The Role of the Digital Twin for a Ship Life Cycle Perspective: A focus on Naval Vessels

A naval ship is a complex system likely to be engaged in demanding operations accomplished in a multifarious environment, where situation may rapidly evolve. Several interested parties participate in the life cycle decision making of naval ships, considered both as a single asset or belonging to a larger fleet. A datacentric framework bridging the different phases of ship life, such as design and production, operations, end of life, can in principle provide a superior competitiveness i.e. faster and most effective decision making when and where necessary. In this perspective, the role of the Digital Twin model (DT) will be discussed with a focus on naval vessels to better understand the reasons (why) for its implementation and the relevant technical specification (what and how) for effective short term and long-term decision making improvement.