Summary
- One month of training for UPS drivers
- “Nothing can replace training in the real world”
- UPS wants to do more in VR
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The usefulness of virtual reality in the professional world is well established. The UPS delivery company understands this and will start next month at train drivers in virtual reality.
One month of training for UPS drivers
The UPS experience aims to make its drivers safer and more alert. In these virtual training sessions, the aspiring driver will have to be totally attentive in order to observe the dangers that surround it. For example, during one of the training sessions, a ball rolls on the road: the driver will have to be extra careful in the event that a child goes to pick it up without paying attention.
This VR test that UPS will impose on its drivers lasts between three and six minutes. It is integrated into a training that lasts one month: one week in a training center then three weeks in nature under the tutelage of an experienced driver.
“Nothing can replace training in the real world”
This training period is essential when it comes to driving a five-ton truck. And virtual reality adds additional security : by training on a computer, they do not endanger anyone.
Of course, “nothing can replace training in the real world, but virtual reality completes it in a way that engages our people, ”Laura Collings, UPS training and development manager, told CNN.
UPS wants to do more in VR
Before this VR experience, UPS was already training its drivers on a computer. Likewise, they had to detect possible dangers on a computer. Simply, the company wanted more immersion during these training sessions and therefore carried the exercise into virtual reality.
For the future, UPS considering new uses for VR, as with the training of mechanics in engine maintenance and repair.
