Firefighting on board Ships

Client:
The German Armed Forces has the third-largest education budget in Germany. There are few institutions that can match the innovative vitality of the German Armed Forces. In many fields, the German Armed Forces are at the cutting edge of learning with new media. This includes, for example, the use of 3D simulations that make scenarios trainable that previously could not be safely rehearsed.

Objective:
Fire on board a ship on open seas is a scenario that no one ever wants to experience first-hand. Yet that is exactly why it is necessary to train for it, so that in an emergency, swift and decisive action can be taken and disaster can be averted. Thus the objective was a learning scenario that included a life-like depiction of all the things that could go wrong and thus offered opportunities to gain real experiences in an "unreal" world. The task was to train seamen in the German Navy who were setting out to sea. The key was to train them not only on military aspects, such as how to react to fires during combat situations, but also on how to work closely with civilian authorities.

One customer requirement for the learning program in particular involved the combination of an attractive graphic interface, a high level of interaction despite the use of old computers and the maintenance of network integrity of the German Armed Forces data network. Making it run without installation on old operating systems such as Windows 2000/NT on a Pentium III processor with an old graphics card (only 64 MB memory) required a special method of rendering graphics and programming.

The program, “Firefighting on board Ships and Boats of the German Navy” bridges the gap between traditional instruction, e-learning and mission training in virtual 3D scenarios. The simulation in a 3-D world involves fire situations on board a frigate in various degrees of difficulty. After the learners have mastered the basics of firefighting in a traditional learning program using photos, videos and 2D/3D models supported by texts and audio, they can enter into the simulation. In the role-plays there they must confront and resolve various situations. In this manner, they experience the different duties (roles) necessary to fulfill when fighting a fire. In case they encounter a life-threatening situation, the simulation is aborted - after all, they are not to be trained in any wrong procedures. The detailed follow-up evaluation of the activities enables a self-critical reflection of one's own actions. The knowledge gained in the traditional learning program can thus be applied repeatedly and reinforced in the simulation.

The software was evaluated in a field test and was very favorably received by all the participants. Not only did our project partner from the navy office in Rostock, Germany, describe the learning program as a “future-driven and trendsetting project”. We are happy to report that this statement is also underscored by the conferment of the e-learning award and the nomination among the finalists of the eureleA competition by two independent committees.

This learning tool belongs to the product field “Virtual Mission Trainer”, or ViMiT for short. As part of ViMiT, the simulation was showcased to various professional firefighters at trade exhibitions such as INTERSCHUTZ, FLORIAN and the Firefighter Training Symposium. The trade visitors were enthusiastic about the possibilities of this training tool. Especially in the area of rescue, firefighting, civil protection and safety, the idea of ViMiT, the role-based simulation, as a trendsetting training tool was validated.