ForgeFX Simulations is proud to be a training simulator development partner of StrataTech Education Group, a company that focuses on the acquisition, growth and development of specialized career education schools, particularly skilled-trade programs designed to address the nation’s growing infrastructure needs. ForgeFX worked with StrataTech and their subsidiary, the Tulsa Welding School, to develop OcuWeld™, a virtual reality welding training simulator program that teaches students how to prep, grind and join materials in a virtual environment that removes the safety and cost concerns.
OcuWeld Welding Training Simulator
Welcome to the digital transformation of education! The OcuWeld™ welding training simulator utilizes virtual reality to enhance welding training programs using the Meta Quest VR device. Designed by welders for welders, and developed by seasoned ForgeFX Simulations developers, OcuWeld provides welding students with the opportunity to practice their hands-on training in a virtual environment where concerns about safety, access and cost are no longer relevant. OcuWeld immerses students in a virtual environment that mimics real life training experiences and provides the opportunity to practice skills independently.
StrataTech has integrated OcuWeld into the curricula of their subsidiaries, Tulsa Welding School and The Refrigeration School, to ensure that students have future-proof skills that employers are seeking. The program launches at a time when demand for skilled trade workers is at an all-time high in part due to the recently passed Infrastructure Bill. The bill, combined with President Biden’s Build Back Framework, will add an average of 1.5 million jobs per year for the next 10 years, according to The White House.
The growing pace of digitization is shifting the paradigm of education to lifelong learning that requires a continual evolution of technical skills and training. Alex DeClair and Chris Schuler, directors of the welding programs at The Refrigeration School, Inc. (RSI) and Tulsa Welding School (TWS), say today’s students have different needs, and infusing technology into programs is now imperative in the modern education space. Similarly, Chase Lane, VP of Transformation for StrataTech, understands the need for digital transformation in education and its role in addressing the nation’s critical infrastructure needs.
“It’s time that higher education meets the needs of its students rather than vice versa,” said Lane. “Digital is transforming education and ensuring that these technological advances reach the skilled trades is extremely important to StrataTech and vital to the growing needs of our labor force.”
OcuWeld engages students with a mixture of gamification and education. Students enjoy learning in a fun and highly interactive and dynamic environment that mimics real-world applications.
“As educators, it is our responsibility to ensure that we infuse technology into our programs and curriculum to meet the changing needs of our students and their future employers,” said Mary Kelly, President/CEO of StrataTech. “OcuWeld will not only help our students get additional training, it will also position them to meet the growing demand for skilled professionals.”
Read the full OcuWeld Business Wire press release.
