Besides managing accruing data in production systems, Digital Twins provide additional services like the simulation or control of production systems. The Digital Twin and its real-world physical counterpart need to be interconnected using sensors and actuators to enable such services. This article proposes a simulation-based method to design and evaluate such an interface. Applying concepts from the area of software-in-the-loop, it proposes the use of a so-called Physical Twin: a simulation model which mimics the abilities of the physical system but allows simulation-based experiments to optimise the interface. After presenting the general approach, the article provides an application example of the proposed procedure. A Digital and a Physical Twin are implemented for an application scenario and connected using a simple TCP/IP interface. By varying the number of sensors as well as considering component breakdowns in the Physical Twin, this setup allows evaluating different configurations in terms of production performance. The evaluation confirms that configurations with more sensors result in higher production performance of the system. However, a saturation of the performance gain is also observable when exceeding a certain number of sensors. Therefore, determining the optimal configuration is vital to optimise the interface from a financial point of view.

Weather conditions have a significant impact on the installation of offshore wind turbines. The rules for installation set clear limits. These limits are usually based on estimations of various experts and not on real assumptions and measurements on-site. When wind speeds and wave heights are too high, work cannot be carried out, and this leads to delays and additional costs. Therefore, we have carried out a measurement campaign during the installation of rotor blades to investigate to which extent the limits can be adjusted by using a tuned mass damper. The results from the measurement campaign—specifically empirically derived significant wave height limits—are used in a discrete event simulation. This study simulates delays resulting from weather conditions. Based on this, the total installation costs are considered. The results of the measurement campaign show that a safe installation with the use of a damper is possible at wave heights of up to 1.6 m. With the discrete event simulation, it is possible to prove that 17.9% can be saved for the costs of the installation vessel. In addition, the wind farm could be erected 32 days faster. Thus, it can be stated that the use of a tuned mass damper simplifies the installation from a technical point of view and is economical.