STUTTGART, GERMANY — At the International Training & Education Conference, here, HP announced an alliance with the DiSTI Corporation, a global provider of VR and advanced human machine interface development solutions. The partnership aims to address the growing demand for high-impact, cost-effective virtual reality (VR) training. Both companies will work together to develop unique VR training solutions for enterprise customers, with a specific focus on maintenance and operations training for complex systems, such as vehicle, aircraft and industrial equipment.
VR has become an effective training tool across many industries and is expected to grow to an $18 billion market by 2022. VR developers can create and interact with complex simulations, a form of participatory learning that’s more effective than traditional training programs. With HP’s Z VR Backpack, a wearable PC VR solution, training becomes more seamless and realistic with an untethered VR experience. VR training has also been shown to positively impact employee recruiting and retention for enterprise customers.
“HP is enabling companies to leverage VR technology in ways that transform workflows and unleash innovation,” says Xavier Garcia, vice president and general manager, HP Z Workstations, HP Inc. “By working with leading partners like DiSTI, we will reinvent the way workers across a range of sectors do their jobs, whether it’s operating the most advanced industrial equipment or designing and servicing the next generation of automobiles. HP’s versatile and high-powered devices, combined with DiSTI’s VE Studio development platform, will empower customers to create cost-effective VR training solutions that safely replicate real-world environments and processes in rich detail.”
Starting today, HP and DiSTI will offer end-to-end enterprise virtual training solutions – from development to deployment - based on HP’s VR-ready hardware and DiSTI’s VE Studio Development Platform. Customers can use the VE Studio suite to develop their own virtual training applications or have DiSTI and HP professional services teams assist in designing and building their solutions. HP’s comprehensive hardware portfolio features HP Z Desktop Workstations, including the powerful HP Z8 Workstation; the HP ZBook 17 Mobile Workstation, and the HP Z VR Backpack. VE Studio enables rapid and cost-effective development and creates accurate hands-on experiences while HP hardware seamlessly delivers them via fast processing power and high-fidelity graphics.
“There is tremendous market demand for enterprise-level virtual training solutions that can be rapidly implemented, are cost effective and can be developed and managed by internal staff,” says John Cunningham, chief revenue officer of DiSTI. “Many companies have identified the need to implement VR enabled training but struggle with how to get started and scale due to the lack of internal expertise and the availability of cost-effective solutions. We are excited to combine our two companies’ VR expertise to accelerate industry adoption of VR Training.”