Partner Article

Virtual house provides training ground for tomorrow's plumbers

A virtual reality house, which can simulate typical plumbing scenarios such as burst pipes and leaking radiators, is being used to train the plumbers of tomorrow.

Advanced computer games technology has been introduced into a new blended learning plumbing course from Train4Trade Skills to bring written theory classes to life.

The PC-based workshops in the virtual reality house give students the chance to master skills such as fixing overflowing water tanks and mending burst pipes without getting under the feet of a plumber or causing costly mistakes.

Majid Al-Kader from Skills2Learn, who applied the `serious games’ technology to create the virtual house, said: “Everyone has seen or played a computer game and we’re all very familiar with the technology. Using it to practise a skill, such as how to diagnose and remedy a burst pipe, helps endorse what has been learnt during the written, theory part of the course.

“By the time a student comes to actually repeat that skill for real, he will be very competent and far less likely to make mistakes”.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .