Virtual education and training of road traffic controllers and operators

Croonwolter&dros has built a virtual training environment for the Westerscheldetunnel and the Sluiskil tunnel in which the operation of and events in the tunnel are simulated in detail. We speak with Bastiaanse about this unique and very progressive way of working.

"When we talk about this virtual training environment, we talk about RTD. That stands for Education, Training and Exercise. That essentially reflects how versatile this virtual environment is. There is a structural need for education and training," Bastiaanse explains. "Under the guidance of a trainer, operators can use OTO to practice different disaster scenarios, for example."

Started with the Westerschelde tunnel, but fully transposable

The project was initiated by the N.V. Westerscheldetunnel. They have purchased a XVR setup with the goal of being able to start the virtual education and training of road traffic controllers and operators for the Westerscheldetunnel and Sluiskil tunnel. With XVR, the tunnels can be virtually projected and dynamic elements can be added.

Croonwolter&dros, together with BAM and Mobilis, forms the Westerscheldetunnel Maintenance (WM) contractor combination. N.V. Westerscheldetunnel awarded WM the contract for a 20-year maintenance contract in 2013. When the Sluiskil tunnel was built, a further 10-year maintenance period was contracted. WM is also fulfilling this maintenance contract. The owner of the Sluiskil tunnel is the Province of Zeeland, but management and incident management are done from N.V. Westerscheldetunnel," Bastiaanse explains. Basically, both tunnels have their own RTD program. "To this, Croonwolter&dros added a simulator for the TuBeS control layer. TuBeS is an abbreviation of the 'Tunnel Operating System' and is the graphical presentation for operating the tunnel. This display functions on Siemens' SCADA platform."

To make the training as realistic as possible, Croonwolter&dros has realized a copy of the operational control system in which simulations are simulated. This allows the operator to, among other things, close the tunnel, set traffic measures, adjust ventilation regimes, set access dosage or set counter-traffic. An emergency scenario was also simulated in TuBeS that can be started by a routable emergency button. This calamity button can be used with a selection switch for both training environments. Bastiaanse: "It is nice to see the evolution of the OTO program of the Westerscheldetunnel; from working with models and models to a fully virtualized world. What is special about this environment is that two tunnels are presented within one simulator."

Lifelike visualization and operation

"If you want to train well, not only should the environment match reality, but also the controls that matter should have the same 'look and feel.' The people being trained face virtual scenarios that can be influenced at will by the trainers. In real life, humans themselves are the unpredictable factor. This has to be anticipated and decisions about actions have to be made on the spot when unexpected things happen. All that can be done in this RTD project. The XVR software generates the lifelike image, the hardware and controls used by the trainees correspond to reality."

All "field I/O" (incoming and outgoing data traffic from the tunnel) enters TuBeS. "All tunnel technical systems that need to work together are monitored and controlled via TuBeS. Currently, XVR and TuBeS are not yet linked to each other, but that will be realized in the future. Then the consequences of actions done via TuBeS will also be automatically virtualized," Bastiaanse says. "A strong point is that multiple training environments can be accessed on one desk. You can thus bring the relevant tunnel to the training, instead of having to bring the training to the tunnel. The central training location is a fixed environment for the trainees and is located in the Sluiskil tunnel service building."

More than just a means of education and training

"This methodology fits Croonwolter&dros perfectly. This is because we can also use the simulation environment of TuBeS to perform extensive tests, for example, to see how systems react after an update or modification. TuBeS is a 'digital twin', the virtual copy of the tunnel, with which all this can be done accurately and very efficiently. It increases security, reduces costs and there is less chance of failure because systems have been extensively tested."

As a leader in digitalization, Croonwolter&dros sees much broader applications for this form of education, training and simulation. "We are working toward a future where we can offer 100% virtual simulations by creating digital twins. We can do that for any party that needs it. After testing, validation and verification, we can load the system in real time, ready for use. After delivery, the software serves for operational use or education and training," Bastiaanse concluded.

Also see the video "This is how the WST trains.. What happens when an incident occurs? Who comes into the picture when?

Background information

Croonwolter&dros, together with BAM and Mobilis, forms the Westerscheldetunnel Maintenance (WM) contractor combination. N.V. Westerscheldetunnel awarded WM the contract for a 20-year maintenance contract in 2013. When the Sluiskil tunnel was built, a 10-year maintenance period was also contracted. WM is also fulfilling this maintenance contract. The owner of the Sluiskil tunnel is the Province of Zeeland, but management and incident management are done from N.V. Westerscheldetunnel.

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