The Victorian Government – in an effort to create an easier and more efficient planning, managing and building process – has launched a digital replica of the state.
The recently launched Digital Twin Victoria platform was built in partnership with Australia’s National Science Agency, CSIRO, as part of the Victorian Government’s $37.4 million program.
Victorian Minister for Planning, Lizzie Blandthorn, has called the platform a big step for Victoria’s digital future and the state’s long-term growth.
“Digital Twin Victoria will help us build stronger, smarter, and more resilient towns and cities, better protect our environment and be better equipped to plan for emergencies,” Ms Blandthron said.
Digital Twin connects masses of data and information to create 2D, 3D and live data versions of the real world – including detail on buildings, roads, infrastructure, farmland and natural environments.
This brings together more than 4,000 local, state and national datasets, making them accessible to everyday Victorians for small and large projects.
The platform can be used for state-significant planning and infrastructure projects to visualise data and investigate the feasibility of proposals – identifying issues before shovels hit the ground, saving time and money.
Digital Twin Victoria will allow the industry to leave behind manual, labour-intensive, paper-based ways of working and build the digital skills needed to support a more sustainable industry.
As well as design efficiencies, it will allow the planning and building industries to virtually manage a development precinct or project area and model things like overshadowing and underground utilities prior to development.
The platform will also help fast-track planning for cities and regions with councils able to bring data together including things like 3D models, vegetation, population statistics and local sensor data.
Director of CSIRO’s Data61, Professor Jon Whittle, said the company is proud to partner with the Victorian Government to unlock the state’s potential.
“The Digital Twin Victoria platform will bring data to life, from visualising real-time renewable power generation and flood spread monitoring, to understanding Australian fur seal migration and mapping vegetation density,” Prof Whittle said.
“The ability to easily see, compare and share this information is essential to building resilience and successfully adapting to change.”
