More and more organisations are now using VR for their Health and Safety Weeks

Over the past couple of years, we have seen a rapid expansion of VR being used for internal health and safety weeks.

Clients such as Amazon have now been using our VR hire and software solutions across various locations in the UK to drive their essential health and safety awareness campaigns.

Similarly, companies such as Ken’s food in the US, Dyson in Europe, Maersk in Europe, Beamsuntory, JCB, Magnox and many others have also used our VR hire and H&S software for their awareness weeks.

Why VR for Your Health and Safety Awareness Week?

As experts in VR training with extensive experience in the L&D sector, we understand that certain materials, regardless of how engaging you try to make them, can come across as somewhat dry. This inherent dryness makes it challenging to promote crucial health and safety points since people often lack interest. VR, however, completely changes this dynamic. We have personally witnessed how VR can captivate a distracted and uninterested group, rendering them completely silent as they explore a VR environment to identify hazards.

Some of this may be the novelty of the experience but users often then want to see how well they can do, this “gamification” means users are motivated to get the best score and find all the health and safety hazards they can.

For this reason, our VR hire service has gained popularity for health and safety weeks. Clients frequently set up VR stations in public areas like canteens or entrance atriums, providing users with the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and raise awareness of key health and safety messages.

 

How to Run Your VR Health and Safety Week

We recommend a seated experience, with low, stable chairs, preferably equipped with swivel seats to allow users to easily navigate the virtual environment. In cases where multiple VR headsets are in use, ensure that chairs are adequately spaced to prevent any unintended contact between users, even when they are fully immersed in the VR experience. Some users can become deeply engrossed, so precautions are essential.

All our VR hire headsets come with silicone covers for easy wipe-downs, as well as wipes for the hand controllers between users. If desired, we can also provide a UV “Clean box” machine for additional sanitisation as part of your VR hire.

Our standard VR Slips, Trips, and Falls training program offers various time settings, allowing you to choose between 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or 15 minutes. For roadshows, we recommend the 5-minute setting, while for new employee inductions, you can extend it to 15 minutes. Following the induction, you can engage users in discussions about what they observed, what they may have missed, and why.

Ensure that your designated employees are proficient in setting up the guardian zone, adjusting the headsets for comfort, and are thoroughly familiar with the training app to offer assistance if needed.

When selecting a location for your Health and Safety roadshow, avoid placing headsets in direct sunlight. This is crucial for two reasons:

  • Direct sunlight can permanently damage the headset lenses.
  • Bright sunlight can disrupt tracking, causing users’ virtual hands to behave inaccurately.

Sourcing Suitable VR Training for Your VR Health and Safety Week

As part of our VR consulting services, we will identify relevant software solutions for your organisation. These may include our proprietary software or options from other providers that we have identified to meet your needs.

We offer comprehensive VR consulting and sourcing services. Once we ascertain your training requirements for the event (typically spanning a week), we can present you with a range of VR options to choose from. Moreover, our team can be present on-site to manage the technology, allowing you to focus on the training itself. Additionally, we offer customisation services for VR health and safety training, including branding and adjustments to environments or hazards, tailoring it specifically to your organisation.

 

Evaluate the Knowledge of Your Teams

One of the significant advantages of VR is its data collection capability. This data can be used in various insightful ways:

  • Analyse how much time individuals spend making decisions.
  • Identify gaps in knowledge.
  • Uncover patterns, such as common hazards being overlooked, which may indicate issues with existing training materials or the need for greater emphasis on specific hazards.

VR not only enhances the engagement of training materials but also opens the door for gathering valuable information about health and safety knowledge within the organisation and where future efforts should be directed.

Try a Demo Before Your Own Health and Safety Awareness Weeks

We understand that individuals must experience VR firsthand to fully appreciate the technology. To facilitate this, we offer VR headset demos from our VR hire hubs located in the US, EU, China, Singapore, and the UK. These headsets come preloaded with VR health and safety training modules, allowing you to personally explore why so many companies are turning to this technology to enhance their health and safety awareness campaigns and ongoing training and induction programmes.