REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE | VIRTUAL REALITY


AR to advance operations


Augmented reality (AR) enables workers at reactors to access manuals and instructional videos, and speak directly to colleagues and experts thousands of miles away, as they complete maintenance tasks. Daryl Roy and Kelly Malone explain


Founder, 3D Media Daryl Roy


THE SAFE AND EFFICIENT OPERATION of a nuclear facility depends upon an expertly trained workforce capable of maintaining, diagnosing, and servicing sophisticated systems and complex equipment that must work — and work together — flawlessly. Utilities can invest a million dollars and more to train an individual operator, over 18 months and more. The goal is exceptional competence and procedural adherence, and a solid knowledge of plant design and theory. But even with the best training, there is no replacement for operators with hands-on experience, who possess a level of knowledge unobtainable in a classroom or training programme. Utilities need put this invaluable knowledge to work. Simultaneously, energy companies need to upskill


frontline veterans. Additional skillsets are frequently at technology’s cutting-edge and it is essential to provide ongoing and regular training to operators. Technological advances are providing innovative ways to


tap into the knowledge and skillsets of experienced workers and train new generations of operators on core procedures and new protocols. Specifically, advanced augmented reality (AR) systems that enable nuclear facility operators to keep fully up to speed on best practices, and empower them to access expert instruction on rarely used procedures when necessary. The role of AR can be tied to a SMART approach to


Kelly Malone


Chief customer officer, Taqtile


operation fundamentals: ● Solid knowledge – Does what you’re doing deliver


powerful, actionable knowledge to the individual, and empower them to make the right decision at the right time?


● Monitor – Do you have the ability to monitor the facility effectively?


● Act with a conservative bias – Are you installing technology for technology’s sake? Do you need it? Does it help?


● Rigorous control – Are you considering all the risks that are involved, both the physical risks and the cyber risks? Are you taking proactive steps to control and manage these risks?


● Teamwork – Have you considered more than just the obvious users? Account for technologically-advanced operators, as well as team members who may prefer pen and paper. Make the technology easy to use and indispensable for all individuals.


Capturing valuable organisational knowledge Unique information — equipment-specific maintenance and


38 | August 2021 | www.neimagazine.com


repair procedures, system insights, insights into available organisational resources, even awareness of management style and company culture is invaluable company-specific knowledge.


This unique knowledge set is supplemented by new and


rapidly expanding SCADA/ industrial internet of things (IIoT) and related data, provided by a new generation of sensors. Sensors are being incorporated into legacy equipment, as well as being standard on new equipment. Advanced AR systems can address the need for ‘Solid


knowledge’ (above), capturing utility-specific knowledge and leveraging system data, turning it into procedures all frontline staff can use. The result is improved operational efficiency, increased safety, and consistent completion of complex tasks, which raises employee productivity and allows utilities to operate safely and profitably.


Deliver real-time access to authored content With instruction provided through AR, operators can walk up to a piece of equipment and follow step-by-step instructions to get the job done using a phone or tablet, or a headset when hands-free operation is needed. Performing complex tasks consistently and efficiently is a critical goal. The ability for experts to author content themselves


is essential, especially when it comes to communicating procedures for infrequent maintenance tasks such as reactor head venting.


With this need in mind, AR systems such as Manifest from


Taqtile are designed to be intuitive. Knowledge experts are able to create step-by-step digital work instructions overlaid on facility equipment, which other operators view via their device or headset. The author can also make available supporting materials assisting in the repair or maintenance process, such as photographs, videos, PDFs, or manuals and documents, delivered in a hands-free heads- up display when needed. Real-time access to content, ranging from step-by-step video instruction walking frontline staff through complex procedures to detailed holograms, will increase AR’s value. And when needed, live remote assist from the facility’s operations centre, utility headquarters or equipment OEMs, can be made available. To assist in auditing, capturing evidence — a picture or video showing the proper performance, or visuals demonstrating completion of a task — is critical. Capturing evidence also helps orchestrate operations across teams, where one operator may be located at a piece of equipment, another at an electrical panel and a third in the


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