Honeywell announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Virthualis s.r.l., an engineering and research firm focused on improving decision making in the design and implementation of safety, to develop a 3-D simulation solution to improve operator training and plant safety.
     
Under the agreement, Virthualis’ 3-D visualization technology, called MindSafe - including modules for safety management, accident analysis and risk assessment – will be linked to Honeywell’s existing UniSim simulation tool, providing a holistic virtual environment that can be used to efficiently design, analyze, and verify plant operations, as well as to prepare operations teams for safe, reliable and efficient operations. The solution will be available for testing in the demo room during the Honeywell Users’ Group, Europe, Middle East & Africa Conference, Oct. 25-27 in Baveno, Italy or in the Virthualis permanent demo room in the Solvay Information Services in Milan (to arrange for a demo, email [email protected]).
     
The skills shortage in the process industries creates an acute need for professionals who can ensure safe, reliable and efficient operations in a process environment. This offering is well-timed to address the need.
     
“We see many of our clients struggling to recruit operations staff with the right mix of skills, so we are pleased to be in a position to deliver a strong engineering and training solution that can bridge the competency gap,” said Elgonda La Grange, global consulting services director, Honeywell Process Solutions. “The fusion of Honeywell and Virthualis technologies enhances our existing simulation business with additional expertise and a 3-D learning environment to quickly evaluate and train operators to respond to critical plant conditions.”
     
“Honeywell is the ideal partner because our offerings are complementary, and we share the same passion for process safety, reliability and efficiency,” said Simone Colombo, president, Virthualis. “Together we are delivering a solution that can support the lifecycle of a plant, from design through to decommissioning, by empowering engineers to design and implement, and operators to learn and test their skills to control the process safely, prevent accidents and manage emergencies in a realistic environment.”
     
For more information on Honeywell, visit www.honeywellprocess.com. For more information on Virthualis, visit www.virthualis.com.