We’d like to invite you to watch a recording of our January 9, 2019 webcast. The program will highlight pharmaceutical industry leader Novartis and its new state-of-the-art virtual reality (VR) simulation, which teaches best practice production and aseptic procedures.
In this innovative sim, learners will be able to strap on a VR headset, grab hand controllers and step into a hyper-realistic virtual manufacturing facility to practice life-saving procedures. Walking around in a to-scale virtual reality room, they’ll weld tubes, remove bag caps, label bags, sanitize their hands, spike bags and lots, lots more.
The sim also helps demonstrate the invisible. (If that sounds cool, wait until you actually see it.) For instance, it’s important for techs to minimize disruption of air flow in the Biological Safety Cabinet. The VR sim demonstrates how to do this by moving the hands slowly and holding bags vertically, while not covering the air grille (which sounds simpler than it is). Thanks to the technology, learners can actually see air flow as they move around in the environment.
The sim integrates an interactive lesson plan with demonstrations in the virtual environment, allowing students to watch and practice each step before they enter the real production facility. In doing so, it not only reinforces the core knowledge surrounding the processes, but as students rehearse techniques over and over in preparation for real-life performance, it actually builds muscle memory.
So much research and application these days demonstrates the ways VR creates a visceral sense of “presence” – of actually being in the situation. Learners frequently report a level of focus and immersion so powerful they lose track of time. Most importantly, VR promotes learning in the context where the skills will be applied – a quality that’s increasingly appropriate when one mistake can contaminate the entire process.
The Gronstedt Group couldn’t be prouder about the opportunity to partner with such a think-forward company to bring their vision to (virtual) reality.
Bring your questions and insights for a lively session featuring Kate Hoegenauer, Head of Training and Learning at Novartis Technical Operations (who led the development of the sim); Novartis SME Vladimir Solano; and the Gronstedt Group development team.
Wednesday January 9, 2019, noon ET
We hope the presentation will inspire some insights on your part as you consider how to integrate VR – “the ultimate learning machine” – into your organization. The research is conclusive: Repeated actions in virtual reality alter neural wiring, in turn improving real world performance.
Emerging VR technologies activate this critical learning dynamic at scale. New enterprise-grade platforms enable safe deployment of VR behind the firewall integrated with LMS and LRS. The latest generation of affordable stand-alone headsets don’t require a phone or PC and afford learners greater freedom of movement and a complete sense of presence. This gear also features positional tracking (“6-degres of freedom” in industry lingo), giving learners the ability to lean in, duck, walk around and grab objects with their hands.
Industry-leaders like Novartis are already using advanced VR methods to develop learning simulators modeled on the flight simulator, which has (up until now, anyway) been the gold standard for skill-based learning. Everyone from doctors to service technicians will be trained like the famed Captain Sully, who landed his disabled airliner on the Hudson River, saving scores of lives.
The holodeck is finally here. Inexpensive consumer devices and license-free game engines make it affordable to deploy engaging VR learning solutions at every point of need. However, learning tools are only as good as the strategists and developers building them. Creating high-impact VR simulations requires a team of seasoned game pros.
We’re incredibly proud of the immersive sims we’ve developed this year at the Gronstedt Group, which addressed everything from driving cars to improving customer empathy, and we look forward to sharing our experiences with you in the new year.
We look forward to seeing you and a host of industry leaders during the live webcast on January 9, and as always we especially look forward to the Q&A.
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