Mexico City, May 6, 2025.- In a global environment where digital transformation is crucial for competitiveness, Dr. Román Rodríguez Aguilar, President and CEO of the Dr. Román Rodríguez AguilarProfessor-Researcher C of the School of Business of the Universidad Panamericana campus Mexico Cityleads an innovative frontier project on supply chains through the use of Digital Twins (Digital Twins).
What is a Digital Twin?
As Dr. Rodriguez Aguilar explains a Digital Twin is a virtual identical replica of a physical object or system., created by integrating various technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, Big Data and cloud computing.. This tool allows monitoring, analyzing and simulating the behavior of its physical counterpart in real time, optimizing processes and anticipating failures before they occur.
"The digital twin not only replicates, but predicts and optimizes. It's like having a virtual laboratory where we test risk-free scenarios in the real world"The researcher emphasizes.
Applications and benefits of a Digital Twin
Digital Twins have cross-cutting potential: from manufacturing and healthcare to energy and aerospace. However, Dr. Rodriguez Aguilar focuses his research on supply chains. supply chainsa critical area following the global disruptions experienced in recent years, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among the problems it seeks to solve are:
- Low resilience to disruptive events.
- Inefficient resource management in organizations.
- Lagging behind in digital transformationespecially in developing countries.
"A supply chain with a Digital Twin is more agile, predictive, efficient and able to adapt to crises," he says., he assures.
Case studies: from warehouse to efficiency
The researcher exemplifies its impact with a concrete case: a warehouse where a conveyor belt unexpectedly fails. With IoT sensors and the Digital Twin, the equipment is monitored in real time, anomalies (such as overheating) are detected and predictive maintenance is scheduled, avoiding costly shutdowns.
"Simulation allows us to evaluate solutions before implementing them, reducing downtime and costs."he stresses.
Academic and organizational advantages
For Universidad Panamericana, this project not only positions the institution at the technological forefront, but also enriches student education. "Our students will learn to integrate disruptive technologies and to work in an interdisciplinary manner, something essential in the era of Industry 4.0"says Dr. Rodriguez Aguilar.
Organizations that integrate Digital Twins into their operations will be able to:
- Improve product and process design.
- Monitor and identify risks.
- Make decisions based on robust data.
- Improve resilience and generate economic and social benefits.
A message to the Panamerican community
Finally, the researcher makes a call to the university community: "Digital transformation is not optional; it is the future. We must align technology, processes and human talent to compete globally.".
Dr. Román Rodríguez Aguilar's work with Digital Twins is not only a technical breakthrough, but a step towards more resilient supply chains and societies better prepared for the challenges of the 21st century.
Learn more about our researchers' projects at: https://www.up.edu.mx/investigacion-noticias/
