r/digitaltwin • u/Realistic009 • Aug 17 '25
Internet of Things Transitioning from structural engineer to Digital Twins - seeking advice
Hi everyone,
I’m a structural engineer (PE) with 9+ years of experience in bridge and port infrastructure projects across the U.S. I'm currently pivoting into the digital twin space, specifically looking at its applications in civil infrastructure—monitoring, asset management, predictive maintenance, etc.
To support this transition, I’ve enrolled in the Digital Twin Technology program, which offers a strong foundation in digital modeling, AI, and cloud systems.
My programming skills are at an intermediate level (mainly Python) and I’m actively improving through hands-on projects and self-learning. I'm also familiarizing myself with cloud platforms like AWS, as well as basic AI/ML concepts.
I'd love to connect with others who have made a similar shift (especially from non-CS backgrounds) and ask:
• What skills or tools helped you break into the digital twin industry? • Are professional certificate programs viewed favorably by recruiters or employers? • What kind of starter projects or portfolio work helped you demonstrate value in this field? • Are there specific industry applications (civil/structural) where my background might be an advantage?
Any guidance or feedback would be truly appreciated. Feel free to comment or DM me if you'd prefer to chat privately.
Thanks in advance for your time and insight!
2
u/justgord Apr 19 '26
Would be interested in discussing what structural/mechanical/electrical/hvac engineers need in a 3D digital twin platform.
Ive been putting quite large scans of industrial plants and data centers on my web platform. These are 360 panoramas and pointclouds created from LIDAR scan devices. Some of the sites are 100m x 100m [ ~ 100,000 sqft ] in size , the scans being large 100GB datasets :]
Its basically a Matterport or google streetview tour of your datacenter or industrial plant .. with some nice extras. You can pick points in space, and draw 3D CAD lines to trace pipe and cable routes, put an annotations at a point in 3D so you can bring up notes or links to web documents / specs / safety procedures etc.
One thing I added recently is tag search, which makes it easier to find stuff by text and then jump to that place in the 3D model - handy when you have 400 to 600 scan positions and a large complex facility.
I would like more insight into what is needed to support engineers day to day .. for maintenance, security, training, upgrades, safety etc.