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The Pathway towards an Information Management Framework (IMF) was published by CDBB at the end of May and contains the collaborative vision of over 70 contributors that came together to build a consensus on how we can build a national digital twin from a nation of digital twins. In response to the National Infrastructure Commission’s report, ‘Data for the Public Good’, the Pathway towards an IMF lays out the ambitious goal of creating a framework where organisations can share data in a robust, resilient and secure way. This will enable better decisions, strengthen the economy and allow for human flourishing. The IMF pathway has at its core, the Gemini Principles, the guiding principles ensuring the framework has purpose, creates trust and is adaptable and flexible enough to work for organisations now and in the future. Taking the selfish approach…. for the greater good The IMF Pathway details the approach to establishing a common language allowing digital twins to talk to each other. This can start within organisations linking up disparate digital twins and breaking up silos to give better corporate control and aid decision making. This then allows the national digital twin to connect those joined up corporate twins by sharing key data to and from other related organisations and sectors to enable deeper insight and benefit to the organisations and the nation for the greater good. In engaging with the IMF Pathway, an organisation has the primary benefit of first recognising the value of their corporate wide data, and secondly, fully preparing themselves to take advantage of, and contribute to, the value and benefit of nationally shared data. The Pathway proposes three building blocks to form the framework:    A Foundation Data Model (FDM): A consistent, clear ontology for the digital twin ecosystem: a structure for sharing and validating data    A Reference Data Library (RDL): Common references, or vocabulary that enable the secure sharing of high-quality data: the common language for describing digital twins    An Integration Architecture (IA): Design and build of the digital systems that manage the connected digital twins: the glue that can link twins together.  The IMF will bring together the standards and data exchange protocols that will allow this ecosystem to create a National Digital Twin from a nation of digital twins. Security and protection of personal data is essential to connecting twins in the right way and is integral in the development of the IMF pathway, as illustrated by this diagram from the IMF Pathway and the accompanying Approach Summary. Following the release of the IMF Pathway, CDBB hosted a webinar and was delighted by the response of the participants and the enthusiasm for the IMF. The recording of the webinar is available on the DT Hub to watch at any time. Continuation of collaboration and consultation The Pathway continues to be a collaborative process and we now look to you to help ensure the widest possible feedback on the document to make sure it meets the needs of infrastructure asset owners, local authorities, architects, engineering consultants, construction companies, software developers, AI companies, big tech and more. The consultation is open until the end of August and we would really value your input.

The Centre for Digital Built Britain’s National Digital Twin programme has launched an open consultation seeking feedback on the proposed approach to the development of an Information Management Framework for the built environment. A new report, The Pathway Towards an Information Management Framework: A Commons for a Digital Built Britain, sets out the technical approach for the development of an Information Management Framework (IMF) to enable secure, resilient data sharing across the built environment. The publication of the report by CDBB, in partnership with the Construction Innovation Hub, is a critical milestone towards a National Digital Twin. On the publication, Mark Enzer, Head of the National Digital Twin Programme said, “I would really like to thank everyone who has come together over the past 18 months to help develop this proposed pathway towards an Information Management Framework. It represents a huge amount of work and exemplifies the collaborative approach that will be needed as we seek to enable an ecosystem of connected digital twins – the National Digital Twin. “The challenge is sizeable, but the promise is huge: better outcomes coming from better decisions based on better connected data. And, working with industry, academia and Government all pulling together we can deliver it. So, I’d urge you to join with us on this journey and help us build consensus on the way forward.” The way that digital twins are connected is important to ensuring security and improving the resilience of assets and systems. The goal of the IMF is to establish a common language by which digital twins of the built and natural environment can communicate securely and effectively to support improved decision taking by those operating, maintaining and using built assets and the services they provide to society. Its development by CDBB was recommended by the National Infrastructure Commission in 2017’s Data for the Public Good report and HM Government’s Construction Sector Deal. As industry leaders, DT Hub members involved in planning, creating and managing the built environment are invited to provide feedback on the report here. The consultation questions are: It has been proposed that the Information Management Framework (IMF) should essentially consist of a Foundation Data Model (FDM), a Reference Data Library (RDL) and an Integration Architecture (IA). Do you agree with this overall framework? In your view, are there any key elements missing from this framework? In your view, is the proposed approach to the IMF consistent with the Gemini Principles? Are there any inconsistencies that should be addressed? Section 3.4 lists the models and protocols that would form part of the IMF. Is there anything that you would like to suggest to improve this list? Section 3.5 describes key concepts of a Foundation Data Model. Is there anything that you would like to suggest to improve this description? Section 3.6 describes key concepts of the Reference Data Library. Is there anything that you would like to suggest to improve this description? Section 3.7 describes key concepts of an Integration Architecture. Is there anything that you would like to suggest to improve this description? Section 4 proposes a pathway for developing the IMF. Do you agree with the proposed overall approach? In your view, are there any key tasks missing from this pathway? Would you suggest any improvements to the order in which the tasks are undertaken to develop the IMF? What do you see as the barriers to connecting digital twins within organisations and between different organisations/sectors? How can these barriers be overcome? In your experience what are the reasons why organisations invest in the creation of digital twins? Why would they invest in connecting digital twins? Do you have any other comments on the proposed approach to developing the information management framework? What opportunities do you see arising in your business from being able to connect Digital Twins and share and integrate data across them? The consultation on the IMF is open until 31 August and responses can be submitted here. Read a summary of the report here. the_pathway_towards_an_imf.pdf

The National Digital Twin Programme hosted a webinar on Monday 8th June 2020 to discuss and answer questions about the recently published Pathway towards an Information Management Framework. We were delighted to receive many questions during the webinar, and hope that those the panel were able to answer helped deepen understanding and expand interest in the Information Management Framework and the National Digital Twin Programme. We have added those, and the questions we couldn't get to in the available time, as topics within this forum, collated by subject. We would like to invite you to add your suggestions and to take part in the discussion on the DT Hub around the development of the National Digital Twin. We will use the discussions here to compliment the Open Consultation being run through the CDBB website on the IMF Pathway.. As Mark Enzer, the Head of the NDT Programme, said in the webinar, we need to continue to build consensus through collaboration, and progress through sharing and learning together. For those who missed the webinar, a video of the webinar is now available and attached below is a transcript of the the event. IMF Pathway Webinar 08062020 Transcript FINAL.pdf

https://time.graphics/line/306868 This timeline provides a high-level view of key events starting with the BIM Strategy Paper all the way to the creation of the National Digital Twin Programme. What events do you think were critical on this national journey to improve use of information over the whole life cycle of assets? What key events do we need to add to the picture? This timeline is referenced in the summary publication joined to the Pathway towards an information management framework: https://www.cdbb.cam.ac.uk/news/approach-delivery-national-digital-twin-united-kingdom