A Design of Digital Twins for Supporting Decision-Making in Production Logistics

Recent studies suggest that data-driven decision-making facilitated by Digital Twins (DTs) may be essential for optimizing resources and diversifying value creation in production logistics. However, there exists limited understanding about the design of DTs in production logistics. Addressing this issue, this study proposes a process for the design of DTs in production logistics. This study extends related works describing the dimensions of DTs in manufacturing, and adopts a process perspective based on production development literature. The results present a process for the design of DTs including activities in pre-study, conceptual, and detailed design phases corresponding to five DT dimensions. The proposed process is validated during the development of a DT in a production logistics lab at an academic environment. The findings of this study may be essential for avoiding misplaced resources and lost opportunities in the design of DTs in production logistics, and facilitating the planning and resource allocation.