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Next-Gen Technologies Industry’s First Plant-wide Digital Twin at Chalco’s Zhongrun Aluminum Factory

From Jana Miller, senior manager of industry marketing for energy production at Bentley Systems 5 min Reading Time

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Bentley’s Digital Twin applications digitized factory operations to save CNY 6 million in annual management costs and support sustainable practices.

The Bentley-based enterprise digital factory management platform and digital twin reduced management costs by 10 %. (Source: Shenyang Aluminum & Magnesium Engineering & Research Institute Co.)
The Bentley-based enterprise digital factory management platform and digital twin reduced management costs by 10 %.
(Source: Shenyang Aluminum & Magnesium Engineering & Research Institute Co.)

To cope with shifting operational paradigms and support China’s sustainability initiatives, enterprises in the aluminum industry are seeking to digitize factory and plant processes. Committed to the national call for green development, reducing energy consumption, and their corporate strategy to accelerate digitalization, Chalco initiated a digital demonstration project at their Zhongrun aluminum factory. To meet their corporate digitization goals, as well as improve production and operational efficiency at the plant, they retained Shenyang Aluminum & Magnesium Engineering & Research Institute (Sami) to apply digital twin technology throughout design, construction, operations, and maintenance of the facility. “[We] undertook the digital modeling, digital delivery, and digital operation and maintenance implementation of the project,” said Fangbo Liu, director of project operation of the digital engineering center at Sami.

With a total investment of CNY 3.94 billion, the project included constructing an electrolytic aluminum production system and supporting facilities at the existing Zhongrun factory, covering 750,000 square meters. Sami sought to apply digital twin technology to the whole lifecycle of the project with a goal to create the industry’s first plant-wide digital twin, providing a new development and enterprise management strategy for Chalco and the aluminum industry in China. “[We] aim to create a digital model for the entire plant project, link all static information, such as design and construction, into the model to produce complete digital project deliverables, apply digital twin technology to enterprise operation and management, and improve enterprise operation and management efficiency through the application of digital twin technology throughout the lifecycle of the project,” said Liu.

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