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It’s time for concerted action.
Here’s how to make the circular economy achievable, scalable and profitable.

Three Pillars of the Circular Economy

At its core, the circular economy is not just about experimenting with circularity initiatives. It's about embracing a fundamental transformation — a technological revolution that redefines product design, the materials used and how businesses operate.

Activate Circularity: Take Action Today

Escalating resource scarcity, regulatory pressures, shifting consumer expectations, supply chain resilience and risk mitigation are compelling reasons to take action today. To achieve a circular economy that’s scalable and profitable, you need to design products with longevity in mind, invest in sustainable materials and reconfigure your business models. Take these steps today to contribute to a more circular future.

Achieving the UN Global Goals by 2030 will require radically more sustainable ways of managing products and services over their entire lifecycle, from design to use and end-of-life.

Virtual twins are part of the solution. In a whitepaper co-authored by Accenture and Dassault Systèmes, we found that virtual twins provide an untapped opportunity to help companies unlock combined benefits of $1.3 trillion of economic value and 7.5 Gt CO2e emissions reductions by 2030.

Beyond the Numbers

Five businesses already improving sustainability with virtual twins

The sustainability white paper jointly developed by Accenture and Dassault Systèmes accomplish an impressive feat: putting hard numbers to virtual twins’ potential to improve sustainability outcomes in five specific industry situations. Beyond the numbers, however, we can learn a great deal from the actual sustainability experience of virtual twin users – and how they plan to build on those gains going forward.

We invite you to discover five use cases detailing the sustainability benefits of virtual twins in daily business. We salute these successes – and commit to helping our customers make the leap to a sustainable economy.

The environmental degradation inherent in the current global models of production and consumption have reached critical levels. To address this crisis, we need to radically transform these systems. One tool to enable this shift in manufacturing and operations is the Virtual Twin, a real-time virtual representation of a product, platform or ecosystem that can be used to model, visualize, predict and provide feedback on properties and performance.

Virtual twins are used to model complex systems, from a production line to cities to human hearts, and simulate their functioning with an accuracy that allows the user to go directly from a virtual model to creation, without spending the years it normally takes to prototype and incrementally improve on existing set-ups. This is also the case for the world of manufacturing and operations. They allow users to design, test and model disruptive value networks and manufacturing processes in record time — and they have been an underutilized accelerator for sustainability.

Listen to the recording of the webcast “How Virtual Twins Accelerate Sustainable Operations and Circular Ambitions”, that we hosted in partnership with GreenBiz Group and Accenture. You’ll hear from senior experts on the potential of virtual twin technology to enable more sustainable operations and the transition towards a more circular economy. You'll also learn:

How virtual twins can help overcome barriers to achieving sustainability and circular economy goals.
The economic and environmental benefits of adopting virtual twins in operations.
Technology use cases and industry applications of virtual twins in manufacturing, supply chain optimization for waste valorization, the recovery of parts and materials for decommissioned assets and more.

Take the fast lane to profitability with Virtual Twin as a Service, reducing time and costs while enhancing efficiency.

From vision to value, in the blink of an eye

The need for industries to transform past traditional business models, scale faster, and build resiliency is no longer an option. In today’s hyper-speed, hyper-competitive marketplace, time to value is a critical competitive advantage.

Virtual Twin as a Service enables you to find shortcuts to this value: a cutting-edge solution to accelerate your digital capabilities. It is a turnkey solution that doesn’t just give you the technology you need, but also the expertise and skillsets to identify, deploy, operate, and manage that technology to create real value, not additional processes. And it does this in weeks, rather than years.

Advanced digitalization helps companies achieve their carbon neutral goals by not only measuring their current environmental impact, but also the impact of future decisions.

80%1 of a product or service’s design determines its environmental impact throughout the lifecycle.

56% of executives know the importance of integrating sustainability principles into product and service development.

Yet only 26% have revised their product and service development processes to maximize any sustainability benefits.

Advanced digital solutions not only help companies assess the potential environmental and social benefits of products and services under development, but also provide virtual universes to completely rethink them for a sustainable economy.

Walk the Talk: Executives Scale Up Sustainable Innovation

More than half of 300 business leaders surveyed by the Financial Times know the urgency of integrating sustainability into the product lifecycle. But only 36% are planning to take action. Discover what’s holding them back - and what you can do differently - in the Financial Times (FT) Focus report.

Curious how industries can leverage the Virtual Twin to shape a more informed and conscientious consumer landscape? Then the replay of 3DEXCITE Live | Sustainable Consumption is for you!

In an era marked by rapid technological progress and growing environmental concerns, sustainable consumption is a driving catalyst beyond individual choices. It encompasses systemic changes that promote a circular economy, efficient resource management, and a holistic approach to development.

As societies strive for a balance between fulfilling individual needs and ecological preservation, the convergence of digitalization and responsible practices has given rise to a pivotal concept: digital trust. Individuals and industries are delving into the synergy of data analytics and artificial intelligence to revolutionize how we verify, track, and engage with products and services. In this endeavor, the Virtual Twin is poised to transcend its origins in industrial design and engineering to become a transformative tool in fostering sustainable choices.

There are new challenges and opportunities: When empowered by advanced product experiences, will consumers consistently choose sustainability? Can digitalization counter green hushing by enabling genuinely committed companies to regain consumer trust?​​​​​​​

Sustainability has become essential in the Age of Experience. Half a century ago, the aviation industry prioritized speed with large, multi-engine aircraft that consumed substantial fuel and emitted significant volumes of greenhouse gases. Today, this industry has pivoted towards sustainability and an economy focused on fuel efficiency. 

Despite these advances, progress towards global CO2 reduction targets remains insufficient. Companies are deepening their commitment to sustainable manufacturing, creating value for all stakeholders, and fostering a thriving business environment through the strategic integration of three foundational pillars:

People: The future workforce is empowered with advanced knowledge and engineering expertise to develop sustainable capabilities that drive aerospace innovations.

Planet: By optimizing global operations and minimizing waste, the industry crafts air travel experiences that adhere to stringent environmental guidelines.

Profit: Enhanced efficiency, productivity, and a faster time to market are achieved through sophisticated value network orchestration, ensuring maximized profits.

How Can Automotive Brands Adapt to Regulations, Introduce New Technology and Meet Customer Demands?

Enrich the Customer Experience. Synchronize the development of physical vehicles and virtual end-user experiences to enhance sales and customer satisfaction.

Data-Driven Decision-Making for Vehicle Innovation

The automotive sector is undergoing rapid changes. From the increasing demand for electric and software-defined vehicles to surging energy costs and the imperative for supply chain resilience and business agility, OEMs and suppliers must explore fresh approaches to mitigate risks and enhance innovation to maintain a competitive edge.

Supply Chain Resilience for Automotive OEMs & Suppliers

The world has seen just how fragile the global supply chain can be, facing risk and volatility from geopolitical unrest, logistical issues, global pandemic and raw material shortages. Companies must anticipate risk and decide quickly from the design stage to managing production schedules. Supply chain resilience is not just about reacting to immediate risks but also thinking about supply chain risks of the future and preparing to adapt right now.

Redefine infrastructure projects, energy transition plans and the decarbonization of process industries with a virtual twin for a resilient future.

Infrastructure, Energy and Materials businesses, including transportation & civil infrastructure, power, oil & gas, mining, metals and minerals, and chemicals face many challenges. Environmental concerns and increasing public scrutiny drive rising interest in alternative solutions that disrupt traditional business models.

Complexity may arise from aging infrastructure and new, technically demanding assets. Volatile prices and low productivity, along with limited resources put profits under continuous pressure. Infrastructure, Energy & Materials businesses must therefore diversify into new ventures, and business models, increase their pace of innovation, improve organizational and infrastructure efficiencies and increase responsiveness by aligning product delivery and supply with changing priorities and demands of customers and society.

Looking for more Sustainability related content? Look no further! Here’s where you can explore more assets such as use-case articles, expert videos, customer stories and more.