Mastering Digital Twins: real-world cases from offshore experts

The workshop opened with Ferry Visser (Fieldlab Zephyros, WCM) and Peter Scheijgrond (Bluespring), who highlighted the crucial role of digital innovation in accelerating offshore renewable energy. They underlined how Digital Twins can bring certainty to unpredictable marine environments, reduce risks for technology developers, and create momentum for collaboration across industry and research. Their remarks set an engaging and forward-looking tone for the workshop that followed.

Charlotte Larmuseau from HOWEST provided an introduction to Digital Twins, explaining how these virtual replicas help bridge the gap between simulation and real-world operation. She stressed the need for reliable data to drive insight and predictive value, demonstrating how virtual engineering boosts production and logistics.

Feike Savenije from TNO presented the development of a digital twin designed to predict and prevent wind turbine blade failures. Using simulation models, machine learning, and operational data, this initiative aims to move maintenance from reactive to proactive, reducing costs and preventing downtime.

Jeremy Smith from Tocardo explained how six years of SCADA data from the Eastern Scheldt Tidal Power project in Zeeland is used to create and validate digital twins for their future tidal projects. By integrating real-time monitoring and predictive analytics, Tocardo expects to improve performance, planned maintenance more efficiently, and be able to identify issues before they happen.

Andrew Borg of FLASC showcased a digital twin built for an offshore hydro-pneumatic energy storage system. The process involved detailed engineering models and real-time simulations, helping designers optimize system components, enhance operational reliability, and address client-specific pain points such as grid constraints and intermittency.

Ben Mahy from Supportsquare.io explored the human-centered potential of digital twins, describing platforms that support everything from virtual commissioning and immersive training to remote guidance and asset inspections. He pointed out how visualization and XR (extended reality) can empower engineers and operators, making complex tasks safer and easier.

Sam Van de Walle’s presentation from HOWEST dove into the concept of “Digital Shadows” and simulation software, making a crucial connection between theory and practice in the world of Digital Twins. While previous speakers focused on what is possible when a digital twin is connected to live data (for example, real-time maintenance or predictive analytics for wind turbines), Sam showed how building a realistic simulation—before adding any real-world data—lays the foundation for every successful digital twin project.

When engineers start out, they often rely on simulation: they create a digital shadow, which is essentially a dynamic model of a process or machine that isn’t yet hooked up to real-world sensors. This allows designers test their concepts and play with “what if” scenarios: think of a virtual wind farm where you can simulate storms, breakdowns, or even operator errors, all in a risk-free space. Sam explained that digital shadows help teams validate ideas, tune controls, and catch costly mistakes long before construction or installation.

Sanne Moleman from Deftiq introduced an online course on Digital Twins, signaling the industry’s growing demand for accessible education around digital twin technologies and their applications in offshore energy projects. To access the full catalog of online courses on offshore renenebles take a look at their website here. E-mail Deftiq to request free access to one of the courses: info@deftiq.com

The event wrapped up with networking and closing remarks, reflecting on the cross-industry collaboration, the drive for innovation, and effective knowledge sharing among asset owners, service providers, research institutions, and policy-makers.

• Digital Twins are transforming offshore renewable operations through predictive maintenance, real-time analytics, and seamless integration of physical and digital systems.

• Reliable and abundant data remains a fundamental challenge and enabler for successful twin projects.

• XR and immersive tools are creating safer, smarter, and more engaging work environments for operators and engineers.

• Ongoing education, collaboration, and validation are key for scaling digital twin adoption—and for continuous industry improvement.

This workshop proved digital twins are much more than a buzzword—they’re a toolkit to make offshore energy smarter, safer, and more reliable. Stay tuned as more exciting applications make waves in the sector!