Make buildings and equipment discoverable together
Define identifiers for spaces, systems and relevant components. An identifier should remain stable when a name changes. Decide which system owns each type of information: for example, the model for spatial location and a maintenance system for service history.
Fraunhofer IPA’s Virtual Factory Framework links factory and process planning through a shared data model. Your first step need not be a comprehensive platform. A bounded use case with functioning interfaces is enough for a pilot.
Example: replacing a building system
In an illustrative change process, the replacement is planned first. Teams review the space, connections and effects on neighbouring areas. Approval is followed by installation and a check of the actual built condition.
Only then is the new version marked as the current record. Product documents, inspection results and maintenance information are associated with it. Keep the previous version traceable so later questions about the change can be answered.
Automation needs dependable inputs
AI may help with document search or information assignment. A plausible suggestion is not yet a verified building property. Critical information needs a source, specialist review and traceable approval.
Sensor connectivity does not automatically keep a model current either. Establish which object a reading belongs to, its unit and how failures or implausible values are handled. Physical geometry changes still need an appropriate update process.
Expand through useful steps
Begin with one hall area or a recurring refurbishment process. Test its usefulness with future users before adding buildings, document types or systems. GeoScan’s building-passport and PLM direction follows this lifecycle approach; specific functions are agreed for each project.
- Assign a primary system and owner for each data type.
- Distinguish proposals from the approved existing condition.
- Document the reason, source and review for changes.
- Regularly check that the model still reflects operations.
Your next step
A factory becomes easier to manage digitally when changes reliably return to its data record. The first scan is a starting point; maintenance and ownership determine its lasting usefulness.
From an idea to an application
Sources & further reading
Sources checked on 23 October 2026.