Augmented Reality Improves Field Worker Efficiency, Security and Quality
An article by Barry Cioe, Vice President at BRIDGE Energy Group, on ELP.com, (Electroic Light and Power) looks in detail at how Augmented Reality can improve field worker efficiency, security and quality. The author invites the reader to imagine a world where each of your field technicians had recallable experience for every field asset they maintained. Imagine a near perfect first-time-fix-rate. Imagine field inspectors being able to instantly jump from one inspection to another with no wasted travel time.
Augmented reality (AR) is quickly becoming mainstream as enterprises including Boeing, Caterpillar and others are seeing the benefits of using AR to transform their field operations.
The maturing and integration of smart glasses, wireless communication, mobile devices and augmented reality software is opening up new solutions to age-old problems that utility operations managers and their field crews encounter every day, such as:
– An expansive set of field assets that make it difficult for field technicians to be experts with all equipment, increasing maintenance time and exposing potential safety challenges
– Lack of time and qualified inspectors to complete the number of required inspections
– Safety risks due to lack of experience with the broad array of tools and assets
– Pressure to reduce costs while improving restoration times
– Inability to easily record field work for further evaluation, inspection, and training
– Loss of institutional knowledge due to retirements or attrition.
Other discussion topics within the article:
- How does the integration of emerging technologies, centred around AR, solve these issues?
- What an ideal solution should offer
- Integration
- Supportability
- Security
- How to successfully implement the solution
The worker pictured wears the HMT-1 helmet by RealWear, one of our alliance members at The AREA.