Leveraging Digital Twin for Real-Time Monitoring and Optimization in Civil Engineering

Shreeshail Heggond*
Department of Civil Engineering, Basaveshwar Engineering College Bagalkote, Karnataka, India.
Periodicity:July - September'2025

Abstract

In recent years, research on digital twins in the construction sector has grown significantly, particularly since 2018. However, most studies focus on isolated lifecycle phases and give limited attention to developing practices that address all stages of the building lifecycle. Current applications of digital twins in construction are largely concentrated on design and engineering, where Building Information Modeling (BIM) serves as the primary input. This dominance stems from BIM's role as an existing digital representation of built assets, which can be extended into a digital twin. One of the major barriers to wider implementation lies in data integration and interoperability—specifically, the challenge of consolidating information from diverse sources, formats, and lifecycle stages. Future research should prioritize the standardization of data formats, protocols, and application programming interfaces (APIs) to facilitate seamless exchange across digital twin systems. Additionally, the development of advanced data governance frameworks is essential to ensure accuracy, completeness, and security of information. Greater exploration into semantic data modeling and ontologies will also support the integration of heterogeneous data sources. Beyond technical issues, it is equally important to investigate the costs, benefits, and potential drawbacks of adopting digital twins across the entire building lifecycle. Expanding the scope of applications beyond design and engineering to include construction, operation and maintenance, as well as demolition and recovery phases, will be crucial. This paper therefore outlines the current state of digital twin research in construction, identifies critical challenges, and highlights key directions for future development.

Keywords

Civil Engineering, Digital Twining, BIM, CPS, Infrastructure Optimization.

How to Cite this Article?

Heggond, S. (2025). Leveraging Digital Twin for Real-Time Monitoring and Optimization in Civil Engineering. i-manager’s Journal on Civil Engineering, 15(3), 1-7.

References

[12]. Yang, Z., Tang, C., Zhang, T., Zhang, Z., & Doan, D. T. (2024). Digital twins in construction: Architecture, applications, trends and challenges. Buildings, 14(9), 2616.
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