You might be thinking of incorporating AR/VR/MR into your business but are still quite unsure if that is a sound investment. To ease your doubts, here are 7 companies who are already at the fore-front of using immersive technologies in their businesses.
- Volkswagen
If you have little idea of how VR training might look like, this is a good start:
- Walmart
Ever heard of Black Friday? It seems like a galore of good deals for consumers, but it’s nightmare for staffs manning the department stores. Injury in one way or another is almost always expected. When those shoppers rush in, they move like a raging torrent stampeding anyone not vigilant enough. Walmart is using VR simulations of that frenzied experience to prepare staffs on the actual day. That VR experience simulates which area will be swarmed by shoppers, how the traffic will flow, how to manage them and what to do in case of confrontations. These training greatly prepares the employees for the hectic day. - UPS
UPS has more than 9,000 drivers in its Circle of Honor, an elite group of drivers who have not had an avoidable accident in at least 25 years. In order to further expand this safety culture, UPS has integrated VR simulation into 9 of their training facilities. The simulation is meant to train drivers of their delivery vans. It’s a comprehensive test which safely yet realistically assess new drivers before they even touch the real steering wheel. - Boeing
Inside an aircraft engine is an incredibly complicated machinery, especially in its wiring. Boeing is using AR in their assembly line to overlay the wiring design as they work. Just the change of medium – from keep looking at 2D blueprint to looking directly at the overlays in real time – managed to reduce the wiring assembly time by 25% and lower errors at the same time. - Ford
Ambitious is the word best describe Ford in its immersive technology endeavour. From design to manufacturing, Ford has implemented multiple ways to increase productivity and reduce injuries. In their assembly lines injuries has dropped by 70% since they used VR to simulate new processes before its actually operated by their factory employees. And 90% of ergonomic design issues are solved even before they built prototypes. Car designers managed to bring their models in VR to test in a collaborative manner. With such mindset, it’s not surprising this household name has been around for more than 100 years. - Audi
If you’re retailing products, you know it’s a huge boost to closing sales when the customers can see the product with their own eyes. That goes exponentially truer the more expensive your products are. Audi knew this and that’s why they have deployed 1,000 VR showrooms in dealerships worldwide. Because let’s face it, the real estate needed to parade all their cars is never gonna be cheaper. Not to mention some nitty-gritty variations like colours, upholstery materials, tires and dashboards. It’s no longer a prediction. When the fidelity of VR reaches a certain realism point, there is little to no reason to have physical showrooms anymore.
- US Military
Technically not a company, but when you hear they’re spending almost half a billion dollar for AR headsets, US military is the biggest customer in AR industry by far. In November 2018, they contracted Microsoft to equip their soldiers with Hololens for both training and live combat situations. Touting from the source, the device will be a heavily modified Hololens capable of thermal sensing and night vision among other cutting edge features. It is stated that Microsoft will deliver 100,000 Hololens units over the next few years.
These are but a few of hundreds of other companies who are already harnessing immersive technologies.
It’s the age of immersive digital transformation. It’s no longer a question of if, but when.
Is your company ready to adapt to the fourth industrial revolution?
