Driving customer satisfaction with Digital Twins

Damen Shipyards Group, a Dutch-owned shipbuilding company with operations in 120 countries and 175 vessels delivered annually, has adopted Matterport digital twins to facilitate remote collaboration for internal and external stakeholders.

With access to Matterport’s rich, dimensionally accurate data, Damen has applied an innovative approach to drive customer satisfaction.

“When we discovered Matterport, we quickly realized the power of the digital twin to unlock collaboration and engagement with our designers and our customers,” said Jan-Jaap Eits, Assistant Project Manager at Damen Shipyards. “Today, we use Matterport to allow our customers to remotely review and inspect every compartment and detail of a vessel within a 3D space. Internally, our design and engineering teams have access to detailed measurements and layouts to further enable them to work more efficiently and avoid costly and time-consuming site visits.”

Across its Workboat Division, including its major shipyards in China, Turkey and Vietnam, Damen uses Matterport Pro2 3D cameras to capture digital twins of its vessels.

With access to a 3D space in the planning stage, customers can examine the layout and placement of equipment and request modifications if desired.

Once a design is finalized, Damen shares its digital twin internally with their service department, enabling them to gain a better understanding of the vessel when it is completed and delivered.

In addition, the Measurement Mode capability within a Matterport digital twin allows Damen’s design and engineering personnel to verify measurements down to the centimeter, including room layouts and the placement of everything from windows and doors to hardware and equipment, all without conducting a site visit.

With its growing library of digital twins, Damen developed a 3D archive of its vessels to support bookkeeping efforts and to prevent operational difficulties in the future.

In addition, the company’s digital record of its builds will facilitate knowledge transfer and training when longtime Damen employees retire or leave the company in the future.