A big thank you to everyone who joined us for the Autodesk Tandem July webinar! We loved seeing your engagement, thoughtful questions, and discussion throughout the session.
This month’s webinar focused on moving digital twins from theory into practice, with insights from Autodesk, Google, and AVIXI.
The conversation highlighted the importance of:
- Connected, structured building data.
- The role of BIM standards in supporting operations.
- Strategies for bridging the gap between design, construction, and facility management.
- How AI may help accelerate digital twin adoption when paired with reliable data.
If you missed it or would like to revisit the discussion, the webinar recording is now available to rewatch here, on intandem.autodesk.com.
Be sure to also check out below for follow-up Q&A responses.
Have more questions? Comment below, and we’ll continue addressing audience questions and sharing additional insights from the session.
Webinar Q&A
Product Resources
- How will Tandem fit with the other Autodesk products? Will this be an add-on subscription, or will this be a completely new purchase? We purchase your products by industry vertical, so I'm just curious about this.
Please visit https://www.autodesk.com/products/tandem/overview for more information on the product and pricing.
API
- Can a Tandem model be connected with Kontakt.io or Siemens platform for hospital?
We haven’t had any customers connect to Kontakt.io yet, but it appears they have a well-documented API that can be used to connect Tandem and Kontakt.io via Tandem Connect or the Tandem Data API.
General Product Info
- Where does the Tandem data "live"? Is the data in the cloud with Autodesk, or can it be siloed on local machines?
Tandem data lives in the cloud. It’s your data, not ours, and is hosted in multiple regions in the world. - How will Tandem deal with security levels, from public access to secure data? Also, will the AI use our models and data, or will we be able to own and keep it private?
Our Trust site on autodesk.com provides a good start on how we address trust and data security in Autodesk solutions: https://www.autodesk.com/trust/overview. There is also a page on AI and our approach to ensuring your data remains your data. - Where consistent data naming and structure standards are needed to support AI and Tandem, does Autodesk provide any guidelines for building designers?
Autodesk provides guidance to help designers structure asset and facility data consistently for Tandem and downstream workflows.
Much of this can be set up in Revit during design and construction, which is generally recommended. This can include:- Parameters and asset data: https://help.autodesk.com/view/TANDEM/ENU/?guid=tandem-parameter-sets
- Classification codes such as UniClass, OmniClass, and others: https://help.autodesk.com/view/TANDEM/ENU/?guid=tandem-classifications
- Asset identification and naming standards
- Space and system relationships: https://help.autodesk.com/view/TANDEM/ENU/?guid=tandem-spaces
- Links to documents and O&M information: https://help.autodesk.com/view/TANDEM/ENU/?guid=tandem-docs
The more structured and consistent the data is early on, the smoother the transition into Tandem and the less rework required at handover. Designers should align naming, classifications, and asset information standards early with owner/operators and Tandem requirements.
- As more stakeholders, data sources, and third-party platforms, how do you maintain strict cybersecurity, especially with connections to IoT data?
Data and system security is something Autodesk takes very seriously. For a primer on our posture, have a look at this site: https://www.autodesk.com/trust/overview. We have several members of our security team who come from the IoT world, and they are shaping how we address these concerns. - Is there a size limit MB for a Tandem AMEP model?
Please visit https://www.autodesk.com/products/tandem/product-details#compare-tiers for this information.
MaintainX
- We are already MaintainX users. Curious if there is any anticipation for how it will integrate with Tandem after the Autodesk acquisition is complete.
We have an integration with MaintainX already in place. The near-term integration involves providing context for work orders and issuing them based on sensor values and thresholds. In the longer term, the integration will be far richer, but we felt that was a compelling starting point.
Integrations
- How do you see Tandem integrating with manufacturers' proprietary monitoring systems? As an example, accessing data from a Trane RTU.
We have connected Tandem to many types of enterprise systems as well as control and monitoring systems. The goal is not to replace those systems, but to augment them with additional context. - Have you explored integrating Autodesk Tandem with AMOS CMMS? I’d be interested to know whether Tandem has already been connected to AMOS, or whether you see the integration being handled through APIs, Tandem Connect, or a custom middleware layer.
AMOS does support integrations via APIs, so all three options would support connecting to Tandem. Tandem Connect would allow you to offload the management of the infrastructure and set up to Tandem Connect. Tandem Data API would allow you to fully customize the integration but would require maintaining the connections and infrastructure to support it; a custom middleware layer would go a step further, requiring more setup and maintenance, but perhaps more specificity and control.
File Types
- Say I need to create a digital twin for a hospital facility. Do I create only one model for all disciplines, or can I merge separate discipline models into one in Tandem? (STR/ARCH/HVAC/MECH, etc.)
You can upload multiple models to Tandem, and they should align as long as the model coordinates are the same. - Is Tandem more aligned with commercial buildings than with infrastructure (water/wastewater)?
Tandem is currently optimized for vertical facilities rather than linear infrastructure. Vertical facilities include buildings, commercial and noncommercial spaces, water treatment plants, data centers, and more. At present, Tandem supports RVT and IFC files (with NWD and DWG in beta).
Civil projects typically involve linear infrastructure, which is based on alignments and offsets rather than the spatial structures used in vertical facilities. Supporting these types of projects requires a different data model and optimization within Tandem. While we recognize this as important, it is not currently a focus of our immediate development.
Handover
- Are there specific BIM data requirements (IFC Classes, Pset, Parameters), unusual/non-traditional sensors, or communication protocols that should be specified during design to support predictive maintenance, operational optimization, and long-term sustainability objectives?
Yes. These requirements should be discussed among the project team and owner/operators in the early stages of design and construction. - What is the best process, and what are the challenges for getting an as-built model up to date at the end? Planned vs actual construction vary so widely at times. how can you capture that accurately?
Owners can keep information connected and useful by establishing strong BIM standards early and clearly including them in project deliverables and contracts. These standards define what contractors need to collect, and because contractors are closest to the project, they are well positioned to gather accurate information with their teams. It is much harder and more costly to return later to convert 2D information into 3D, especially if additional scanning or data collection is required.
Contractors play a critical role in delivering accurate, useful information. While an engineer’s model has value, BIM becomes less valuable the further it gets from the as-built model. Design-build and trade partners often provide the most accurate dimensional, spatial, and asset data because they know the specific motor, chiller, sensor, or valve being installed.
When contractors know their information will support operations, they tend to take greater pride in the quality of their work. This connection between construction and operations teams is an important, often underused opportunity to improve data quality. Having in-house or independent quality control throughout the project also helps teams make course corrections along the way. Waiting until the end of a multi-year project to review the model can create major quality issues.
Trust and validation are essential. In one early Tandem example, a facilities management team did not trust the data delivered for a new data center and had to resurvey the entire facility, resulting in a six- to nine-month delay to operational readiness. This reinforces the need to define standards up front, include them in contracts, and validate them throughout delivery.
Equipment naming should also be monitored once a project reaches 50% CDs, as it lays the foundation for data quality. Finally, owners need to start with the end in mind. For construction teams, the “end” may be project completion, but for owners and operators, the end is lifecycle operation. Including operations teams early and defining requirements in the base contract help ensure the information delivered at handover remains useful, connected, and valuable throughout the asset lifecycle.
AI
- Any plans on leveraging Gemini as an option within Autodesk products for AI leverage?
One area where customers are seeing, and will continue to see, tangible value is in connection, specifically, how to connect a BMS data flow to all the sensors within a building. AI is going to be a huge help in that function. The connection between Tandem and Revit is already well understood. Tandem is fed by Revit, and therefore, that connection already exists. But connecting CMMS and VMS with AI is really going to be what transforms digital twin adoption.
At the same time, the value of AI depends on the quality and structure of the data it is given. The job today is to create structured data so that it can be linked later on, whether tomorrow, next week, or next month. Structured data not only helps with daily operations but also ensures that, in the future, AI will truly be able to leverage that information.
Fragmented data that is not well structured will not give good results when fed to AI; it will give bad answers. To get good, robust answers, organizations need data that is normalized, well-structured, and accurate. If that data is fed into AI and the right system connections are in place, AI can accelerate the process and deliver meaningful value. That is a key part of the digital twin journey.
Other Products & Platforms
- When discussing Tandem/BIM/Digital Twins, the presentations are usually focused on the Revit/MEP/building world. I completely understand that, but I am interested in some examples of Civil Site and Transportation-related projects. Also, are there any specific tools being developed on the Civil 3D side?
Tandem is currently optimized for vertical facilities rather than linear infrastructure. Vertical facilities include buildings, commercial and noncommercial spaces, water treatment plants, data centers, and more. At present, Tandem supports RVT and IFC files (with NWD and DWG in beta).
Civil projects typically involve linear infrastructure, which is based on alignments and offsets rather than the spatial structures used in vertical facilities. Supporting these types of projects requires a different data model and optimizations within Tandem. While this is something we recognize as important, it is not currently part of our immediate development focus.
Other
- How do you address the gap between what Revit and BIM workflows are capable of and how they’re used in practice? In my experience, users often receive enough training to produce the required deliverables but may take the quickest route to submission rather than fully using the model and its data. How do you encourage deeper adoption and better user training?
One of the top pain points is that digital twins can initially be seen as yet another tool to learn. However, once teams see the richness of the data that comes through, that barrier begins to break down. It becomes incredibly satisfying not having to dig through 2D drawings to find out what the latest information is, and instead getting what you need directly. Being able to see that information in 3D is incredible.
In that sense, it is helpful to frame the adoption of digital twins not as additional work, but as being gifted with information. A lot of people may view it as something they have to do, but people in the field are being generously gifted with information they did not have before. It is not work; it is less strenuous than the old way.
Jessica Smith
Content Marketing Specialist, Autodesk Tandem
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