By Prince Osuagwu, Hi-Tech Editor

The world has changed; more especially since after the COVID-19 Pandemic. In fact, the period before Covid, is now referred to as back in B.C —before Corona.

Today, a new world known as the new normal is born. It comes with it a new way of doing things—classrooms are reduced to 13 to 18 inches screens of learning tablets specifically used in carrying out e-learning. Long business trips have now given way to videoconferencing technology and communications are becoming more virtual.

What nobody ever envisaged is that work could become remote. However, many industrial professionals—such as telecommunications technicians, wind turbine maintenance crews, rig workers and marine engineers, wished they could also enjoy the world of remote work. Their jobs require they touch bases and observe things physically.

But is there anything technology and innovation cannot fix?

Now the space is awash with industrial metaverse, a technological innovation which makes remote work for engineers, a possibility.

Hi-Tech in its usual quest to ensure knowledge of technological innovations is democratized, went in search of who will break the metaverse thing down to grassroots knowledge, and landed with Simon Bennett, an innovator per excellence who is a household name in the global tech innovation space.

Currently, Bennett is Director, Innovation and Incubation at AVEVA, a global leader in industrial software. He brings clearer perspective to the issue and explains the immense benefit the technology brings not only to engineering both the entire tech ecosystem.

 What’s industrial metaverse in simple terms?

Quite simply, a virtual teleporte

 Why is virtual teleporte necessary?

I’ve lost count of the number of times an industrial executive has said—only partly in jest—how much they would appreciate working remotely, through a teleporter-kind of mechanism.

An early version of that teleporter is closer than ever, as virtual environments such as the industrial metaverse begin to take shape.

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Right now, I sit in my home office writing presentations, checking emails and jumping on web calls with colleagues. In the near future, I will be able to ‘teleport’ from my home office to the manufacturing floor of Schneider Electric’s Indonesia lighthouse, a process plant steam room in Florida, a chemical plant in Dusseldorf, the mining hub control room in Perth, even the top of a wind turbine in the North Sea. Thanks to the industrial metaverse, my colleagues will join me there and we will be able to solve problems in real time using live data, analytics and AI support.

 How possible can that be?

As the industrial metaverse begins to materialize, it will bring people together in engaging new ways. Three-dimensional personalized avatars will interact in immersive, virtual environments, carry on natural conversations, write to each other and even read body language. In an industrial metaverse, we will be able to join our colleagues to solve problems, debate and discuss operational or design issues—all while accessing huge volumes  of data from the digital twin, including artificial intelligence (AI) enhancements.

 Is Aveva keying on this?

At AVEVA we define the industrial metaverse as an always-on virtual environment that facilitates and enables live collaboration across teams. Such interactions are device agnostic. They take place across geographies, and with the record function, even across time zones.

Industrial workers will be able to tap into and take advantage ofthe full gamut of data sources. With role-based access to real-time operations, data streams and engineering data, they will be able to join together to find innovative solutions to today’s most complex problems—from ongoing disruption to tackling the impact of climate change.

Teamwork makes the dream work. The industrial metaverse brings teams together across geographies and speeds up their decision making.

We already have most of the technologies we need to bring the industrial metaverse to life. It won’t require fancy headsets; rather, it will bring colleagues into a single shared business application. And because the industrial metaverse is simply a progressive layer on top of companies’ existing digital investments, it’s a natural way to protect their future.

 How’s industrial metaverse different from the general one?

Unlike the widely hyped general metaverse, and away from the hype of web 3.0, cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens,the concepts of the industrial metaverse are much simpler. They are here today and can be directly linked to meaningful business cases and work processes. Those concepts which remain safe and valuable are simple: digital twin and collaboration. Both are already highly validated in industrial settings.

The digital twin is already being widely used. From the automotive and energy sectors to manufacturing and construction, the digital twin supports engineering design and build, and helps optimize operations.

We also have the ability to live-stream information in a 3D virtual environment, with real time sensor data streaming, multi-person synchronization and voice over internet protocol.

Layer those technologies together and you open up tremendous new opportunities and use cases, such as live design reviews, real-time construction simulations and operations collaboration.

Therefore, the earliest opportunities will be in industries that have made significant investments in how they manage information and use it to support profitability and sustainability. These could range from supply chain management to construction simulations during design, safety assessments and other ways of optimizing operations.

 How does this shake hands with Artificial Intelligence?

The next phase will be all about adding in AI. We already have the tools to use machine learning in industrial applications—such as to predict potential equipment failures. Countless customers have used machine learning technology to slash downtime, improve productivity and efficiency, and even avert catastrophe by minimizing risk to life.

If you see the industrial metaverse as a layer of collaboration on top of a digital twin, AI is an assistant, bringing new insights to collaborative conversations.

And when humans and AI come together, the stage is set for Industry 5.0—the forthcoming new paradigm where people work alongside intelligent machines. That’s why the industrial metaverse could well acquire a new name in the coming months.