforward solution for coordinating work across their trades and providing visibility to owners, all while documenting and saving owned project information in a centralized spot. So, whether they're working on a large project and want to separate each component into its sub-project or separate projects for trades to comply with owner-imposed privacy mandates, general contractors can now use Bridge to share data across multiple teams and projects from a single, easy-to-manage instance.
Specialty trades can communicate critical information with general contractors, such as project install status, while keeping their project instances. If they are working on many projects, trade teams can also consolidate their data into a single, easy-to-manage internal place for a consolidated perspective that improves analytics and decision-making.
When owners link data via Bridge, they have clear visibility into project performance and construction documentation. In manual "send and receive" procedures, information is not lost, and the data necessary to make timely project decisions becomes more accessible.
Designers can send the most recent design documents to owners and contractors and monitor the degree to which the design purpose is adhered to during construction. Bridge enables designers to safeguard intellectual property and communicate only the relevant sheets and information while saving time on manual "send and receive" operations.
Bridge is now available at no additional cost to users that use the web applications provided by Autodesk Construction Cloud.
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ENGINEERING TECH
Raven | March 28, 2022
Raven Industries announced that it is expanding its facilities to support the organization's rapid growth as it develops cutting-edge customer solutions and accelerates the advancement of its industry-leading agriculture technology.
Raven recently opened a new engineering center in Scottsdale, Ariz., as part of this expansion. The Phoenix metropolitan area is a national hub for high-performance businesses and individuals. Raven benefits from strong ties to Arizona State University, one of the country's largest and most innovative universities, as the company continues to recruit top engineering talent. Raven team members will also have access to a nearby test farm for same-day testing, focusing on product development, data science, and artificial intelligence. This model enables more rapid and efficient agriculture technology iteration while putting the user experience first as demonstrated by the success of South Dakota's Raven Innovation Campus.
Along with the new Scottsdale location, Raven is planning a significant expansion of its Innovation Campus, located just minutes from its headquarters in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The upgraded facilities will provide additional space and resources for real-time engineering testing, research, and development in artificial intelligence, autonomy, machine learning, and core technologies.
“Our integration with Raven is rapidly accelerating technology delivery to customers, It allows our Engineering teams to efficiently go from ‘code to cab’ to develop and deploy new technologies. These sites, combined with our existing activities, will reinforce our commitment to have engineers work closely with our customers.”
Parag Garg, Chief Digital Officer, CNH Industrial
Arizona and South Dakota investments will strengthen Raven's engineering talent base, advance Raven technology integration and advancements on Case IH and New Holland platforms, and support demand for innovative aftermarket solutions.
“These expansions are a direct reflection of our commitment to autonomous development,” noted John Preheim, Raven Vice President of Engineering. “We are dedicated to delivering autonomous solutions that help growers optimize their operations, and these centers of excellence will provide the space and resources to support this vision.”
Raven continues to expand its award-winning portfolio of solutions, most recently with the introduction of OMNiPOWERTM 3200, its next-generation autonomous power platform. The OMNiPOWERTM 3200 enables farmers to remotely operate the unit via tablet or in autonomous mode without needing a driver. OMNiDRIVETM has also been recognized as a top innovative product by agricultural and biological engineering leaders as a 2022 ASABE AE50 Award Winner.
As Raven leads the market toward autonomy through established, award-winning driverless platforms, the company views autonomy as a critical component of its mission: assisting farmers in assisting the world. Visit https://ravenprecision.com/autonomy to learn more about Raven's autonomous advancements.
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