From Models to Machines: Unlocking Value with MBSE
Key Highlights
- MBSE creates a unified digital workflow that spans design, engineering, operations, and maintenance, reducing silos and improving collaboration.
- It enables full-spectrum simulation from conceptual design to service engineering, accelerating decision-making and reducing physical prototyping.
- Real-world examples demonstrate MBSE's impact, such as reducing engineering effort by up to 70% and improving sustainability through digital experimentation.
- The approach supports modern trends like electrification, autonomy, and sustainability by integrating multidisciplinary inputs into centralized models.
- Replacing costly physical iterations with digital models allows teams to modify 'bits instead of atoms,' delivering significant ROI.
In this QuickChat, Rehana Begg, head of content for Machine Design, speaks with Jeff Erno, Technical Fellow at Dassault Systèmes, to explore how model-based systems engineering (MBSE) is reshaping the future of industrial and heavy machinery development. As equipment becomes more complex and regulations tighten, manufacturers are turning to systems modeling tools to create a unified digital workflow that spans design, engineering, operations, and maintenance.
Erno explains how MBSE provides a connected engineering approach that reduces silos and accelerates decision-making by enabling full-spectrum simulation — from conceptual design through service engineering. With the rise of electrification, autonomy, and sustainability requirements, MBSE offers a centralized framework for integrating multidisciplinary inputs and achieving more accurate digital twin engineering models.
Real-world examples highlight the impact: HVAC equipment manufacturers using MBSE to evaluate refrigerant changes, improve sustainability, and streamline operations, and heavy mobile machinery teams reducing engineering effort by 30–70% after shifting from document-based workflows to model-centric methods. By replacing costly physical iterations with digital experimentation, MBSE empowers teams to modify “bits instead of atoms,” driving significant ROI.
If you want to understand how MBSE benefits modern engineering and what’s next for industrial equipment design and heavy machinery development, be sure to watch the full conversation.