Northumbrian Water has teamed up with Gateshead College to pioneer a virtual reality training tool, to help improve key areas of the business and prepare the future workforce for jobs in the real world.
The UK gaming industry is worth £4.2billion and is growing at a rate of 10 per cent a year. It directly employs over 20,000 people and is one of the most creative, challenging and dynamic career routes you can pursue.
However, there’s still a common misconception that gaming and video production studies are irrelevant to the wider business world. In reality, gaming and everything it brings – virtual reality, animation and audio and visual production – can produce groundbreaking tools that can really benefit any business, no matter what sector.
“Technology has and will continue to transform how businesses operate, says Richard Ward, curriculum leader at head College. “Just ask Northumbrian Water. They commissioned our Higher National Diploma Games Production students to create a video-based virtual reality training tool, which formed part of their assessment. They wanted it to help explain what their engineers did, how they pinpointed water supply issues and how they’re able to rectify such issues. Our students visited Northumbrian Water’s Control Room and were asked to virtually recreate this in a way that can be used in other areas of the business to describe how engineers spot a problem and create a plan to fix it.
“I am so proud of the students and their capabilities in responding to this real-life business challenge with a viable solution. Our courses are about so much more than what happens in the classroom; we focus on ensuring our students build industry relevant skills and knowledge and throughout this project they showed passion and maturity and developed a strong relationship with Northumbrian Water.
Once produced, the virtual reality tool will provide a range of benefits to the water company. It can be used during onboarding for new people joining the organisation, to share some of the Control Room activities and challenges with other teams in the business and in outreach activities in schools and colleges.
During the project, students learned real, handson skills that will stand them in good stead when it comes to getting a job. As well as honing their project and client management talents, they also acquired vital character traits that can’t necessarily be taught in a classroom such as patience, consideration and reflection. The project has been so successful, Gateshead College is looking to roll it out again with next year’s students.
Sophie Carvin, academy manager at Northumbrian Water, adds: “It’s been a really educational experience for us as a business to work so closely with Gateshead College students and wonderful to see them grow their confidence and skills.
“Not only have they impressed us with their abilities, we genuinely feel that the tool, once it’s up and running, will be valuable to the business. It will, for example, be used to raise awareness amongst young people of the worthwhile, challenging but often hidden careers in the water industry that are critical to ensuring we all have clean, clear and safe water.
“I am interested to see how this works and how people respond. Hopefully it will also open up opportunities to change the way we deliver some of our training to the business in the future.
“The students have shown a great work ethic and attitude and we are looking forward to them showcasing the project and the benefits virtual reality can provide, not just to our business but to other businesses across the region too, at our 2019 NWG Innovation Festival.”
For more details on Northumbrian Water's Innovation Festival, visit: innovationfestival.org/ 6
