“When I’m no longer able to control processes, lose the ability to meet customer demands or experience frequent production problems, it’s time to focus on improvement. Simulation is one of the excellent methods that can be used successfully,” says Petr Jalůvka, Managing Director of DYNAMIC FUTURE.

In this article, we look at when simulation models pay off, what it takes to deploy them successfully – and how they help companies and institutions make informed decisions before investing time and money.

Who simulation is really good for

Simulation models or more advanced digital twins will not, of course, be used by every organisation. On the other hand, this does not mean that they are only for the biggest ones. Much more important than the number of employees or annual turnover is the complexity of the processes and the ability of the company to have (or create) the necessary input data.

“Small companies have simpler processes and are often able to adjust them by common sense. But as the company grows, that is no longer enough. When it is no longer enough, it is good to use simulation,” explains Petr Jalůvka.

A common impulse to consider the use of simulations is the loss of overview of processes: a company grows, digitizes, automates… and suddenly it is not clear how exactly its processes work. Simulation helps in such a moment:

  • to map the real situation,
  • propose options for change,
  • verify impacts before implementation.

Production and logistics: from the warehouse to the entire plant

Simulation models are most often associated with manufacturing and logistics, but experience shows that their use is much broader. If a company (or institution) has complex processes that it wants to optimize, validate or redefine, simulation can be a powerful tool.

For example, Magna Exterior, which produces plastic parts and modules for the interior and exterior of cars, has used in-house simulations to cover growing orders. With a digital twin, it can test changes without compromising normal operations. It will check whether the capacity of the production line is sufficient, how the addition of another shift will affect it, or how many people and handling equipment will be needed in the warehouse.

Another example is the simulations that DYNAMIC FUTURE performed for Madeta.

“We used the model to check whether it makes sense to invest in automation before buying the equipment. You can calculate it theoretically, but simulation gives a more accurate output,” adds the managing director.

Healthcare: from patient comfort to workload

An interesting and unusual example is the project for the Tomáš Bat’a Regional Hospital in Zlín. There, they collected data on patient movement using a simple application and decided to analyse it with a simulation model.

“The chief medical officer and the hospital administration wanted to find out where patients were waiting unnecessarily and address that before the new pavilion was built. The aim was to improve their comfort,” recalls Jan Šlajer, Managing Director of DYNAMIC FUTURE, adding that everyone, including the designer, quickly tuned in and the work on the simulation model made deep sense.

DYNAMIC FUTURE has a similar experience from Benešov Hospital. It was about the design of the optimal layout of the outpatient clinics of the internal medicine pavilion. The aim of the project was to shorten the patient admission time, improve the quality of the admission process and improve the use of individual departments and staff.

These are not isolated projects; digital twins are gradually becoming more and more common in healthcare. We write about how simulation projects help Czech doctors and patients and what they most often encounter in an earlier blog article.

The main advantages of simulations

Simulations help companies and institutions verify the impact of changes before they invest money, time or energy. For example, when planning automation, simulation can show whether it makes sense at all.

“When companies run out of people, which is common in the Czech Republic, they try to automate their processes. But before that, they want to find out if and how much benefit automation will have. This is where simulation will show how much the investment in change will really help them,” says Jan Šlajer.

Similarly, simulation is valuable during peak periods such as Christmas in e-commerce. Processes that otherwise run smoothly suddenly don’t meet the deadlines and volumes required by retailers.

“The simulation helps you set up your processes to handle peak without having to redo everything from scratch. It is possible to test only the seasonal variant,” says Jan Šlajer.

Other benefits of simulations:

  • Examining several options – and comparing their impacts,
  • optimization without compromising traffic,
  • verification of return on investment,
  • identification of bottlenecks.

What to prepare for before you start

Simulation is a powerful tool – but it doesn’t work in a “throw data at it and it spits something out” way. It takes honest preparation and, above all, a good understanding of the process itself.

“You have to invest time at the beginning – in understanding the process and in building the model. And you also need to know what you want to verify,” emphasises Petr Jalůvka.

The important thing is:

  • Define the goal: what do you want to find out with the model?
  • Secure data: the more accurate the better. But even estimates can be useful.
  • Get the support of the leadership: without it, the changes will not go through.
  • Be willing to change: because the model may show that the current setup is not enough.

“A lot of companies are just increasing capacity and pushing production further and further. When they hit. Simulation will help them find a way out – systematically, not just by putting out fires,” concludes Jan Šlajer.