Danish Shipping attracts future workforce with VR

Steer a cargo ship under the Great Belt Bridge, build a ballast water tank, or – unless you have a fear of heights – hang high in the air and paint the ship.  

Seven different missions will teach students in secondary school and upper secondary education about the versatile opportunities that exist within the maritime world – wrapped up in a fun and exciting VR experience delivered as a class set. 

Learning in VR

Thought-Provoking Entertainment

Investment in the Future

WHY: The battle for the workforce of the future

Despite our modest size, Denmark is among the ten countries in the world that transport the most goods across the oceans.  

If we are to maintain our position as a leading maritime nation, the maritime industry must be able to attract the talent of the future. This is a difficult task, as the competition for these talents is fierce. 

To meet the task, Danish Shipping has developed the World Careers campaign, which aims to get young people interested in education towards and careers in the maritime world. 

As part of the campaign, Virsabi has developed a virtual ship universe targeted at the oldest students in secondary school and youth education.  

One of the industry’s challenges is that, for both practical and safety reasons, it is almost impossible to arrange excursions for all students to a container port. But with VR, we can bring the maritime world into the classroom and in ‘The Virtual Ship Universe’, the students can play their way to an insight into some of the many different types of jobs that exist within the maritime world.

WHAT: Seven missions in VR filled with play and experience

When students put on the VR headset, a drive through  a large container port begins. Already here, they experience the size of a container ship and can sense how much life there is in a port.

After the introduction, students must choose from seven different relatively short missions: 

  • Drive through the harbor 
  • Sail the ship 
  • Fix generators 
  • Help the captain 
  • Measure the ship 
  • Build a machine 
  • Sell Freight 

Although the Virtual Ship Universe is made as a game universe, the location of each mission reflects a realistic scenario. The room you are in, the proportions of things and surroundings, and not least the atmosphere is like in the real world. That’s why VR creates emotions that are remembered. 

Along with the VR experience, other learning materials are included. Therefore, the main purpose of the VR part is that the experience in each of the seven missions should first and foremost be fun and inspiring. This is where the students get a small, exciting taste of the many different areas of work that exist in the maritime industry.

HOW: Flight case with 10 VR headsets – the world's coolest class kit

A prerequisite for all this to be possible is of course that the VR experience reaches the schools and that it is technically possible for the teachers to get many students started at the same time. 

That’s why we’ve made the world’s coolest class set! 

We have specially designed flight cases with space for 10 VR headsets of the brand Meta Quest 3. The box is designed so that all headsets can be charged at the same time while they are in the box, there are extra rechargeable batteries for the controllers, polishing cloths and a little guide to get started. 

The headset itself is in kiosk mode, which means that the students or teacher just have to turn it on, and the experience starts by itself. It does not require any technical skills to get started.

In collaboration with young seafarers 

To build a VR experience that is both realistic and inspiring, our developers and interaction designers have visited a large container port, been on board a container ship, sailed under the Great Belt Bridge and held meetings with young sailors who have generously shared their experiences. And not least: Tested the solution along the way with the target group again and again to ensure that it excites and sets off thoughts in the young minds about the possibilities within the maritime industry. 

You can read more about Danish Shipping’s training programme here.