Reliability-by-design for Digital Twins: Value Creation and Trust Throughout the Whole Lifecycle

In the rapidly evolving landscape of technology, Digital twins are proving essential in a wide range of industries including manufacturing, healthcare, and urban planning. These innovative systems bridge the gap between real-world entities and their digital counterparts, enhancing decision-making and operational efficiency. Traditional approaches to Digital twin development often focus on technolog ical capabilities without fully addressing reliability concerns. Common reliability issues include data integrity challenges, insufficient system integration, cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and the complex ities of maintaining real-time synchronization between the physical and digital counterparts. These issues can lead to operational disruptions, increased costs, and reduced trust in Digital twin systems. This paper proposes a Reliability-by-Design approach, advocating for the integration of reliabil ity from the initial stages of Digital twin development. By doing so, Digital twins can evolve from being mere technological innovations into robust assets that enhance operational effectiveness. We examine how aligning this approach with organizational objectives such as improved risk manage ment, better alignment with user and organizational needs, and increased adaptability can support decision-making, strengthen resilience, and minimize operational costs. Ultimately, we demonstrate that adopting a Reliability-by-Design approach is essential for maximizing the value and maintaining the sustainability of Digital twin technologies across various domains.