Accelerating flexible manufacturing with digital twinsMANUFACTURING ENGINEERING | CASE STUDY Siemens Numerical Control (SNC) Challenge Solution Impact SNC, Nanjing, China faced rising market volatility and product variability, increasing manufacturing complexity and hindering closed-loop optimization. Traditional line design was slow and inefficient, limiting flexibility and impacting lead times, productivity and responsiveness.To address these issues, SNC implemented a digital twin solution integrated with lean methodology, achieving 100% coverage in line design. The approach enabled virtual commissioning and rapid design verification, while optimizing daily operations through Plan-Do-Check- Act (PDCA) cycles and continuous improvement. This closed-loop system bridged production design and operations, ensuring flexibility and real- time adaptability.The digital twin-led transformation significantly improved manufacturing agility and responsiveness by accelerating design, reducing complexity and enabling closed-loop optimization across operations, delivering: –78% reduction in delivery lead time. –61% faster design verification. –14% improvement in cycle efficiency. We call our Nanjing facility a digital-native factory. It was designed, tested and optimized in the virtual world before a single brick was laid. This enabled faster construction, cost efficiency and delivery under pandemic conditions. Combining global manufacturing expertise with local insight and a digital-first mindset, we optimize operations, making it one of our most efficient and flexible factories. Cedrik Neike, Member of the Managing Board, Siemens; Chief Executive Officer, Digital Industries 3.3 Product development Product development today is largely sequential and siloed, with disconnected design, engineering and manufacturing workflows. Late discovery of feasibility, cost and sustainability issues drives rework, slows iteration and extends time to market as product complexity increases. Adaptive product innovation defines the future that connects design, engineering and manufacturing in a continuous learning loop, enabling faster innovation, sustainable design and regenerative product lifecycles. Intelligent Industrial Operations Outlook 2026 3333