In the construction and civil engineering industries, digital twins are one of the key new technologies used in the Internet of things (IoT). They are usually applied to building information modelling (BIM) technology. Digital twins can create an equivalent virtual entity to physics, which can simulate, analyze, and test physical entities. They can take real data of physics or systems as input. The generated data is used as an output to predict or simulate how the physical object or system has been affected by these inputs.

Digital twins run through different stages of the life cycle of products, including the design stage, manufacturing stage, and service stage. It is widely used in model design, simulation, and virtual debugging. Digital twins have become popular within the process of digital transformation. By 2024, it is estimated that more than 25% of the new digital twins will be adopted as the binding function of the new IoT. Because it can analyze the virtual space and digitally map the interaction with entities, industrial manufacturing and civil engineering can use digital twins to predict the development track of equipment and systems. Therefore, it can greatly improve the situation awareness of businesses. Furthermore, it will guide enterprises to make better decision-making. For instance, businesses with this benefit can have more reasonable maintenance time and a better production scheduling plan.

With the development of the industrial Internet and the connectivity utility of networks, digital twins are connected and complementary in equipment asset management, product life cycle management, and manufacturing process management. The closed loop-based digital twins are formed through the integrated management of raw materials, factory manufacturing, sales, and customer demand. In digital space, a highly accurate digital model is used to describe and simulate the real world. The information collected in the real world is reflected in the digital model and updated with reality. In digital spaces, predictive simulation and visualization are carried out by using models and information. In terms of the business process, digital twins are not only used for modelling. They are also used for the simulation of the whole life cycle. The scope of applying digital twins is broad and is not oriented to specific fields like architecture. Digital twins can be applied to the whole objective world, the universe, and molecular atoms, which can be modelled and simulated in a three-dimensional (3D) way.

The aim of this Special Issue is to bring together original research and review articles discussing the digital twins in civil engineering. We welcome submissions from a wide range of disciplines. However, articles in this Special Issue should focus on the innovation of digital twins to meet the current challenges in civil engineering. Moreover, we welcome research discussing the most effective ways to develop the civil engineering and construction industry rapidly.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Renewal of the construction plan following BIM digital twins in civil engineering
• Influence of digital twins on physical equipment in construction engineering
• Intelligent construction with digital twin visualization
• Design and construction of digital twins supported by artificial intelligence
• Design and construction of bridge engineering following digital twins
• Intelligent building construction management based on BIM digital twins
• Interaction design and planning between virtual and reality-based digital twins
• Safety emergency and model interconnection in the construction Industry with digital twins
• Support design of rock tunnel based on digital twins
• Design and construction of substations based on digital twins