Vinci VR, a provider of virtual reality (VR) training for industry, in partnership with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE), a global provider of offshore wind turbines, has today announced that the partnership has been awarded funding from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center to develop VR training simulations for the nascent offshore wind sector in Massachusetts and the East Coast of the US.
According to Vinci VR, there are currently limited training resources available to help address a large workforce gap in US Offshore Wind. As a result, SGRE and Vinci VR are collaborating to create low cost VR training to address this gap in a “safer, faster and more inexpensive way”. The VR solutions created by the partnership will train workers and help them to gain the skills and expertise required in the planning, installation and operations of offshore wind projects throughout Massachusetts and beyond.
“Offshore wind power is an important part of the clean energy future for not only Massachusetts, but the US as a whole. It will play an important role in a greener future; however, to pull this off, there are pieces of the puzzle that America needs to figure out, such as having a qualified and large workforce,” said Eagle Wu, CEO of Vinci VR. “Our VR tools can ensure that the US meets its workforce training needs effectively and safely.”
Vinci VR and SGRE received USD $124,670 in funding. The companies stated that the grant will be used to create the first Global Wind Organizations (GWO) certified VR training tools, starting with two courses (Basic Technical Training-Installation and Slinger Signaler). Building on this grant, Vinci VR and SGRE hope to later expand development of VR simulations to additional GWO modules. The VR integrations for the initial two courses will be developed, audited, and tested by July 2021, according to Vinci VR.
“The US offshore wind industry is growing and shows a lot of promise. We have already secured over 4 GW of conditional offshore wind turbine orders in the US and with this partnership, we hope to help close the workforce training gap in a safe, expedited and cost-efficient manner, all while increasing probability of US based green energy jobs” said Steve Dayney, Head of Offshore, North America, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. “We are excited to partner with Vinci VR on this innovative training series.”
Founded in 2017, Vinci VR is a startup based in Boston, MA that aims to provide VR training for various industries. The company’s flagship solution, Codex, is designed to lower the complexity, time, and cost of creating and managing VR training by enabling teams to create, deploy, and analyze simulations without the need to code. Teams in the US Air Force, Army and Siemens Gamesa are currently using Codex, according to the company. For more information on Vinci VR, please click here.
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Image credit: Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy
