What are the top use cases for simulation? Find out the answer to this and other burning questions about simulation training.
CM Labs and Construction Executive recently hosted a webinar examining how organizations are leveraging simulation technology for heavy equipment operator training, as well as the impact simulation training has had on their bottom line. Titled “Fast Training, Safe Futures – ROI-driven Paths for Next-Gen Operators,” the event’s panel discussion featured expert guests Samantha DeAlmeida Roman, President of ABC New Jersey, as well as Jason Salmon, Heavy Equipment Master Trainer at Gerdau Long Steel, and CM Labs’ Construction Product Marketing Manager Christa Fairchild.
Samantha DeAlmeida Roman is the youngest President of the ABC New Jersey Chapter and represents over 1,300 member firms in the construction industry.
The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a construction trade association representing more than 22,000 merit shop contractors and affiliated firms nationwide. The ABC New Jersey Chapter offers apprenticeship programs for 26 trades, as well as safety classes and OSHA classes at member facilities and at its headquarters.
Jason Salmon has 27 years of experience in operating and training on various mobile equipment. He has used simulation to cut his training times by 50%—a significant achievement considering the scope of operations at Gerdau. With more than 30,000 employees, Gerdau Long Steel ranks among the world’s largest steel producers.
Over the next 12 months, of the 700 operators that will need re-training at Gerdau, more than half will use simulation training. Jason himself will train over 200+ new recruits on his simulators, as he works to address current labor trends, such as high turnover.
Here are some of our top highlights from their discussion on the benefits of simulation:
It’s great to get apprentices comfortable behind the simulator before putting them in real pieces of equipment—which I think our employers also enjoy very much.
In addition to that, we have had great success bringing the trailer and the simulators on the road, bringing them to career fairs, bringing them to school events.
"There is nothing that has gotten kids more excited about possibly coming into the trades than us rolling up with that trailer and those simulators.
Instead of handing them a piece of paper, you’re saying “come on in and try this.”
But it’s not just a tool to draw in the next generation. It’s also for those who are currently employed in the industry and that need to keep up their skills or develop new skills.
Today’s workforce is getting younger and younger, so we’ve had to adapt. We use a simulator to train new hires that have no experience. Secondarily, we use it for retraining. So if we have an incident, we can retrain that incident specifically.
One of the biggest pieces of feedback we’ve had from our younger operators is they felt much more comfortable getting into the actual piece of equipment because they felt like they’d actually done it already in the simulator. So that’s a big deal.
"It takes us about half as long to get somebody signed off on our equipment because once they hit the field, they already know how the machine works."
Also, during our hiring process, if somebody comes in and says, “I can run anything you’ve got,” then we can put them on the simulator and say, “Here’s a dump truck, here’s a material handler, here’s an excavator. Run all three of them for me.” And we can see if they really can or not.
If I have a class of five guys and one simulator, while one guy is on that simulator, the other guys are learning the whole time he’s learning. And by the time that third or fourth guy gets on the simulator, as an instructor, I’m not doing much. That’s a big change. Because traditionally they’re in the field, and the instructor is shouting at the top of their lungs from the ground, going, “All right, now take the left joystick—no, the other left.” We’ve eliminated most of that.
It certainly has given us a lot of flexibility. If we had to purchase and maintain the land to be able to work on all of these pieces of heavy equipment and utilize them in the same fashion that we utilize these simulators, it would cost us a tremendous amount of money, time, and staff.
Now, there is nothing quite like being behind the wheel of a real piece of machinery. However, simulation has given us the flexibility of being able to do some training in a smaller classroom space.
But also, the construction industry has been hurting for a new generation for quite some time. Drawing that next generation in has been a challenge because I believe we were of a mindset that every kid needs to go to college.
So getting the buy-in of the parents has been huge. We’ll bring the simulators to career fairs, and sometimes the parents will attend, and they think it’s really cool too. We can have a meaningful conversation with them while their child is utilizing the simulator, talk to them about gross earnings of various trades, and talk to them about our program while their child is working on the simulator—and they can see how much they’re enjoying it.
The savings are tremendous. There’s the fuel savings from using a simulator, but also the savings on wear and tear are substantial. Caterpillar yellow is kind of like Ferrari red—if you damage that stuff, it gets very expensive!
In an environment like we have here, we have piles of scrap 80 feet tall, and damage can happen. But we want to limit that as much as possible. The use of the simulator for training has definitely cut down on damage caused by new operators.
The other thing is just that we have a really big training program. OSHA requires three-year recerts on equipment like the forklift, and there are other things that are regulated. But we also do a two-year evaluation on our skid steers, our telehandlers, front-end loaders, material handlers, excavators, and locomotives. So it’s a big program. When you’ve got experienced operators doing all the training and retraining, that’s a lot of hours that could be better used.
Bottom line is that, like anywhere else, you get under water from demand, and training becomes a real issue. Training guys properly becomes very challenging when you don’t even have enough guys to run a full crew. So that’s where simulation is a big help.
If you are an ABC chapter or an employer that is looking to purchase this technology, I would say: Do it. It is something that we looked into extensively. And I have to tell you, it’s been nothing short of amazing.
"It's worth the money, it's worth the time, and it's a valuable resource."
If you are an employer who wants to utilize this technology, I would tell you to lobby your chapter to see if they would purchase one. Chapters with apprenticeship programs will take a special interest in these simulators.
The biggest piece of advice I have is to be open-minded and try it. Sometimes people who have been in the industry for a while are like, that’s a cool toy. But it is actual training. It is meaningful. And it really works for all age groups, whether it’s entry level or the veterans in the industry that need continuing education.
It’s been a valuable resource to us and I can’t tell you how impressed I am with it. You definitely need buy-in from leadership. I pulled the trigger because it was something that my staff really thought was valuable. But ultimately, without leadership buy-in, you’re just not going to bring it to its full potential.
"There's no better way to train an operator than using a simulator, period."
These are not hard things to get approved. Of course, you have to plan for it. It does have a cost associated, obviously, but it’s worth every penny spent. Ours has paid for itself just in fuel and damage savings.
And, of course, somebody has to commit to running the program. It’s not something that you can just kind of do part-time. It requires a commitment, but it’s worth it. It is absolutely worth it.
Want to hear the full conversation? Watch the webinar to get Jason and Samantha’s complete insights into the benefits of simulation training.
