Implementing Digital Twin for Maintenance 4.0 in SMEs: A Framework for Affordable and Secure Solutions

Industry 4.0 technologies, including digital twin, have the potential to deal with maintenance challenges within SMEs. This paper investigates practical solutions to implement Maintenance 4.0 using digital twin. The proposed framework leverages low-cost sensors, subscription-based software, cloud computing, a digital twin system, and blockchain technology to create an afordable and secure solution. By integrating real-time monitoring, machine learning algorithms, and remote diagnostics, the framework empowers SMEs to optimize their maintenance processes, enhance equipment reliability, and improve overall productivity. The viability of the proposed framework is evaluated using a real case. The results show the advantage of the framework compared to other alternatives in terms of reliability, availability, maintainability, sustainability, and security. The paper concludes by discussing future research directions in this domain.