The Future of Learning

The unexpected discomfort caused by Covid-19 pandemic and all the consequent government restrictions on travels and social distancing have pushed all the Training Organizations worldwide into an unusual challenge, being forced to support their Customers from afar. This work aims to thoroughly analyze the success of the Remote Learning methodology, highlighting key factors impacting the learning curve, and to share effective improvement ideas for this approach to deliver training focused on technical and human skills. Many companies reacted to this situation by investing largely in and increasing the adoption of digital technologies to facilitate internal and external communications and more specifically to support Remote Learning. However, despite the prompt response, many Training Organizations found themselves delivering their products through a series of trials, mistakes and lesson learned on methodology and tools. The detection of few but significant improvements increased effectiveness and improved interaction in our Remote Classes. The improvement actions concerned learning how to make the most of the available digital technologies and identifying the most effective applications for sharing documents and interacting with participants; at the same time, a great focus on the human skills approach was crucial to learn how to promote trust, motivation and interaction between our staff and Customers’ personnel. In this perspective, Operator Training Simulations (OTS) and Remote VR Training have emerged as one of the best applications to increase the attendees’ learning curve and help develop Customers’ personnel skills. Our study, however, isn't all about bright stars. The feedback told us that some Customers still prefer to take in-person training classes rather than remote ones. Sometimes this relates with biases against remote or digital activities, but it often applies where hard activities need to be performed.

Applications of Augmented Reality Technology in the Military Educational Field

The aim of this paper is to present practical applications of augmented reality technology AR, corroborated with facilities of VR virtual reality technology, made using existing equipment in the Academy of Land Forces, by the authors of the paper and with the involvement of passionate academics. of this direction of scientific research. Augmented reality technology is part of the field of emerging technologies and along with disruptive technologies, are areas that are currently being addressed intensively in terms of research and their use in civilian and military applications. The research methodology was based on the creation of scenarios in which AR equipment was used, and with the help of the Ada Viewer software application, operator-specific information was augmented. The behavior of the operators was then evaluated by comparative analysis with the classical scenarios. The obtained results highlight the advantages of augmented reality technology, allowing the efficiency of the activities and actions of the operators. The range of practical applications with AR technology can be developed for many disciplines of education and training of military students in the academy, and the combination of AR technology and virtual reality facilities will allow modeling and simulation of operator training scenarios and more active involvement.

Assessment of Chainsaw Operators Training in Andalusia (Spain)

The chainsaw, as a work equipment, is considered one of the most dangerous in the field of occupational health and safety. The chainsaw is especially used in the forestry sector, although it is also used in other different sectors such as agriculture, construction or gardening. This study was carried out using an ad-hoc questionnaire as a research tool in order to assess the weaknesses in the training received by workers who use chainsaws in Andalusia, Spain, since it has never been addressed before. To achieve the objective set, the questionnaire was completed by 378 operators working with chainsaw and their responses were analysed. The results of this study show that there are obvious shortcomings related to work with chainsaws in very significant aspects for the occupational health and safety. Of special importance is the lack of training detected on rescue techniques and work at height, since these are aspects of special risk for workers’ health that could cause accidents with severe injuries. Also, a common denominator in all aspects studied was the lack of safety inspections and the state of the equipment to be used. These results evidence that there is a need to regulate chainsaw operator training.

Calibration and Validation of a Cone Crusher Model with Industrial Data

This paper reports the calibration and validation of a cone crusher model using industrial data. Usually, there are three calibration parameters in the condensed breakage function; by contrast, in this work, every entry of the lower triangular breakage function matrix is considered a calibration parameter. The calibration problem is cast as an optimization problem based on the least squares method. The results show that the calibrated model is able to fit the validation datasets closely, as seen from the low values of the objective function. Another significant advantage of the proposed approach is that the model can be calibrated on data that are usually available from industrial operation; no additional laboratory tests are required. Calibration and validation tests on datasets collected from two different mines show that the calibrated model is a strong candidate for use in various dynamic simulation applications, such as control system design, equipment sizing, operator training, and optimization of crushing circuits.

Analisis Produktivitas Mesin Filling Auto Cup Sealer 1 dengan Metode Overall Equipment Effectiveness pada PT. Prima Kemasindo

The high level of downtime on the ACS 1 filling machine at PT. Prima Kemasindo causes the production process to be not optimal on the machine. The purpose of this study is to identify the maintenance system on the ACS 1 filling machine and measure the productivity level of the ACS 1 filling machine in the period from January to March 2021. This research is applied research using the Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) method. The data used in this study are primary and secondary data obtained from company reports as well as interviews and observations. The results obtained in this study are the Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) value of the ACS 1 filling machine for the period January 98.0%, February 98.5%, March 95.2%, and the average OEE value for the January-March period is 97.2 %. Then from the analysis of Six Big Loses, it is known that the highest loss elements are Idling and Mirror Stoppages and Reduced Speed. Based on the results of the fishbone diagram, it is known that the cause of Idling and Mirror Stoppages and Reduced Speed consists of several factors, namely humans, machines, materials, and methods. Several efforts can be made to increase the effectiveness of the use of machines, namely periodic replacement of machine maintenance, periodic operator training, and training on operator self-awareness, the importance of supervision, and operators must always supervise machine parts.

Collaborative Augmented Digital Twin: A Novel Open-Source Augmented Reality Solution for Training and Maintenance Processes in the Shipyard of the Future

Large companies use a lot of resources on workshop operator training and industrial machinery maintenance since the lack of this practice or its poor implementation increases the cost and risks of operating and handling sensitive and/or hazardous machinery. Industrial Augmented Reality (IAR), a major technology in the Industry 4.0 paradigm that may enhance worker performance, minimize hazards and improve manufacturing processes, could be beneficial in this situation. This paper presents an IAR solution that allows for visualizing and interacting with the digital twin of a critical system. Specifically, the augmented digital twin of an industrial cooler was developed. The proposed IAR system provides a dynamic way to perform operator training with a full-size model of the actual equipment and to provide step-by-step guidance so that maintenance processes can be performed more safely and efficiently. The proposed system also allows several users to use devices at the same time, creating a new type of collaborative interaction by viewing the model in the same place and state. Performance tests with many simultaneous users have been conducted, with response latency being measured as the number of connected users grows. Furthermore, the suggested IAR system has been thoroughly tested in a real-world industrial environment.

An Algorithm for Arranging Operators to Balance Assembly Lines and Reduce Operator Training Time

Industry 4.0 is transforming how costs, including labor costs, are managed in manufacturing and remanufacturing systems. Managers must balance assembly lines and reduce the training time of workstation operators to achieve sustainable operations. This study’s originality lies in its use of an algorithm to balance an assembly line by matching operators to workstations so that the line’s workstations achieve the same targeted output rates. First, the maximum output rate of the assembly line is found, and then the number of operators needed at each workstation is determined. Training time is reduced by matching operators’ training and skills to workstations’ skill requirements. The study obtains a robust, cluster algorithm based on the concept of group technology, then forms operator skill cells and determines operator families. Four numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the algorithm’s implementation. The proposed algorithm can solve the problem of arranging operators to balance assembly lines. Managers can also solve the problem of worker absences by assigning more than one operator with the required skillset to each workstation and rearranging them as needed.

The 20-minute whole blood clotting test (20WBCT) for snakebite coagulopathy—A systematic review and meta-analysis of diagnostic test accuracy

Background The 20-minute whole blood clotting test (20WBCT) has been used to detect coagulopathy following snakebite for almost 50 years. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the 20WBCT was conducted to evaluate the accuracy of the 20WBCT to detect coagulopathy, indicative of systemic envenoming. Methods and findings Databases were searched from inception up to 09/12/2020 to identify studies that compared the 20WBCT and INR/fibrinogen on five or more subjects. Data was extracted from full-text articles by two reviewers using a predetermined form. Authors of 29 studies that lacked sufficient details in the manuscript were contacted and included if data meeting the inclusion criteria were provided. Included studies were evaluated for bias using a tailored QUADAS-2 checklist. The study protocol was prospectively registered on PROSPERO database (CRD42020168953). The searches identified 3,599 studies, 15 met the inclusion criteria and 12 were included in the meta-analysis. Data was reported from 6 countries and included a total of 2,270 patients. The aggregate weighted sensitivity of the 20WBCT at detecting INR >1.4 was 0.84 (CI 0.61 to 0.94), the specificity was 0.91 (0.76 to 0.97) and the SROC AUC was 0.94 (CI 0.91 to 0.96). The aggregate weighted sensitivity of the 20WBCT at detecting fibrinogen <100 mg/dL was 0.72 (CI 0.58 to 0.83), the specificity was 0.94 (CI 0.88 to 0.98) and the SROC AUC was 0.93 (0.91 to 0.95). Both analyses that used INR and fibrinogen as the reference test displayed considerable heterogeneity. Conclusions In the absence of laboratory clotting assays, the 20WBCT remains a highly specific and fairly sensitive bedside test at detecting coagulopathy following snakebite. However, clinicians should be aware of the importance of operator training, standardized equipment and the lower sensitivity of the 20WBCT at detecting mild coagulopathy and resolution of coagulopathy following antivenom.