The British rail operator Northern will acquire six train simulators from Poland-based firm SIM Factor which will be installed at company’s training academies in 2025. They are expected to be delivered at the end of 2024, with the first apprentices stepping aboard in early 2025.
The operator has partnered with SIM Factor in ordering the six of the full immersion, motion platform simulators where train crews of the future will earn their stripes.
The train simulators, which will provide driver, conductor and other rail apprentices with a full working cab environment, will feature 400 miles (644 km) of real track footage of the Northern network.
The academy will also feature a passenger cabin simulator, for training operational staff on door operation, dispatch and emergency evacuation, and four training classrooms with a total of 24 static replicas of the driver’s cab for additional training.
Northern will be the first train operator in the UK to use motion platform simulators and is currently identifying new locations in Leeds and Manchester for its training academies that can house simulators of this size.
“We have around 3,500 drivers and conductors based across our network and welcome approximately 400 new starters into these crucial roles every year. They’re the backbone of our operation and it’s vital we invest in facilities to train them to the highest standard before they enter the real-world environment,” Lisa Leighton, people director at Northern, said.
In 2022, Northern was officially recognised by Ofsted as a ‘Main Provider’ of apprenticeships, a status that enables them to offer their industry-leading training services to other train operators and rail industry organisations.
The comprehensive technology and simulators offered by SIM Factor are utilized in the first European centre for examining train driver candidates as part of the national licensing process for operating railway vehicles.
SIM Factor is a Poland-based leading provider of advanced railway simulators. The company has extensive experience in delivering customized training systems and provides its solutions to clients in Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria and the Baltic countries.
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