Cities consume over two-thirds of the world's energy

Carbon emissions are becoming an urgent problem for cities all around the world. Research has shown that they account for roughly 70% of global carbon emissions whilst consuming more than two-thirds of the world’s energy.

The target of the Paris Agreement is to reach net-zero carbon emissions by the year 2050 but according to current rates, many of the world’s cities will be partially – or entirely – underwater by that time. 

Urban area construction is one of the biggest contributors to global warming with the sector accounting for nearly 40% of energy-related CO2 emissions. Technological solutions will be vital in managing and monitoring how we tackle climate change to ensure a more sustainable future. 

Key to our net-zero ambitions are digital twins – a virtual replica of a physical asset such as a building. Their purpose is to optimise all aspects including design, construction, operation and management. Digital twins are growing in popularity amongst building owners as they are proven to help track, manage and minimise emissions. A recent report from Ernst and Young found that they have the ability to reduce CO2 emissions within our cities by between 50 and 100%. 

The construction sector can be highly inefficient with many projects being completed late or delayed such as Berlin’s Brandenburg airport. Not only was the project delivered nine years late, but it also consisted of more than 66,000 errors. If digital twin technology had been integrated from the outset, not only would time and money have been saved but more importantly, carbon emissions would have been minimised. 

It is not only new builds that can benefit from digital twins – existing buildings can reap the rewards too. The majority of existing buildings were built between 1960 and 1999 with 21% built before 1960, this means that they will be poorly insulated and energy inefficient which contributes to the 40% of overall emissions in cities.

Digital twin technology ensures that more accurate data is produced when calculating emission output and where exactly they are coming from within a building, such as heating, lighting and cooling. Twinview’s use of dashboards offers building owners a complete breakdown of where their building is expending energy as well as predicting a projected cost for the next 12 months.

Twinview is a browser-based digital twin platform for the property sector connecting building systems’ data to a 3D model viewed on a single dashboard. Twinview becomes your first step to achieving Net Zero by providing continuous live data and an optimised building performance whilst reducing costs and improving the user experience. Book a demo today.