First Asian uni to have virtual reality lab

Pact signed: Dr Abdul Rahim (second right) with Cockburn-Price, Mohd Kamarul Hisham (right) and Kamalanathan after the ceremony.

A VIRTUAL reality lab worth RM1.86mil is coming to Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP), making it the first university in Asia to have one.

Thanks to a collaboration between the university, Virtalis Limited (Virtalis) and Thames Technology Sdn Bhd, the Centre of Excellence for Virtual Reality (VR Lab) will aim to drive research and innovation in engineering and the oil and gas industry.

It will also be used to teach and train engineering students in virtual reality and advanced visualisation technology.

“Virtual reality helps in preparing engineers-to-be prevent future disasters on offshore rigs through immersive training.

“This is done by allowing them to work through various scenarios, and providing holistic views through virtual tours of any oil rig or chemical plant design,” said UTP vice-chancellor Datuk Dr Abdul Rahim Hashim.

Virtalis managing director David Cockburn-Price, whose company will be providing the hardware and software for the VR Lab, said that students would have multiple display systems and be able to carry out most of their fieldwork in collaborative virtual worlds.

“They can visualise, analyse and interpret data which benefits their understanding and their ability to communicate their findings and their research projects to colleagues, collaborators and customers,” he added.

The three-year Memorandum of Understanding was signed in Kuala Lumpur recently between Dr Abdul Rahim, Cockburn-Price and Thames Technology Sdn Bhd managing director Mohd Kamarul Hisham Hashim and witnessed by Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan.