Saturday, September 28, 2013

Construction and Agriculture Equipment Training Simulators

These days if you're in the business of selling construction or agriculture equipment you also need to offer to a line of operator training simulators to compete in today's market. John Deere is one of the largest manufacturers of agriculture, construction, and forestry machinery in the world. Their products include tractors, harvesters, balers, planters, loaders, dozers, excavators, mowers, and diesel engines. But it's not just real-world machinery that sets John Deere apart from their competitors. Their impressive line of training simulators sets them apart as an industry leader when it comes to virtual training for construction and agriculture equipment operator training, and sets the bar higher if you're trying to compete with them.

Offering simulators to end-users at affordable prices allows organizations to train operators in a cost-effective, safe, and risk-free virtual environment. Their simulators allow operators to become familiar with equipment controls, learn proper techniques, and gain the necessary level of confidence required to operate the machinery.


Construction Equipment Operator Training Simulators
Simulation-based training reduces fuel and operating costs, eliminates the need for real-world machinery downtime, and minimizes the risks to personnel. Simulators that replicate machine controls, feature budget-based training, and expose operators to real-world situations and jobsite hazards, produce more highly skilled operators. Training simulators allow you to train your operators regardless of the time of day, weather conditions, or any other limitation that reduces the amount of real-world training you can conduct.

If you're competing in the construction and agriculture heavy equipment business and you're not offering a training simulator to your customers, chances are your potential customers are going to go with one of your competitors that do offer training simulators to their clients.

www.forgefx.com Contact us on ForgeFX Get updates by liking us on Facebook Get updates on Facebook Get tweets by following us on Twitter Get tweets on Twitter Stay connected by following us on LinkedIn Connect on LinkedIn



Thursday, September 26, 2013

International Construction and Utility Equipment Exposition Training Simulators

Next week the International Construction and Utility Equipment Exposition (ICUEE) will take place in Louisville, Kentucky. If you work in either the Electric, Phone and Cable, Sewer and Water, Gas, General Construction, Landscaping, or Public Works Construction sectors - this is the place to be. If you're attending the exposition, you'll have the opportunity to demo the latest and greatest equipment, meet with industry experts and learn about recent advances in technology that are affecting your industry. With a focus on hands-on experiences, you'll be able to try out a wide variety of equipment in job-like conditions to see how your organization can benefit from the range of products being demonstrated.

And it's not just real-world equipment that you'll be able to get your hands on, a number of heavy equipment 3D training simulators will be available for attendees to try out as well. My company ForgeFX will be there demonstrating some of our latest heavy equipment virtual training simulators, booth number 1818. So if you're going to be in attendance, stop by, meet our team, and try your hand at operating some of our virtual earth moving training simulators. If you'd like to meet privately with us at the expo to discuss having us build a simulator for you, your best bet is to contact us now and schedule an appointment as our calendar is rapidly filling up.


Electric Rope Shovel Training Simulator
Heavy Equipment Training Simulators
Our training simulators give operators a chance to fully master machine knowledge and controls, understand the full range of machine handling, and develop correct instinctive operation behaviors. All of this is done in a safe virtual environment where mistakes become learning opportunities rather than costly mishaps. Our clients have cited a number of economic advantages that accompany simulation-based training, including a reduction in fuel consumption, less wear-and-tear on real-world machinery, fewer collisions, and lower instances of human error-based mistakes. With more and more heavy equipment manufactures providing virtual training simulators packages with their real-world equipment, can you really afford not to offer a training simulator for all of your products?

www.forgefx.com Contact us on ForgeFX Get updates by liking us on Facebook Get updates on Facebook Get tweets by following us on Twitter Get tweets on Twitter Stay connected by following us on LinkedIn Connect on LinkedIn



Friday, September 20, 2013

Simulator Training for Weather-Based Events

One of the hardest things to train for are weather-based events since you have no control over the weather. Take for example the training of snow plow operators. In the past you would need snow on the ground in order to train your plow operators, but that's when you want your operators out on the road plowing, not working with a trainer. Virtual training simulators allow you to train for weather-based events year-round, so when the snow begins to fall you've got a fully trained workforce ready to tackle the job.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation recently started using snow plow training simulators to train their operators. The training simulator replicates slick roadways, hazardous conditions, poor visibility, hidden obstacles, and even children and animals running across the road. While the operator is training to operate the plow, the software is keeping track of their ability to maintain a consistent speed, keep their distance from obstacles, manage their fuel consumption, and all of the other skills required to safely and effectively operate the plow.

Virtual Snow Plow Training Simulator
In addition to being able to train year-round, the simulator saves the department money by reducing the amount of fuel they would burn during real-world plow training. In addition, training simulators allow real-world equipment to be spared the heavy usage often associated with training, thus reducing maintenance costs and allowing machinery to last longer. Regardless of what weather-based event you are training for, a simulator will reduce your costs and allow your staff to be better prepared when you need them to be.

www.forgefx.com Contact us on ForgeFX Get updates by liking us on Facebook Get updates on Facebook Get tweets by following us on Twitter Get tweets on Twitter Stay connected by following us on LinkedIn Connect on LinkedIn



Nuclear Power Plant Training Simulators

If you're in the business of training complex system operators you're well aware of the challenges involved. From making sure that your staff is fluent with the controls, to gauging their level of competency, to guaranteeing year-round training opportunities; virtual training simulators provide you with all of these benefits. And if your operators are charged with mission-critical tasks these benefits become a necessity, rather than a nicety. When it comes to mission-critical tasks, nuclear power plant operation is at the top of the list. And how do you train your nuclear power plant operators? With training simulators of course. The African continent may only have one nuclear power plant, the Koeberg nuclear power station in South Africa, but they already have two state-of-the-art training simulators. The simulators replicate the station's main control room as well as the emergency control facility.

Earlier this year the same company that delivered the simulator to Koeberg, L-3 MAPPS, produced a training simulator for the Embalse nuclear power plant in Argentina. The Embalse simulator runs on a standard Windows operating system platform and simulates all of the plants operational systems, including the reactor, steam supply and electrical systems.

In China, at the Sanmen and Haiyang Nuclear Power Plant, the Westinghouse Electric Company recently installed their AP1000 nuclear power plant training simulators, considered the most modern nuclear power plant operator training simulators in the world. Utilizing the real-world plant instrumentation and controls, the simulator delivers a high degree of realism, allowing plant operators to be prepared to take their operator license examination within 18 months of the start of their training.

Whether you're training operators to run a nuclear power plant, a natural gas power plant, or any other complicated system or piece of machinery - virtual training simulators allow for the highest degree of fidelity, without incurring any of the costs, risks and potential hazards associated with real-world training. Obviously nuclear power plants are at the high end of the spectrum when it comes to the risks associated with training, but regardless of your equipment, if you're training new employees or keeping seasoned operators' skills sharp, training simulators allow you to conduct training year-round, under a variety of simulated conditions and without taking real-world equipment out of production.

www.forgefx.com Contact us on ForgeFX Get updates by liking us on Facebook Get updates on Facebook Get tweets by following us on Twitter Get tweets on Twitter Stay connected by following us on LinkedIn Connect on LinkedIn


Monday, September 16, 2013

Dredging Industry Utilizes Virtual Training Simulators

When you think about virtual training simulators you probably picture pilots training to operate an aircraft, but training simulators are becoming more common in just about every industry where training can be costly and risky for mission-critical tasks. If your equipment is costly, the consumables it relies on are expensive, and the work can be dangerous - then there's a good chance a training simulator is right for you. Take for example dredging, probably not the first industry that comes to mind when you think of 3D training simulators, but think again.

Dredge Technology Corporation (DTC) offers virtual dredging training via a Beaver 6518 cutter 3D simulator that allows trainees to practice for scenarios they'll face in the real-world, in a safe controlled virtual environment. Operators are able to train in a variety of simulated conditions, without the need to create potentially hazardous situations, and without incurring any production loss.

Earlier this month the Training Institute for Dredging (TID) organized the India Dredging Experience, enabling visitors to operate their Beaver 6518 simulator, allowing them to experience first-hand the benefits of simulation-based training. TID claims that the simulator helps to improve key performance indicators, leading to higher uptime rates and a decrease in cost per cubic meter. TID also organized the India Dredging Competition, where participants compete against each other, using the simulator to dredge a harbor channel entrance as fast and efficiently as possible.

Earlier this year DTC conducted their first US-based simulator-based dredging training sessions in Clearwater, Florida. The training simulator sessions were attended by Fortune 500 dredging and construction companies including Mosaic and Manson.

Simulator-based training has opened up a new educational application model in dredging, among a number of other industries as well. By including simulation-based training into curriculums, early adopters will see a number of benefits. The improvement of skills and techniques coupled with the cost savings returned by well-trained operators who make fewer mistakes easily outweighs the cost of developing a training simulator. If you're responsible for training people to operate machinery that is expensive, costly to maintain, and has the potential to create hazardous conditions, a training simulator may be just what you're looking for to give your organization the upper hand.

www.forgefx.com Contact us on ForgeFX Get updates by liking us on Facebook Get updates on Facebook Get tweets by following us on Twitter Get tweets on Twitter Stay connected by following us on LinkedIn Connect on LinkedIn