Trenching and excavating is one of the most dangerous jobs in construction, if not the most dangerous. If not done properly, cave-ins or collapsed trenches can happen, leading to fatalities – the leading cause of death in construction.

Despite the dangers, trenching and excavating tasks are necessary jobs, as everything else on the construction site depends on this foundational step. Laying pipes, electrical cables, or telephone wires into the ground requires digging a hole first. In short, the entire construction process relies on this task.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of the Department of Labor recommends training workers on recognizing hazards as the best way to keep trenches upright and people unharmed. Hands-on training, where workers experience and walkthrough the entire process in real life, is considered the most effective way to train employees, according to Eric Reinhardt, an Occupational Safety and Health Instructor at the OSHA Training Institute in Arlington Heights, IL. However, providing hands-on training to all workers is not feasible due to the risks involved.

To address this challenge, a solution was found: instead of bringing students to the frontline, bring the frontline to the students. OSHA saw the potential of Mixed Reality and invested in the technology to improve worker safety during trench excavation.

Here’s how OSHA accomplished this: First, 3D scanners captured different scenarios at various construction sites. Second, the scans were converted into exact digital twins. Third, these digital twins were uploaded to the Mixed Reality Headset, Microsoft HoloLens, to bring the frontline experience to trainees. As trainees don the headset, they experience the same hands-on training as they would at an actual trench.

The app features six different scenes designed to depict all the different variables workers might encounter in the field, such as ground conditions, weather, hazards, safety equipment, and best practices for mitigating risks. The training incorporates sound design and animation to replicate the real experience as closely as possible. OSHA instructor Eric mentioned, “With the HoloLens, we can show hazards in a safe, realistic environment. We can put a tractor too close to the edge or show fissures inside the trench. I jokingly told a student ‘be careful’ while he was walking around, and he abruptly stopped—it was that realistic.”

Safety training was the primary focus of the project, but other benefits include the ability to reach “more students with less effort.” The self-paced training is available on demand, accessible for anyone at any moment, whether a brand-new trainee or an experienced worker looking to brush up on their training.