Students who climb into Ronald Gray’s “electric chair” are usually in for a shocking experience. The chair, wired up to a couple of joysticks and a laptop computer, is not a mode of punishment for students who misbehave, but a surprisingly useful simulation tool that helps potential operators sharpen their skills. And it costs a lot less than the real thing.
Similar to flight-simulators for jumbo-jet pilots, heavy-equipment programs help operators learn from mistakes in the virtual world without placing themselves in harm’s way in the real world. “They are neat pieces of equipment,” says Shawn King, environmental safety, health and security manager for Overland Park, Kan.-based contractor Black & Veatch.