Visual Components Oy, a Finland-based developer of 3D manufacturing simulation and robot offline programming software, has introduced a new digital twin viewport that brings NVIDIA Omniverse libraries and OpenUSD interoperability directly into its simulation environment. Known as FactoryLens, the capability allows manufacturers, machine builders and system integrators to move factory layouts already created for simulation into a higher-fidelity visual environment without rebuilding the underlying model in separate rendering software. Real-time visualization, material control, image and video capture, and USD export remain connected to the same broader workflow used to design and validate the production system. 

That continuity is central to the engineering value of the integration. Manufacturing simulations are built to evaluate practical questions around equipment placement, robot reach, material flow, cycle time, congestion and process interaction before hardware reaches the factory floor. FactoryLens adds a more realistic visualization layer to those existing models without separating the visual representation from the simulation on which the engineering decisions are based. The result is a common model that can move more naturally between simulation, design review and broader digital twin workflows.

Visual Components FactoryLens software screenshot showing a high-fidelity digital factory simulation using NVIDIA Omniverse technologies, Industrial Automation Monthly.

Visual Components is integrating NVIDIA Omniverse libraries, RTX rendering and OpenUSD interoperability into its factory simulation platform, extending existing manufacturing models toward higher-fidelity digital twins and future virtual commissioning and physical-AI workflows.

The platform combines several NVIDIA technologies within that environment. NVIDIA RTX provides the rendering layer for realistic materials, lighting, shadows and reflections, while NVIDIA PhysX continues to support the underlying physical behavior represented in the simulation. OpenUSD provides the interoperability path, allowing factory configurations to be exported for use in compatible external environments and broader digital twin workflows. Rather than functioning simply as a file format, OpenUSD provides a structured framework for composing complex 3D scenes from multiple assets and data sources, an increasingly useful capability as factory models combine CAD geometry, robot models, production equipment and other engineering data.

“We believe the future of manufacturing is built on connected digital twins, not isolated applications,” said Mika Anttila, Chief Technical Officer and Co-founder at Visual Components. “FactoryLens is our first step in bringing NVIDIA Omniverse libraries into Visual Components, so manufacturers can see how their factories will really look and behave before they build them, while keeping the productivity and ease of use our customers already know.”

Visual Components already supports factory and warehouse simulation through a library of more than 4,000 components, including industrial robots, production machinery, conveyors, autonomous mobile robots, forklifts and other manufacturing equipment. FactoryLens adds visual fidelity to those existing layouts rather than changing how the underlying simulation is built. A robot cell, conveyor system or full factory layout can therefore be developed and validated through the established engineering workflow, then viewed with more realistic materials and lighting or exported through OpenUSD for continued use elsewhere.

FactoryLens also extends the value of the simulation model across engineering, operations and project review. Because the higher-fidelity visualization remains tied to the same underlying factory model, teams can review equipment placement, access, material flow and system behavior without creating a separate representation for visualization. That continuity helps preserve alignment between the engineering model and the digital twin as the project moves through design, validation and implementation.

“Integrating NVIDIA technologies into Visual Components brings increased physical accuracy and fidelity to simulated worlds, and is a natural fit for the rise of physical AI and the value simulation brings to that domain,” said Mustafa Kamal, Business Development Director at Visual Components. “Combining NVIDIA’s open libraries and frameworks with the fast, easy-to-use simulation products of Visual Components opens the door for everyone to build realistic digital twins.”

The OpenUSD layer also creates a foundation for workflows that extend beyond visualization. Factory configurations can move into compatible environments without requiring the complete scene to be reconstructed, preserving a more consistent digital representation as data passes between engineering tools. That becomes increasingly relevant where manufacturers combine CAD assets, robot models, simulation logic and production-system data across multiple software environments or development teams.

Visual Components is positioning FactoryLens as a foundation for future applications including vision-based virtual commissioning, synthetic-data generation, and model and policy training and evaluation for physical AI. Those capabilities remain part of the platform roadmap rather than current FactoryLens functionality, but they point toward a broader evolution in industrial simulation. Factory models are increasingly becoming reusable engineering environments in which robot behavior, machine-vision systems and automation strategies can be developed and evaluated before they are introduced into physical production.

“Manufacturers are increasingly using simulation to design, test, and optimize complex production environments and physical AI systems before making changes on the factory floor,” said Vikram Natarajan, general manager for Omniverse at NVIDIA. “By integrating NVIDIA Omniverse libraries into FactoryLens, Visual Components is helping engineering teams make faster decisions and extend their workflows to new physical AI applications, including synthetic data generation for model training and fleet-scale validation.”

FactoryLens is available in Visual Components 5.1.1, adding the high-fidelity viewport, image and video output, and USD export to the existing simulation environment. The release represents another step in Visual Components’ collaboration with NVIDIA and establishes a common path between factory simulation and the wider OpenUSD ecosystem.

For industrial automation developers, the larger shift is the continued convergence of simulation, visualization and interoperable factory data. A useful digital twin depends on more than visual realism; it must retain the engineering relationships, physical behavior and production logic that determine how the system operates. By bringing NVIDIA visualization and OpenUSD interoperability into an established manufacturing simulation environment, Visual Components is extending the same factory model further across design, validation and future virtual commissioning and physical-AI workflows.

About Visual Components Oy

Visual Components develops 3D manufacturing simulation and robot offline programming software for manufacturers, machine builders and system integrators. With approximately 25 years in the market, the company supports factory layout design, production simulation and robot programming through a platform that includes more than 4,000 ready-made manufacturing components and robot models. Visual Components has been part of the KUKA Group since 2017 and works with more than 2,400 brands and 40 partners worldwide. Its software is used across manufacturing applications ranging from factory and production-line planning to robot offline programming, automation validation and digital twin development. For more information on Visual Components and its industrial simulation technologies, please click here. 

Source/Photo Credit: Visual Components

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Molly Bakewell Chamberlin
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