Fujitsu and Hexagon Digital Twin Tech Aids Predictive Disaster and Traffic Safety Management

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Hexagon’s Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial division and Fujitsu Limited today announced the joint development of digital twin applications for predicting and mitigating natural disasters and traffic accidents. The solutions reflect the two companies’ ongoing efforts to realize resilient, disaster-resistant cities based on a business alliance formed in June 2022.  

To support disaster mitigation, the two companies are developing a prediction model that calculates the extent and impact of flooding from precipitation data, visualizes the extent of flooding and performs damage prediction analysis. Based on the analysis, cities can develop disaster response plans.

To support traffic safety, the companies have focused on an application that identifies areas where heavy traffic and road design heighten the risk of accidents and proposes measures for improvement. The application would allow city planners and road administrators to develop safer, more resilient transportation networks.

Going forward, Fujitsu and Hexagon will continue conducting field trials with customers in the administrative, municipal and transportation sectors to support decision making for urban environmental optimization, with an aim to develop solutions globally by the end of fiscal 2023 ending March 2024.

Use case 1: Protecting cities and regions from natural disasters

(Example) Reporting the number of disaster-stricken facilities and people and proposing countermeasures

Coordinating and visualizing data across multiple areas, including medicine, transportation, energy and the environment is vital to protect people and social infrastructure from the various threats posed by natural disasters and other dangers in an increasingly unpredictable world. Leveraging Fujitsu’s Computing as a Service (CaaS) platform, which offers users a powerful suite of easy-to-use services based on Fujitsu's advanced computing and software technologies, alongside Hexagon's M.App Enterprise real-time geospatial application, the two companies will use ‘digital rehearsal’ technology (Note 1) to analyze and verify disaster threats and optimal disaster preparedness in advance on a digital twin that replicates real world conditions with incredible detail.

The combined solution uses flood forecasting models and precipitation data to perform sophisticated calculations and visualize flooding, as well as to address challenges and use cases in the medical, financial, public and distribution industries, such as infrastructure damage forecasting, formulation of disaster response plans and estimation of damage amounts. In addition, it aims to secure safe evacuation routes and support infrastructure protection in the event of abnormal weather and natural disasters by leveraging weather IoT sensors and weather forecast services that monitor temperature and rainfall.

Use case 2: Contributing to the reduction of traffic accidents

(Example)Visualization and analysis of traffic accident data

According to a 2022 study report compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO), 50 million people are seriously injured and 1.35 million die annually from traffic accidents. Many accidents are caused by excessive speed, improper road guidance or the road environment. To reduce such accidents, it is important to visualize where accidents frequently occur, analyze the causes of accidents and propose solutions.

Through a combination of Hexagon's geospatial visualization tool M. App Enterprise and Fujitsu's infrastructure services, the companies have developed an application that visualizes areas with high levels of traffic accidents; analyzes traffic volumes, road design, signs and other factors; and provides recommendations for reducing traffic accidents in accordance with the Road Safety Toolkit (Note 2) of the International Road Assessment Program (iRAP).

For example, in a spot where traffic volume is low but accidents frequently occur, several improvement measures, such as speed control, installation of warning signs and separation of traffic routes between pedestrians and vehicles by guardrails, are presented together for a cost effective solution. These proposals for city planners, road administrators, local governments and consulting services contribute to the reduction of traffic accidents and the creation of safe and secure communities.

Mladen Stojic, president of government, transportation, defense and security for Hexagon’s Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial division, said the partnership with Fujitsu continues to pay dividends for cities. “Hexagon is proud to work with Fujitsu to provide cities with tools to take control of their futures,” said Stojic. “By monitoring and mitigating factors that have negative impacts on society, from pollution to traffic congestion to flooding, our partnership is helping to make urban areas more sustainable and liveable.”

Yoshinami Takahashi, SEVP, Head of Global Business Solutions of Fujitsu Limited said, “We are very pleased to report on the progress of our partnership with Hexagon, which represents a big step towards realizing Fujitsu's Trusted Society for Fujitsu Uvance. This new global offering promotes “sustainability transformation,” combining the strengths of both companies to address many complex issues facing society that cannot be solved through existing means.”

ARISE Philippines Kickstarts New Round of Disaster Resilience Network Initiatives

Representatives from both public and private sectors, including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and the SM Group, convened recently for the annual ARISE General Meeting held at the Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City.

ARISE Philippines is a network of private companies that are united under the common objective of establishing innovative disaster resilience practices within organizations. This initiative supports the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), and the Sendai Framework. Sendai Framework is a 15-year, voluntary, non-binding agreement which recognizes the role of UN member countries to reduce disaster risk, and which should be shared with other stakeholders including local governments and the private sector.

Through their membership with ARISE Philippines, companies from the private sector are enabled to build their own capacity and develop strategies in making their organizations resilient to disaster risk, by learning from subject matter experts and engaging in workshops that discuss best practices. In recent studies, the Philippines have been globally ranked as the third most vulnerable country, in terms of disaster and calamity.

The government sector was represented by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and Office of Civil Defense (OCD) National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC).

Director Susan Juangco delivered message from Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad, Executive Director of NDRRMC, “As private organizations begin to understand their roles in disaster risk reduction management, and actively collaborating with the public, the government’s vision for a disaster resilient nation is coming to its reality. We are here not to boost the self-interests of our organizations, but to attain our goal for our stakeholders and assure quality of life beyond disaster.”

Asst. Director of the Bureau of Small and Medium Enterprise Development of DTI, Alicia M. Opeña, added, “The MSME sector has a vital role in the welfare of our society as it serves as a proximity market or immediate provider of most goods and services, and we believe that integrating disaster risk reduction initiative in the MSME structures will ensure that businesses can continue to operate their core services even in the occurrence of an adverse situation.”

During the roundtable discussions, participants gained shared understanding of key performance indicators in each of the presented work themes, which are organizational initiatives that respond to preventive measures against disaster, and eventually develop a joint action plan to ensure progress in creating disaster resilient societies. Some of the key topics covered were disaster risk management strategies, education and training and urban risk reduction.

At the annual meeting, the vision of Hans T. Sy was reiterated, “As a member of ARISE, I encourage everyone to promote disaster preparedness and risk resiliency. We must continue to help each other in minimizing property damages and most especially in protecting lives because disaster resilience is everybody’s business”.

To know more about ARISE Philippines, you may contact its secretariat through arisephilippines@smprime.com or https://cc.preventionweb.net/arise/asia_pacific/arise_philippines