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Making virtual shipboard training accessible to allMaking virtual shipboard training accessible to all

Onboard Maritime is aiming to make virtual training for seafarers accessible to all with a new PC-based solution.

Marcus Hand, Editor

November 23, 2023

2 Min Read
Angus Ferguson Founder of Onboard Maritime
Angus Ferguson Founder of Onboard MaritimePhoto: Marcus Hand

Speaking to Angus Ferguson, Founder of Onboard Maritime at Seatrade Maritime Crew Connect Global 2023, he notes they are the only training company that does not have a VR headset as part of its equipment. Rather than its new Virtual Training Shipping is run from a gaming laptop with a £10 X-Box controller.

“The whole point about this, that we set out is to make quality education and really accessible to everyone. So really, we really focused on the cost,” Ferguson explains.

The Virtual Training Ship has been developed by programmers on the game engine Unity.

Unlike more complex offerings in the market with VR headsets that aim to simulate real life Onboard Maritime’s software is designed to provide what he describes as an “adaptive learning” environment.

The learning environment allows companies to create different scenarios where trainees can disassemble and reassemble individual pieces of equipment and Ferguson says the option are essentially limitless.

“So ,people can then focus in and to build up their depth of knowledge. And it's and it's a really cost effective doing it this way because you don't need the actual piece of kit in front of you,” he explains.

The Virtual Training Ship can be customised to an individual owner’s vessels. “So, when you're wandering around the scene on the ship, we can embed company procedures and you actually see exactly what you would see on a ship.”

Related:Mintra in VR training partnership with ARuVR

Onboard Maritime is also working with South Shields Marine School in the UK to co-create materials so it’s aligned to their curriculum and syllabus.

For those who have a more casual interest in a shipping a more mainstream version of the software will be made available on the Steam gaming platform. This will go down the gamification route with a mix of educational and more fun elements putting it into the serious or applied games category.

About the Author

Marcus Hand

Editor

Marcus Hand is the editor of Seatrade Maritime News and a dedicated maritime journalist with over two decades of experience covering the shipping industry in Asia.

Marcus is also an experienced industry commentator and has chaired many conferences and round tables. Before joining Seatrade at the beginning of 2010, Marcus worked for the shipping industry journal Lloyd's List for a decade and before that the Singapore Business Times covering shipping and aviation.

In November 2022, Marcus was announced as a member of the Board of Advisors to the Singapore Journal of Maritime Talent and Technology (SJMTT) to help bring together thought leadership around the key areas of talent and technology.

Marcus is the founder of the Seatrade Maritime Podcast that delivers commentary, opinions and conversations on shipping's most important topics.

Conferences & Webinars

Marcus Hand regularly moderates at international maritime events. Below you’ll find a list of selected past conferences and webinars.

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