Speedernet is a digital creation studio on immersive training.
Crédits photos : Speedernet
On the occasion of the 6th edition of VRDays, the French company called Speedernet embarked on the virtual adventure. It has 20 years of expertise in the digital training field. Sévering Minassian, Digital Business Developer, talks about the software, Speedernet’s vision on immersive learning and why she chose to book a 100% virtual booth.
Can you present Speedernet in a few words?
Speedernet has been a player in Digital Learning for more than 20 years. Our DNA leads us to explore all modalities in order to offer the most efficient training solutions to our customers. It was with this in mind that Speedernet co-founded the EdTech Lyon association two years ago, which brings together start-ups, local authorities and labs. The possibilities offered by immersion and their democratisation naturally led us, several years ago, to invest significantly in R&D to develop solutions that today also position us as an editor.
Speedernet is a team of about 50 employees integrating numerous pedagogical, technical and graphic skills dedicated to training. One of our particularities is linked to the international nature of our productions, more than 30% of which are produced in English.
What services and solutions provides Speedernet on the training market today?
Beyond our studio creations and our ability to federate modalities and tools to best serve digital training projects, we are convinced of the major interest of proposing immersive training approaches to make them more effective and engage users.
We want to offer a solution that allows any business expert, trainer, instructional designer or knowledge holder to create their own virtual reality experience simply and independently. This is the genesis of the creation of our Sphere tool, which is now positioned as a leader in immersive learning.
The scriptwriting capacities, the numerous pedagogical activities, and the possibility to play the experiments on all types of equipment (PCs, tablets, smartphones and VR headsets) through a simple web browser meet the needs of accessibility and evolution of the experiments.
Our participation in exhibitions such as Laval Virtual or VRDays is aimed at presenting our Speedernet-Sphere tool for the Training / Education field and exchanging with distributors/resellers.
How do we use the Sphere software and to whom is it addressed?
Speedernet-Sphere not only offers you the possibility to upload 360 photo, video or 3D resources, but also to enrich them with all types of media using our online library if needed and above all to create a powerful training scenario by adding interactivity. We are partners of SOLIDWORKS and integrate the glTF format in our tool which facilitates the 3D workflow between glTF and Speedernet-Sphere.
It is an agnostic solution based on web technology that allows the creation of content to be deployed on all browsers and all media: VR headset, computer, tablet or smartphone. Simply download Speedernet-Sphere to your PC and you can create as much immersive content as you want, no limit! Easy to produce and deploy, no need to have any code skills.
We are aimed at anyone who designs training content, we are present at major accounts such as EDF, Air France, Orange, Valeo, Plastic Omnium, etc. but also in the world of education: universities, engineering schools, business schools, Apprentice Training Centre. You can test Speedernet-Sphere free of charge, the latest version has just been released!
What is Speedernet vision on immersive learning?
We are keen on “learning by doing”. There is a Chinese proverb that says “I listen and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand.” We remember 90% of what we do, what we practice. Today, learning by doing is possible thanks to VR. Finally, it is possible to train the learner in his or her work environment using 360-degree distance learning or VR.
We are keen to show that VR is a real revolution in the world of training and that the solution we offer is simple to use, easy to deploy and is aimed at anyone who wants to change the way people learn.
Do you have examples of the use of Sphere in a professional or educational environment?
Air France is one of our first users of the Speedernet-Sphere tool. Their objective is to train flight crews on the different Airbus or Boeing aircraft environments and on different themes. Using 360° photos/videos, they have created, thanks to Speedernet-Sphere, an immersive training content linked to the safety rules in our tool.
Their immersive trainings are either deployed in remote 360 mode or in face-to-face VR mode. Each trainee is invited by the trainer to carry out his training in a VR headset and to repeat it if necessary.
In the education sector, in May 2019 we carried out the first MOOC on virtual reality and innovative pedagogies, in partnership with the universities of Lyon 1, Lyon 3 and Saint Etienne. Numerous universities and schools have adopted Speedernet-Sphere to create their immersive content, whether in technical processes, softskills, virtual tours of inaccessible sites, etc.
In the end, can we say that immersive learning represents the learning of tomorrow?
Immersive learning is a revival in the world of training. Learners will finally be able to enjoy training as close as possible to their work environment, rich storytelling where the learner is at the heart of the training. The current context favours distance learning and content creators are looking for new tools to challenge their content and make it more attractive.
You will be at the 6th edition of VRDays which normally takes place in Amsterdam. This year, the event has been virtualized. What was your motivation behind the choice of a virtual booth?
A year ago, we had already intended to participate in the VR Days 2019, in the end it didn’t happen and we are delighted to participate in the virtual VRDays! Small point of disappointment nevertheless not to meet the visitors of the show in live it will be for 2021!
The Speedernet team really enjoyed the Laval Virtual World last April, we are expecting some nice surprises and can’t wait to start the VR Days!
