CITB – VR Construction Site Health and Safety Training

CASE STUDY

THE CLIENT

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) created a fund to increase the uptake and adoption of immersive learning among construction employers.

TCEG partnered with City College Plymouth, Plymouth Construction Training Group and Building Plymouth (alongside other companies including Kier and Willmott Dixon) to create solutions tailored to the local Plymouth area. With booming investment in Plymouth and 10,000 new jobs expected in the next five years, it was vital that our project partnership would maximise its impact on new recruitment in the local construction industry and offer an innovative approach to training.

THE CHALLENGE

A skills gap is threatening the employability of construction students, with many struggling to get onsite experience because of health and safety concerns. Consequently, employers are not comfortable with employing recent graduates. An immersive training solution was needed to address this dynamic, which is preventing a new generation of construction workers – both from higher education (HE) and further education (FE) – from beginning their careers.

Alongside this, the sector suffers from an uninspiring public image, and is looking to modernise and attract new entrants from a wider range of demographics.

THE Solution

We developed a suite of VR materials and training designed to offer innovative, blended learning and risk-free training in a completely authentic setting. These supplement the academic curriculum for both the HE and FE cohorts.

It was imperative that students get a sense of an authentic introduction to a building site. For the first time, we accurately recreated a Kier Living four-bedroom house in VR using real building specifications from one of Kier’s new Plymouth developments. This represents a unique asset and an invaluable foundation learning environment upon which educators can build targeted learning content and journeys to address specific, employer-identified skills gaps. The user experiences an authentic site that feels real by emulating textures and sound design found on a real-world site.

I’ve never done anything like it before

Operating in a similar style to a driving hazard perception test, the training solution is tailored to the different skill levels of the HE and FE demographics. The FE experience guides the user on a linear path around the site through three modules, whereas the HE experience allows much greater independence in free roaming.

We created an unforgettable learning experience punctuated with moments that users could never experience through traditional classroom learning. For instance, the user can simulate the safety procedures necessary before stepping onto a building site – or practise with heavy machinery like a mitre saw.

I’d like to see it more in the classroom

The training has had an early rollout across the FE and HE courses, before its full implementation in September 2020. Future students will use the solution to supplement their classroom learning in health and safety, and it will be the basis of assessed coursework on risk assessment.

RESULTS

Teaching and learning through immersive learning will become a key feature in curriculum planning within colleges and universities across the globe in the next ten years, and we are proud to say that we are leading the way in the engineering sector.

Lance Chatfield, Academy Manager at City College Plymouth

TRY IT FOR YOURSELF

Get in touch and find out how we can help you create a new reality for your training. Engaging, impactful, and cost effective immersive solutions.