Digital twins, in their fundamental design, can inform the entire lifecycle of a project from concept to design, into construction and through operation. Infrastructure digital twins combine engineering data, reality data, and Internet of Things data for a holistic view of infrastructure aboveground and belowground. Bentley Systems, Incorporated, an international infrastructure engineering software company, has through its solutions enabled infrastructure organizations to create visualizations and project deliverables with speed and quality, to help make better-informed decisions, and create real time impact for projects.

Lori Hufford – Vice President, Engineering Collaboration, Bentley Systems, Incorporated gives us a status check on the Industrial Metaverse as well as her perspective about the multi-faceted benefits of digital twin applications.

Where are we in the development of industrial metaverse for the built environment? “We don’t think the Metaverse has arrived just yet,” says Lori Hufford. She elaborates, “We need to understand the characteristics that really define it. It is immersive, meaning it is 3D, which translates to it being a geospatial experience for the user. Next up is – it needs to be real time, meaning real time interaction with real time data being updated from the physical world. This is then complimented by engineering grade-precision with no loss of fidelity. By loss of fidelity, I mean that real projects require millimeter-grade precision when we’re talking about infrastructure, which for example Metaverse in entertainment doesn’t require. Hence, data changes have to be tracked in real time. It is very important that a registry of changes is maintained and it’s always on. It also has to be interoperable, which means the content is not trapped into one platform. And finally, it has to be collaborative, meaning that it empowers multi-user interaction. This is a lot of ask.”

Could you give an example of a digital twin being deployed in the construction of new projects? “A current example is the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s (MnDOT’s) TH 169 Elk Redefine Elk River initiative designed by WSB. They wanted to share complex 3D model information among the design, construction, and asset management teams, but faced challenges updating the design model with the construction data, and integrating the information with asset management systems. Leveraging OpenRoads and iTwin, WSB imported data from MnDOT and other asset management systems into the design models and integrated them with the construction process data. The proof of concept demonstrates the value of a digital twin, providing real-time insight on the performance of 12 MnDOT asset classes for easier lifecycle maintenance and saving millions on project scoping assignments by identifying asset needs. Can industrial metaverse allow for the creation of a more gender-equitable built environment? “One of the key benefits of the industrial metaverse is its ability to more easily bring the right talent to bear, to build and to result in better outcomes for infrastructure. Whether that talent is across the world or at home or on site, this technology can bring the right talent together, which benefits the overall quality and final outcome. This naturally is going to increase the diversity of the pool of resources contributing to the built environment. A great example of this is virtual bridge inspections that can be performed remotely by leveraging digital twins on a bridge that’s generated from drone photography. This increases safety as on-ground personnel do not have to be put into challenging situations not to mention the volume and frequency of inspections performed can go up. This ultimately allows for an increase in the diversity of the talent pool that is contributing and creating a better built environment.”

Could you tell me about some of the projects you’ve successfully led? “I have had the honour of leading some great teams at Bentley. In my current role as Vice President of Engineering collaboration, I have the responsibility for Bentley’s flagship engineering collaboration project, ProjectWise powered by iTwin. The focus is about building a vision for colleagues and bringing together colleagues to solve user problems.  Whether people report to me or whether I’m reaching out to our fantastic organization or working within our organization, whatever we need to do in order to solve user problems and make real impacts to our clients is really what it’s all about.”

“I am very passionate about building teams as well and mentoring colleagues along the way. Hence, some of the successes that I’ve had are not necessarily commercial. Whether it be the technology we developed coming to bear on real-world problems or building teams and mentoring colleagues and watching their career progression and watching them achieve their results, you know I find a great deal of satisfaction in all aspects of that.”

Who are your role models or women that you look up to? “Some of my role models and people that I have looked up to go all the way back to the mid-1800s with Ada Lovelace and her work on algorithms. She looked at machines not just as a vehicle for computation, but the fact that they could perform algorithms and really was kind of the start of the concept of computing for algorithmic purposes. She is inspirational and was ahead of her time. And then you look at the women who worked on the ENIAC computer. Betty Snyder, Kathleen McNulty, Jean Jennings Bartik, Ruth Licherman, Frances Bilas, and Marlyn Wescoff – they are unsung heroes. And Jacqueline Hinman, former chairman and CEO of CH2M Hill. She is truly a pioneer and a role model for women in the built space. There are many women who have done some amazing things and these names are some at just the top of my head that I want to remember.”

What drove you to pursue an education in STEM? “I always loved math and science. I always wanted to understand how to make something better. I have always wanted to have an impact on the world and in order to do that, you first have to understand how things work in order to be able to improve them. These considerations led me to specifically choosing engineering. There was a time when I considered an academic career in math or in physics or in chemistry, but I determined that it was really important to me to be able to solve real-world problems, and that’s what led me ultimately to choosing engineering during my foundational education years.”

What factors would you attribute your success to? “First up, I am passionate about what I do and knowing the impact of the work that I do. I believe in the concept of people and planet. It is something I care about and it reflects in my work. I love solving problems and if the problems that I’m working to solve can have a positive impact, leave a lasting legacy, that to me is really what it’s all about.

The second factor that has led me here is my technical foundation in electrical engineering and computer science. The problem-solving foundation through education and in my early career that I had is something that I often lean on. At the same time the diversity of the work that I’ve done also bears on it. I have had the opportunity to work in both public and private companies as well as startups. I’ve also had leadership positions in sizable IT organizations and all these experiences have given me multiple perspectives. It has given me the perspective as a product leader, it has provided a perspective as a user and I think the ability to meld those perspectives has helped immensely. I often call on that diversity of experience, which is why I’m also so passionate about diversity in the workplace, because I think that diversity in the workplace allows us to bring those viewpoints to bear on problems and ultimately come up with better solutions.”