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Simulate this

Last year, the Mining Industry Skills Centre (MISC) teamed up with simulation experts QinetiQ to launch Project Canary, the resource sector’s first serious games-based training simulator. MISC adult learning and development chief advisor Deanna Hutchinson told MiningNewsPremium the tool placed individuals in a virtual world where they were confronted with realistic workplace scenarios in underground and surface mining. “Currently, the Australian resources industry does not have access to any training tool like Project Canary,” Hutchinson told CIN’S sister publication MiningNewsPremium.net. “Project Canary has been developed based on industry research and is designed to provide training that demands the full involvement of individual users, requiring them to put their skills and knowledge to the test in real-life scenarios.“The result will be better prepared people working to meet our industry’s objective of zero harm.” Hutchinson said that unlike other safety training simulations, Project Canary used multi-player scenarios which greatly expanded the potential to train users. “[The tool] helps trainers focus on the cognitive aspects of learning as it is a platform for exploring the decision-making process learners employ consciously and sub-consciously in their actions,” she said. The project was launched in September at MISC’s annual conference and has so far received a significant number of enquiries from organisations in Australia as well as overseas.Project Canary scenariosScenario 1: Hazard awarenessThe first scenario requires the learner to identify key hazards in their surroundings while conducting a clean-up in a minesite workshop. This scenario requires the learner to perform risk assessments and implement appropriate risk protocols. Scenario 2: Vehicle interactionThis scenario requires the user to select and operate a vehicle while applying their skills and knowledge in a variety of situations. Scenario 3: Underground coal hazardsThe user will be required to perform tasks in an underground coalmine while performing risk assessments. Scenario 4: EmergencyThe fourth scenario involves the user being placed in a surface minesite where an emergency situation is unfolding and requires the user to correctly follow emergency communication procedures. What the future holdsThe MISC is planning a technical upgrade of Project Canary every three years to include new technology, while updates to training module scenarios and object packs are made each quarter. A forum will also be developed for trainers to share experiences and ideas for further improving the quality of the simulator. Project Canary is available for purchase while demonstrations of the product will begin this month in Brisbane followed by a regional and interstate road show in April.The MISC is a Queensland-based, not-for-profit organisation and was formerly known as the Queensland Mining Industry Training Advisory Body before being re-launched in 2006.

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