Digital twinning of Toitoi takes IPWEA award

Taking state-of-the-art technology used almost exclusively to design and construct new builds until now and adapting it for the management of existing buildings is already proving its worth – and has won yet another national award.

Last night [Oct 4] Hastings District Council’s ‘Digital Twins for Optimal Asset Management’ project won the IPWEA 2022 Excellence in Asset Management Award, after taking out the Best Public Works Project in the under $2million category.

A second Hastings District Council project, the Tauroa Road Boardwalk and Shared Path, was highly commended in the Excellence in Road Safety Category.

It is the second award the Digital Twin project has received this year, after it won a Taituarā Local Government Excellence Award (Transforming Service Delivery) in June, said Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst.

“I’m incredibly proud of our innovative and forward-thinking team. This is not only a game-changer for us in the way we monitor and maintain assets owned by our communities but potentially paves the way for other councils.”

The technology enables the remote monitoring of every detail of an existing building on its ‘digital twin’. As well as monitoring the ‘comfortableness’ and performance of the building, clicking on an element brings up all available information: from its age, the material it is made of and condition, to expected life, the manufacturer and paint colour.

Sensors throughout the building measure Co2 levels, humidity, energy consumption and water use, feeding the information back to the digital twin.

It can also detail the building’s carbon footprint should it have to be replaced; including manufacture to delivery to installation.

The first Hastings building to be twinned is the Opera House at Toitoi – Hawke’s Bay Arts and Events Centre, with all of Council’s 140 buildings and major park assets to be added over time.

Hastings council is the first council in New Zealand to apply this technology to existing buildings. It is providing a vastly more efficient, effective, economic management model that streamlines processes, enhances maintenance management and execution, and extends the life of buildings through proactive management.

The award submission noted that the technology is accessible even for small councils or organisations, with the initial investment sitting at $110,000 and the addition of each building expected to cost an average $3000, depending on complexity.

5 October 2022

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