ONterview
CmWorld Runs the World’s First Digital
Twin-based Water Management Platform
CmWorld, a partner of K-water, has introduced the world’s first digital twin platform for water management at river basins. The company is committed to providing technologies to help make optimal water management decisions by creating systematic digital twin-based platforms.
Text by Eun-young Kim
Photos by Eun-joo Kim
Q. What does CmWorld do?
Since its foundation in 2003, CmWorld has dedicated itself to developing geospatial information software over the past 20 years. We are focusing our efforts particularly on creating 3D geospatial information system (GIS) and digital twin software. Currently, we are working with K-water, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport to integrate digital twin technology in various fields including top-notch water management platforms and BIM-based real-time facility management.
Q. Tell us about the digital twin project that CmWorld and K-water are working on together.
Currently, CmWorld and K-water are building a digital twin-based water management platform for 5 major rivers and another one for other rivers as part of efforts to expand the digital twin-based water management service across the country. Nowadays, the two companies are also working together to create a digital twin for dam safety. CmWorld is playing a leading role in introducing digital twin in water resources management and dam safety.
Digital twin-based water management is designed to help make systematic water management decisions at river basins where dams are operating. The new water management technology has been introduced to cope effectively with heavy rainfalls, floods, and extreme droughts caused by the exacerbating climate crisis. The technology allows water managers to analyze cases through monitoring and simulations and forecast the outcomes without personally visiting sites; thus effectively preventing water disasters.
Q. What can you tell us about working with K-water on the development of the digital twin platform?
At the beginning of the project, we had a lot of difficulty in developing the service because we didn’t have a clear idea of what the project was about. The entire team often stayed up all night to understand exactly what K-water wanted to do with the project. Without the help of K-water employees, things would have been far more difficult for us. To help us better understand the project, K-water staff personally visited our office. They communicated closely with our developers and provided feedback throughout the process, which clearly helped us develop a better platform. We know the entire process wasn’t easy at all for them, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their support. The water management platform services we have created are now in operation, and they are receiving positive reviews from many. Thanks to the successful outcome of the project, many companies have expressed interest in working with us. It was a great opportunity to work with K-water on the project, and we are proud of what we have done with K-water. We will continue to improve our technology and work harder to become a trendsetter in the industry.
Q. What is your outlook on the future of digital twin-based water management?
The digital twin-based water management platform will be completed by the end of the year. Upon completion, it will become K-water’s key water management platform, and K-water service will share the service with other organizations that need it. Field workers and managers in the office will be able to perform their tasks under the same environment, which will play a critical role in making more effective water management decisions. Going forward, AI and digital twin technology will be integrated to increase the accuracy and speed of analysis further. In addition, we will develop individualized services to help users manage water resources more easily and efficiently.
Q. What is your vision?
Currently, Cm World, together with Naver Corp., is participating in a project to build a digital twin platform for Saudi Arabia’s transformation into a smart city. Specifically, we will apply digital twin technology to overall urban planning and flood forecasting technology. It is no exaggeration to say that the world is waging a technology war on a daily basis. Every day, new technologies are emerging, and trends continue to change. Cm World is actively taking on this head-spinning technology war by integrating digital twin and metaverse to expand user experiences and employing AI to offer more advanced and sophisticated services while conducting R&D.
(from the left of the back row) Ga-yeon Park Assistant Manager, Sung-won Park Executive Manager, Kyung-tae Kim Associate, Jin-man Han Associate, Jae-in Choi Associate, Na-yeon Kim Associate, Joon-pyo Ahn Assistant Manager, Kyung-bin Kim Assistant Manager,Mal-soon Pyeon Executive Vice President, Seo-young Yoo Associate