Application of Virtual Reality Simulation as a Tool for Safety Related Training in the Steel Industry

Application of Virtual Reality Simulation as a Tool for Safety Related Training in the Steel Industry

Application of Virtual Reality Simulation as a Tool for Safety Related Training in the Steel Industry

By Franz Ramstorfer, Silvio Braz da Silva, Luis Gaspar da Silva, Virginia Halty Rivero, Bruno Lopes Xavier, and Leonardo Martins Demuner

Abstract

“Due to the nature of the job, workers in the steel industry are inherently threatened by a range of hazards inside the steel plant, which have the potential to cause serious injuries or even fatalities. These hazards include heat, toxic gases and a working environment with close proximity to moving equipment such as cranes, trucks and forklifts. Equipment-related safety hazards include collisions, entrapment between moving equipment parts, as well as exposure to high-energy sources such as heat, electricity and pressurized fluids. During the last decade, steel producers have significantly improved their safety performance, which is reflected by the significant reduction in the lost-time injury frequency rate (LTIFR), which measures the number of lost-time injuries per million-man hours. According to the World Steel Association, the global steel industry LTIFR went from 4.55 in 2006 to 0.83 in 2019, equivalent to an 82% decrease (Fig. 1). Even though this trend shows a significant improvement of the safety level in the steel industry, there is still much progress to be made in order to achieve the ultimate desired goal of zero accidents.”

Reference

Ramstorfer, F., Braz de Silva, S., Gaspar de Silva, L., Rivero, V. H., Xavier, B. L., & Demuner, L. M. (2022, September). Application of Virtual Reality Simulation as a Tool for Safety Related Training in the Steel Industry. Retrieved November 7, 2022, from https://www.aist.org/AIST/aist/AIST/Publications/safety%20first/Safety-First-September-2022.pdf

Keyword

Virtual Reality, simulation, tool, training, steel industry, environment, health, research