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Get Smart about the Energy Transition with Digital Twins

Updated: Sep 23, 2021

Ringtail has recently teamed up with Cityzenith to advance the use of digital twins for decarbonisation of our energy systems. Cityzenith have developed their versatile platform SmartWorldPro for creating and managing digital twins of the built environment. These twins can mirror physical assets for their entire lifecycle, measuring their carbon cost to the environment at all times. They are already at the scale of whole cities. A city with a digital twin is a smart city. Ringtail and Cityzenith are now collaborating on smart energy projects. We are partnering with the smart city and infrastructure divisions of integrated energy companies to achieve tangible progress towards their targets of Net Zero by 2050.


IBM defines a digital twin as “a virtual representation of an object or system that spans its lifecycle, is updated from real-time data, and uses simulation, machine learning and reasoning to help decision-making". This definition works well but it really should cover the requirement that a digital twin needs to be updated easily. Furthermore, the digital twin should be easily constructed from the outset. This is achieved in SmartWorldPro by a level of interoperability not offered by any other platform.


There is a perception that a digital twin is very complex and takes a long time to build, and once built the digital twin can only be operated by experts. While it is true that the platform required to build and operate a digital twin is complex, SmartWorldPro has been designed as a fresh platform with no legacy coding. It is a non-proprietary and open API platform for data aggregation and integration of the best-in-class 3rd party solutions currently available. In terms of visualisation and scalability the platform benefits from technologies used by Google Earth* and the gaming industry.


The definition should also be upgraded to reflect that the lifecycle of an object or system can be more or less sustainable. The environmental, social and corporate governance responsibilities of companies must now cover the sustainability of their business models. Compliance with these requirements means reporting carbon intensity of their operations annually. This is often a top-down approach; originates from “the top,” and is often directed based on decision making from “the top.” Top-down data are aggregated and analysed, entered, and calculated at the headquarters level. A bottom-up approach describes data collected and processed at the local level. This is effectively measurement-based and is the foundation of a digital twin. A digital twin essentially measures and visualises the health of a system at all levels and offers diagnostics with preventative and curative actions.


"Ringtail has been looking for the right digital twin technology partner for quite a while. I attended a digital twin conference recently and the stand out contribution for me was from Michael Jansen, CEO of Cityzenith. I am very pleased to sign an agreement with Cityzenith and together we are working on a number of opportunities." Toby Kayes, Managing Director, Ringtail.


“This partnership demonstrates our commitment to helping cities decarbonize. While buildings are of the biggest polluters globally, Energy Companies and Service Providers can certainly contribute through transitioning to clean, renewable energy and helping their customers monitor and optimise their usage. Ringtail is expertly positioned to help these organisations meet their objectives with the aid of our Digital Twin technology.” Michael Jansen, Cityzenith CEO


Ringtail and Cityzenith are seeking opportunities to demonstrate the value of digital twins. If you are interested in a proof of concept exercise for your organisation please get in touch.


Digital Twin of Marischal Square, Aberdeen, UK




* one of the Cityzenith founders previously co-developed Google Earth.


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