Driving A Transformative Shift Towards Sustainable Innovation in Biomanufacturing with Virtual Twin Technology

The Life Sciences sector has undergone considerable transformations in recent years. As a sector historically characterized by meticulous procedures and lengthy product development cycles, the necessity for more effective, quality, and precision treatments has never been more apparent.  

As we transition towards smaller batch production for precision medicines, manufacturers are faced with the daunting task of optimizing their entire manufacturing lines. Enter the Virtual Twin – a digital replica of real-world pharmaceutical processes, products, and plants. This sustainable innovation approach offers a plethora of benefits to the world of biomanufacturing, we will explore some of the key ones in this article. 

A Transformative Shift Towards Sustainable Innovation in Biomanufacturing powered by Virtual Twin Technology 

Resource Planning with Virtual Twin – A Revolution in Efficiency 

The implementation of the Virtual Twin experience has given unprecedented efficiency in biomanufacturing. It facilitates the optimization of planning activities across all plants by harmonizing them with the supply chain. Through complex “What-if” scenario analyses, we can optimize planning based on world-class KPI’s and substantially increase flexibility to adapt to ever-changing demand fluctuations. 

Within resource planning, multiple sectors can benefit immensely from the Virtual Twin: 

• Sales & Operations Planning: This sector now has the power to predict future drug demand and optimize the supply chain based on this forecasted demand. This predictive capability streamlines the entire supply chain process, ensuring seamless operations and efficient resource utilization. 
• Master Production Scheduling: In the past, the pharmaceutical industry has grappled with drug shortage tension. The Virtual Twin Experience streamlines and simplifies complex tactical planning decisions, thus reducing this tension significantly. 
• Production Scheduling: The Virtual Twin provides integrated management of product and process-related constraints for detailed production scheduling. This allows for a smoother production process, minimizing the chance of hiccups or bottlenecks along the way. 

• Quality Control: Quality control is a vital aspect of biomanufacturing. The Virtual Twin enables efficient and comprehensive management of resources and product-related constraints for detailed scheduling across labs, leading to consistent quality output. 

Build & Simulate with Virtual Twins: From Blueprint to Reality 

The power of the Virtual Twin extends far beyond planning, providing unparalleled agility in defining, developing, optimizing, and validating recipes and their associated industrial setups. Manufacturers can now simulate and analyze multiple production and process engineering scenarios in a realistic 3D environment, boosting the production workflow and resource utilization. 

• Recipe Management: Using Virtual Twin, biomanufacturers can test and release new recipes faster. This accelerates process not only reduces the time to marker but also allows for more sustainable recipe development. 
• Process Engineering: In the complex arena of process engineering, the Virtual Twin enables manufacturers to define, simulate, and validate the behavior of intricate multi-physics systems.  

• Line Model & Simulation: The Virtual Twin allows manufacturers to synchronize all engineering processes and simulate and optimize the behavior of production scenarios, leading to the creation of a performance-driven, ergonomic plant layout. 
• Line Qualification & Commissioning: Before implementing a system in the physical plant, manufacturers can now test and validate it using the Virtual Twin. This preemptive measure can save both time and money, avoiding costly trial-and-error scenarios. 

Operate & Control: Using Virtual Twins to Unify Processes 

In the world of operations, the Virtual Twin experience merges manufacturing operation with warehouse processes, providing full continuity between recipe authoring and execution on the shop floor and in QC laboratories.  

• Lean Management: The Virtual Twin Experience promotes the digitalization of Lean Practices on the shop floor, enhancing communication and knowledge sharing. 

• Quality Control Lab: The Virtual Twin Experience provides a compliant solution for scheduling and documenting workflows and outcomes for quality control testing. 
• Material Manufacturing: With the Virtual Twin Experience, manufacturers can support modular manufacturing, leading to faster changeovers, increased flexibility, and improved overall equipment effectiveness. 

Optimize & Predict: Insights for Future Success with Virtual Twins 

Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the Virtual Twin is its predictive capabilities. By integrating real-time data gathering, simulation, and data prediction, the Virtual Twin Experience offers profound insights for process control and optimization. 

• Batch Process Analytics: The Virtual Twin helps manufacturers minimize non-value-adding manual tasks and promote process understanding, reducing process variability and risk of errors. 

• Environment Impact Simulation: The Virtual Twin allows manufacturers to ensure safe working environments by simulating airflow paths and potential direction of contamination. 
• Sustainability: By predicting real-world impact before building plants and supply networks, Virtual Twin assists manufacturers in creating more sustainable practices, making it an invaluable tool for those committed to eco-friendly operations. 

Conclusion 

The Virtual Twin experience represents a transformative shift towards sustainable innovation in biomanufacturing. Its implementation revolutionizes efficiency by optimizing resource planning, streamlining production scheduling, enhancing quality control, and improving overall operational process. Moreover, the Virtual Twin’s ability to build and simulate scenarios, unify processes, and provide predictive insights empowers manufacturers to achieve faster recipe development, validate complex systems, optimize production workflows, and make informed decisions for future success. With its many benefits, the Virtual Twin emerges as a powerful tool that not only drives efficiency and productivity but also promotes sustainability and eco-friendly practices in the life sciences sector. 

TriMech Enterprise Solutions Virtual Twin Technology on the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform 

By leveraging Virtual Twin technology on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, you can instantly gather valuable insight into the real-world performance of products and processes to improve operational resiliency, reduce costs and gain a competitive advantage with cloud-based manufacturing solutions. Contact us to learn more.