Virtual commissioning sounds great in theory. Take a virtual prototype of your machine and hook it up to a virtual PLC, and test your product virtually before you test it physically. Early testing lets you identify problems sooner, so you can make any necessary design changes before the expensive physical integration phase. As a result, you save time, money, and headaches. What’s
not to like? And you know that other industries, like automotive and aerospace, have been using virtual modeling and simulation as part of their development process for years, very successfully.
But your current development process does work, and changing any process is a hassle and comes with its own costs. How can you tell if adopting virtual commissioning would be worth it? And even if it is, is virtual commissioning truly a feasible option for your company today?