Integration of virtual modelling and virtual reality for industrial optimisation : Case study of a continuous fibreglass layup and ultrasonic sewing system at Talleres Mector and Visdeltex

Sammanfattning

The integration of Digital Twins and immersive technologies in manufacturing has progressed substantially in recent years, yet empirical evidence on how Key Performance Indicator (KPI)-enriched immersive environments improve industrial decision quality remains limited. Most Virtual Reality (VR) implementations have emphasised visualisation rather than structured decision support, and sustainability has typically been treated through data-intensive lifecycle methods that are impractical for early-stage scenario evaluation. This thesis designs, implements and empirically evaluates a Digital Twin–inspired production model integrated with a VR-based, human-centred KPI dashboard, applied to a continuous fibreglass layup and ultrasonic sewing system at Talleres Mector. Following a Design Science Research methodology, the production logic was modelled in inFACTS Studio as a discrete-event simulation with three aggregated modules; Extension, Sewing and Palletising and an 82/18 weighted routing representing material-equivalent loss after the Extension stage. The immersive environment was developed in NVIDIA Omniverse and complemented with operational, sustainability and cost-oriented KPI proxies. A within-subject experiment (N = 16) compared the immersive environment with a conventional 2D dashboard, using paired Wilcoxon signed-rank tests with a one-sided alternative and Cohen’s dz effect size. The results show that both interfaces enabled participants to make correct decisions, with no significant difference in decision accuracy between the 2D and VR conditions. However, the immersive environment produced clear improvements in perceived KPI interpretation, decision confidence and overall self-confidence. Participants also rated the VR environment highly for understanding spatial scale and for connecting operational KPIs with sustainability-related indicators, and 62.5% preferred the immersive environment overall. These findings suggest that VR-based KPI dashboards are most valuable not as replacements for conventional dashboards, but as complementary decision-support tools that improve clarity, confidence and sustainability-aware interpretation, especially for cross-functional and non-expert stakeholders.