MEDIA ALERT: Consider a fresh source for retail and consumer goods insights on supply chain challenges, digital twins

Announcing the first installment of SAS Sound Bytes, a showcase of SAS experts offering quick, quotable takes on trending news topics

Working on stories about supply-chain disruption, retailer resiliency in an uncertain economy, and the use of AI and other technologies? Here’s a quotable expert to provide fresh and compelling perspectives:

WHO:

Dan Mitchell, the Global Director of Retail & CPG at analytics software giant SAS, has spent more than 20 years helping companies successfully apply analytics and AI to streamline their planning, pricing and inventory. He’s a reliable source, and he can help you build a more balanced story.  

WHAT:

If you’re working on stories about ongoing global supply chain challenges, digital twins and the ways they intersect in retail and consumer goods manufacturing, Dan’s a relatable source. Below find brief, downloadable video clips featuring Mitchell discussing digital twins and their effect on supply chains. Grab-and-go companion quotes accompany the video clips. Feel free to use either to flesh out your stories. 

If you’d rather use the clips and quotes below as inspiration and schedule time to connect with Dan directly for a live or a written interview, we can make arrangements that suit your needs. 

By the way, this is our first installment of  SAS Sound Bytes, a showcase of SAS experts offering quick, quotable takes on trending news topics. More experts coming soon.  

FOR YOUR USE: 

What is a digital twin? (40 seconds)

“A digital twin is a replica of a real-world system. That can be a machine or a process. What we're trying to do is encapsulate the behavior of that machine or system. That way we can do different tests, experiment with it. 

“Some examples could be: We may have a digital twin that is a replica of a baked-goods manufacturing production floor. We have all the machinery, the ingredients, components and sensors on that factory line. We're able to build a digital replica of that to encapsulate its behavior.”

What makes digital twins different from previous simulation technology? (42 seconds)

"What makes digital twins different than what we had in the past is now we have the ability to take this model and hydrate it with data from IoT systems, for example. At any given point, we have this digital model, and we can update it real-time with the data coming from freight vehicle telemetry or from sensors on the factory floor. 

"The real power is that it allows us to monitor when the system is behaving properly or improperly so we can look inside to refine and optimize it."

How are retailers or consumer goods manufacturers using digital twins now? (44 seconds)

"One of our customers uses a simulation to reformulate the laundry detergent they create. They're able to take the ingredients and formulas to develop that detergent plus all the costs associated with manufacturing.

“If they want to change a dye or process, they can experiment with that in a digital lab of this digital twin, understand what the potential costs and outcomes could be. Once they're finished running that simulation, they could apply it to the real world and retool their factories or the processes used to produce those goods."

How can digital twins help with supply chain issues? (30 seconds)

"You can build a digital twin of your actual downstream supply chain. So maybe you want to understand exactly how many distribution centers and trucks you have. You want to understand their behavior so you can build a digital replica of that system. The system could include not just machines, but departments, people and processes  too."

How are digital twins similar to a driving app like Waze? (47 seconds)

“The way I use a driving app is I plug in my destination and a time I want to get there, and it tells me when I should leave home if I want to get to Logan Airport, let's say. In that case, I'm running a simulation: "What if I wanted to get to Logan Airport at 10:30 a.m.?

"It gives me several different routes, explores different options, and tells me when I should depart. Knowing that information, I may change my behavior. I may decide to book a flight when it's easier to get to the airport, when I have less chance of incoming traffic problems.”