Willow, a provider of digital twin technology, is partnering with Hollywood Park, a new, nearly 300-acre sports and entertainment destination in Inglewood, California, being developed by LA Rams owner Stanley Kroenke.

The agreement stretches across SoFi Stadium, which will be the first major stadium to implement digital twin technology in the USA. Using big data gathered from every aspect of the stadium and surrounding development, Willow will create a virtual copy of the facility to deliver analytical insight to create a world-class fan, resident and guest experience along with optimised levels of sustainability and future-proofing.

Digital twins, first developed by Nasa for space exploration, are technology that converts all quantifiable aspects of physical buildings into living, learning and evolving virtual replicas. It is an intuitive way to store, organise and access the data generated by complex smart buildings, allowing owners, facility managers and built environment professionals real-time insights to optimise every aspect of a building’s operations.

Importantly, the system becomes more robust over time with the addition of new data.

“Our goal is to deliver a new type of fan and visitor experience and, to do that, we need a comprehensive, data-driven view into how all the pieces of this project connect,” said Jason Gannon, managing director of SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park. “For such a large-scale and complex asset like a stadium, this is a pivotal undertaking. Willow’s digital twin will enable us to collect and analyse real-time big data across the lifecycle of the development, from construction to on-going operations.”

SoFi Stadium is setting a new bar for smart buildings in the sports and entertainment sector. Designed to be a sustainable, future-forward facility for years to come, the venue will be the new, joint home of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams and will also host events throughout the year.

Willow’s technology, used by some of the world’s most prominent real estate owners, will enable SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park’s operators to gain complete transparency and a single source of truth on data from across the facility’s complex systems. By accessing these data, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park should be able to solve problems before they happen, manage risk and identify previously impossible integrated strategies.

“By accessing data that were once lost between project phases or in multiple systems, Willow can assist SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park in identifying opportunities they never knew they had,” said Shaun Klann, president of Willow. “Stadiums are an amazing opportunity to apply the lessons we have learned in commercial real estate, but on a much larger scale. It’s an incredibly exciting project and we are honoured to partner with the ambitious and innovative team at SoFi Stadium.”

At present, SoFi Stadium is slated to host Super Bowl LVI in 2022, the College Football Championship Game in 2023, and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2028 Summer Olympics. Located on the site of a former racetrack, the approximately 70,000-seat stadium will serve as the centrepiece of the reimagined Hollywood Park, featuring a live-work-play experience, from retail, offices, hospitality, residential units and outdoor park spaces.