A digital twin for manufacturing is a virtual replica of your line or plant, built from CAD and kept current with live data, that you use to monitor, plan, train and test changes before touching the real equipment. The iUNI digital twin is the Wartens group's version of it: 1:1 scale models from CAD, connected to sensors, SCADA, PLC and ERP data, delivered with a web 3D viewer, dashboards and a VR/AR module, typically in 12 to 24 weeks.
This brief is for plant heads, project engineers and owners of Indian manufacturing businesses who want to know what they would actually be buying, without the marketing.
Who an iUNI digital twin is for
- New and expanding plants in food, pharma, auto components and packaging, where the twin is first used for virtual commissioning and later for monitoring.
- Plants with a recurring bottleneck that nobody can explain from SCADA trends alone.
- Warehouses and logistics sites that want to test layout changes and peak-season flows before moving racks.
- Multi-site manufacturers that want the same view of every line for head office and plant teams.
- Facilities focused on energy, where building management and energy optimisation are the main use.
Features
| Feature | What it means on the shop floor |
|---|---|
| 1:1 scale replica from CAD | Machines, conveyors and buildings where they really are |
| Real-time IoT data integration | Live values from sensors shown on the model |
| Predictive maintenance and anomaly detection | Early warning when a signal drifts from normal |
| What-if scenario simulation | Test a new shift pattern, buffer or layout first |
| Web-based 3D viewer | Opens in a browser, no software installation |
| SCADA, PLC and ERP integration | Control data and business data in one place |
How an iUNI twin project runs, step by step
- Discovery. A call and a review of your drawings, CAD, SCADA tag list and the questions you want the twin to answer.
- Written scope and quote. Which areas are modelled, which data sources are connected and what the dashboards show.
- Model build. The plant is modelled at 1:1 from CAD; machines are given the behaviour the scope needs.
- Integration. The IoT layer connects sensors and the SCADA, PLC and ERP sources agreed in scope.
- Analytics and VR/AR. Dashboards, reports and the immersive module for walk-throughs and training.
- Handover and support. Training for your team, documentation and a plan for keeping the model current.
iUNI quotes 12 to 24 weeks as the typical timeline. The spread depends mostly on two things: the size of the area modelled and how quickly your team and equipment suppliers can supply CAD and data access. A clean tag list and a named plant contact save weeks. A good first project is narrow: one line, three questions and a handful of live signals, delivered and used before the model is extended to the rest of the plant. A twin that the plant team opens every morning is worth more than a complete model of every building that nobody looks at after the launch meeting.
What you receive
The deliverables listed by iUNI are a digital twin platform with a 3D viewer, an IoT integration layer, an analytics and reporting dashboard, and a VR/AR visualisation module. Ask for the model files, data mappings and documentation to be handed over as part of the contract, so the twin stays usable if your team or suppliers change.
What is a Digital Twin?
IBM Technology
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Watch on YouTubeWhat a digital twin will not do
- It is not your control system. SCADA and PLCs keep running the plant; the twin reads from them.
- It cannot predict failures without data. Anomaly detection needs sensors on the right assets and enough history to know what normal looks like.
- It does not stay accurate on its own. Someone has to update the model when the line changes.
- It does not fix a poor process. It shows where the losses are; the improvement work is still yours.
How it fits a real project
On a new PLI line, the twin usually starts life as a virtual commissioning model: the real PLC program is tested against it before equipment lands, which we cover in digital twins for greenfield plants. After start-up, live data turns it into an operational twin. On an existing plant, the order reverses: connect the data first, then model the area with the problem. Either way, the integration layer should follow the levels of ISA-95, and OPC UA is the usual way to read data from modern controllers and SCADA without custom drivers. For the framework itself, ISO 23247-1 describes general principles for manufacturing digital twins.
Price and next step
iUNI publishes price ranges on its pricing page; at the time of writing it listed digital twin development from £20,000 per project. Your written quote will depend on scope. Because Wartens are automation engineers first, the twin runs the same control logic your plant will run. See our digital twin and virtual commissioning services and how virtual commissioning works in India.
Next step: send a layout drawing and the one problem you most want solved through the contact page. We will reply with a suggested scope and a realistic timeline.
