Launched in August 2019, the Fishermans Bend Digital Twin was developed by the University of Melbourne’s Centre for Spatial Data Infrastructures and Land Administration (CSDILA) with Victoria’s Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP). The project was commissioned as a demonstrator for Fishermans Bend, a major urban renewal precinct in Melbourne, and was intended to test how digital spatial information could support planning and infrastructure decisions.158
The platform brings together spatial datasets held by different government bodies and other custodians, then makes them searchable, shareable and viewable through a common system. It uses open standards to help connect data across otherwise separate databases. Its aim is to represent the precinct in three dimensions and over time, including assets and conditions above and below ground, so planners can examine existing conditions and possible future scenarios.126
The project’s capabilities include web-based viewing of large 3D datasets, collaboration with access controls, and support for formats such as BIM, CityGML, terrain models and point clouds. Listed applications include integrating sensor and real-time data, viewing building and transport information, querying a 3D cadastre, and running planning analyses such as shadow studies.1 The University of Melbourne describes the work as a cross-disciplinary testbed involving government, research and industry, rather than a single-purpose visual model.14
The project was launched by Victoria’s Minister for Planning on 23 August 2019. Its first phase was completed by December that year, with a second phase beginning in January 2020 to extend analytical features and improve usability for different stakeholders.58 The precinct covers about 480 hectares; government planning cited a 2050 outlook of approximately 80,000 residents and up to 80,000 jobs.6