The ABP VIRTUAL TRAINING is an important part of the ABP VIRTUAL ACADEMY. This is where important actions, work steps and emergency measures can be planned – from any location and at any time, on a virtual twin of a system. Modules such as the „Bridging“ module can be used to train scenarios that would ideally not occur in real life – but which cannot be easily trained in real-life situations either. This makes it possible to virtually stage real conditions that would not be possible to create on the actual object for safety reasons. The virtual training courses are also a tool for training new employees. ABP‘s virtual training modules can be easily completed as a desktop application like a computer game or interactively in the room using special equipment.
The virtual training modules are developed by ABP‘s digitalization experts and are based on years of experience in the field, as well as on feedback from various ABP customers. As such, special training modules can also be developed for irregular maintenance and malfunctions that occur only infrequently. Individual scenarios just for the production environment of a single customer can also be developed.
There are numerous advantages to virtual training. Because of the abstraction factor, there is never any danger for man or machine, and at the same time, working on the system is extremely realistic because of the interaction it provides. On the other hand, the virtual trainings are particularly efficient.
Production operations are not restricted, there is no need for cost-intensive melting, and time can be saved thanks to the accelerated simulation. Since training can be conducted at any time in basically any location, you also save on travel expenses and unproductive employee time as a result of traveling.
ABP Virtual Training: With the „Bridging“ module, foundry employees can practice on a digital twin
A very striking example is the training to prevent bridging in the induction furnace of our foundry customers. When melting in the induction furnace, the charge material can form a solid blanket above the active coil because the electromagnetic field no longer couples there. This can interfere with the actual melting process by causing this part to get stuck and prevent the scrap from sliding into the active part of the coil. The potential consequence: This results in severe overheating of the melt in the lower crucible section, which loses contact with the scrap suspended above it. This overheating can attack and damage the furnace lining. Failure to detect this in time can result in furnace blowout or explosion due to overheating. All in all, this is a process that can have a massive impact on safety and operation and must be avoided at all costs.
This is where training comes in: ABP Induction has developed a virtual training module specifically for the bridging phenomenon. It allows the scenario described to be simulated and then trained – on the digital twin of the system and thus not in a direct production environment, but in a highly practical manner while taking all safety-relevant aspects into account. The employee trains all work steps virtually and is also able to experience hazardous situations in this special training that are impossible to train in the physical environment – and, in the best case scenario, should not ever occur at all.