Virtual Reality for Wind Energy Coastal Community Development

Problem Mariners in coastal communities have expressed concerns about navigational safety during on-sea operations when operating through offshore wind farms. Offshore Wind Developers are committing to hire 70%+ of their workforce from local coastal communities, but have little-to-no infrastructure to recruit, screen, and train workers. Both problems must be addressed to ensure coexistence between Coastal Communities and Offshore Wind Projects. Solution VinciVR is bringing its Virtual Reality (VR) simulation capabilities to address both problems. It will create a Mariner VR Engagement tool that will accurately simulate offshore wind projects in various weather conditions; this tool will help Mariners simulate navigation and operations through a farm before construction begins. The second tool will be a Workforce Development VR/Digital tool that will help local workers filter through potential careers in Offshore Wind and provide VR simulations of jobs at the point of need. These simulations will help recruit, retain, and train the future workforce. Phase I Research Proposal Vinci will coordinate with mariners, offshore wind developers, and federal agencies such as BOEM to construct a 3D modeling and simulation development plan to enable technological development during Phase II. For workforce development, Vinci and its consultants will conduct a deep workforce analysis to construct a 3D modeling and digital tool development plan for Phase II. Vinci will finally establish Phase II pilot projects/rollouts to occur during Phase II. Commercial Applications and Public Benefits The Mariner VR Engagement tool will help Mariners understand navigation through proposed offshore wind projects and help adjust project plans prior to in-depth development. The Workforce development tool will efficiently recruit and retain workers from coastal communities into offshore wind projects, ensuring economic benefits are localized and realized by disadvantaged communities. Vinci predicts its Mariner VR Engagement tool can be applied and licensed to a variety of renewable energy and offshore wind projects that will require community engagement. Its workforce development tool can be rolled out nationally to various workforce development and educational institutions such as Manufacturers, colleges, and K-12 schools.