Digital Twin of Concrete Construction Processes for an Office
Building
During the building’s construction in Barcelona, the team digitized
construction processes using BIM, sensors, data processing, simulations and performance indicators
to provide valuable insights for project management.


Six Digital Twin Applications
To digital twinning the building construction, a total of six twin
applications were developed, each with different data capture methods. Dedicated information
pipelines were defined to establish a seamless data journey and an active connection between the
virtual and real site. Specifically, the applications included: i) Slabs laser-scanning for
checking deflection and As-built vs As-Design, ii) Tracking of the crane load spatial position,
iii) Measuring of longitudinal strains during slabs post-tensioning, iv) Concrete temperature
monitoring for maturity index , v) Formwork accelerations during vibration of columns, vi)
Construction progress monitoring through IoT and a mobile app.
Resulting Digital Twin
All related information layers — including IFC models, IoT data, data
processing, and performance indicators — were seamlessly integrated into a web-based Digital Twin
platform powered by a knowledge graph system. This enables Construction Managers to make informed
decisions, address issues, verify quality, and enhance productivity.
The video demonstrates
how Managers can compare planned versus actual task execution and analyze optimal concrete
vibration times for columns. These times are estimated through recorded accelerations of the
formwork during the vibration process.
Read more about the project:
Chacón, R., Posada, H., Ramonell, C., Jungmann, M., Hartmann, T., Khan, R., & Tomar, R. (2024). Digital twinning of building construction processes: Case study of a reinforced concrete cast-in structure. Journal of Building Engineering, 84, 108522
Posada, H., Chacón, R., & Ramonell, C. (2024). Job roles for digital twinning building construction processes. Introducing the digital twin manager position. International Journal of Construction Management, 1–17.
