The VIVES project (Virtual, Immersive, Vision, Endesa, Safety) was created with a two-fold objective. On one hand, it is a fundamental tool in the “LOTO” methodology, a new physical locking and tagging procedure recently implemented at Endesa, aimed at ensuring that equipment and facilities are in a safe condition during operations which may pose a risk to the operator. On the other hand, it aims to offer more employee training and motivation by using the most advanced training techniques based on emerging technology, and in turn contributing to the company’s digital transformation project.
Specifically, the LOTO system is a safety procedure to disconnect and isolate the different energy sources of industrial equipment while maintenance, cleaning or repair work takes place. The LOTO procedure protects workers from accidental switching on of power, such as residual energy or an unexpected start-up which could provoke an accident during a maintenance or insulation service (cuts, entrapment, burns, electrocution, etc.)
The training solution for staff at Endesa generation business facilities integrates the advantages of virtual reality and serious games, allowing training of agents in the correct execution of the phases of de-energising (both mechanical and electrical): locking, verification and energisation. At every level, different real situations and interactions are recreated with other actors who intervene in the process. The de-energising agent will have to act on these, applying the procedures associated with LOTO and the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
The solution faithfully reproduces the facility environment in 3D, using immersive applications and thanks to the thorough preliminary work capturing the images and recording the locking manoeuvres carried out by company experts at one of the thermal generation plants. It facilitates training in both routine and extraordinary situations without putting people or assets at risk, at the same time as significantly reducing the time to adopt theoretical and practical knowledge.
On the other hand, immersive experience and practice also improve the understanding of operations and procedures to be applied in order to maintain safety, and increase motivation in a context of learning and self-empowerment.
These initiatives are yet another example of Endesa’s commitment to the digitalisation of processes, in line with the strategy followed by the Enel Group, which the company is a part of. State-of-the-art technology is being applied in this digitalisation process, allowing for the digital transformation of industrial assets, the customer relationship and the improvement of the company’s digital capacity. All of this, with efficient management of hazards associated with cybersecurity, substantial improvement of processes and new cost savings.
Source: Company Press Release.
