Working on this digital twin for the Festo Modular Production System (MPS) has been a technically rich and personally rewarding experience that has pushed me beyond the boundaries of what I thought I knew, especially in areas such as PLC programming, IIoT visualisation, and immersive simulation.

One of the standout areas of growth was my in-depth exploration of TIA Portal. Although I had used it before, this project required me to engage with it at a significantly more advanced level. I worked extensively on PLC logic for multiple stations, configured safety features, mapped symbolic tags across layers, and developed user-facing HMI panels. It gave me a much clearer understanding of how industrial systems are structured logically, and I realised just how much I enjoy this kind of work. I would genuinely love to keep growing in this direction, working more with PLCs, safety logic, and modular automation systems.

Another huge learning experience was using Node-RED for the first time. I had heard of it in IoT circles, but never used it hands-on until now. Setting it up with OPC UA to read live PLC data and display it on custom-built web dashboards was surprisingly intuitive and incredibly powerful. Even in read-only mode, being able to monitor real-time process variables in a browser opened my eyes to the potential of low-code IIoT integration tools. It’s a tool I’ll be using again.

One of the most interesting creative challenges was designing a custom dismantling station, built from reusing parts of other MPS modules. I wanted to reflect principles of circular manufacturing and sustainability, not just in theory, but through a working simulated system. Designing the disassembly logic, adapting it to existing simulation constraints, and testing its performance through the PLC was a unique technical and ethical experience.

As part of the validation phase, I also exported the simulation into a VR environment and experienced it using a VR headset. This was an entirely new way of seeing the system, not through flat screen visuals, but from a first-person perspective, walking around and observing the station in immersive 3D. While I didn’t build the VR model myself, just being able to interact with it in virtual space helped me understand layout, flow, and ergonomics far better than a regular simulation ever could. It gave me new ideas for how VR could be used in training or remote system reviews.

Ultimately, this project was about more than just building a digital replica. The goal was to integrate various tools, including Siemens NX, TIA Portal, PLCSim Advanced and Node-RED, into a single, coherent pipeline. The goal was to simulate real-world complexity safely and efficiently. It was about growing as an engineer, both technically and professionally.

I now feel more confident working across digital domains and more motivated than ever to keep exploring intelligent automation, VR interfaces, and the power of PLC programming in shaping the factories of tomorrow.