BAE Systems handles complex and large datasets with Virtalis solutions

BAE engineers across a host of disciplines are able to visualise models at various stages within the design, fabrication, and assembly phases using large-format 3D display solutions. We spoke to Rob Forrest, Visualisation Team Lead at BAE Systems Air about the benefits they get from using immersive virtual reality solutions from Virtalis.

“Our VR suite will seat up to twelve people and being able to get a whole range of different stakeholders in there all at the same time, looking at the same information in three dimensions and 4K interactively, is an extremely powerful communications tool.

We are also looking at huge data sets. As you can imagine, some of our product data for an aircraft or a submarine contain literally millions of parts which are represented in 3D geometry. And a system that's able to cope with that smoothly and efficiently is extremely important to us.

So we're using the Visionary Render-based VR system quite extensively within our manufacturing operations business to help us plan the future state of our factories’ products.

Obviously extremely important are our aircraft, how we design and manufacture our aircraft, and VR has been used in the design review process and it also help to investigate any issues and problems that we may come up against.

So BAE Systems as a UK company is using Visionary Render within many of our business units. It allows us to work together very closely because we're all sharing the same type of data, all using the same type of hardware, using the same sort of processes and procedures for visualisation. It's becoming almost the de facto company standard for virtual reality.

So Visionary Render really does give us a lot of benefit. It's a tool that we can load up very, very quickly, even with some of the very, very large data sets that we use and allows us to get to the nub of the problem that we're dealing with very, very quickly, which a lot of other tools just can't do.”

Rob also presented at a Virtalis-hosted VR Inspiration Day, where leading manufacturing and engineering organisations gathered to learn about solving use case challenges and driving digital transformation improvements utilising virtual reality technology. Read more about that event here.

Virtalis’ Visionary Render is a powerful decision-making platform, helping to break down professional barriers, allowing people from different disciplines to experience the same model, enabling company-wide collaboration.

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