MAN launches offroad driving simulator

MAN Truck and Bus Middle East has launched its ProfiDrive off-road training with a live demonstration of its driving simulator at an event in Dubai, with Darwish Bin Ahmed and Sons, its exclusive distributor in the UAE. The simulator has been developed to increase operational efficiency and safety, said a statement. MAN’s ProfiDrive training is a specialised training programme designed to raise the level of knowledge so that drivers can adopt the best driving practices. The company also demonstrated a unique truck driving simulator so that invitees could witness the benefits of basic and advanced training of truck drivers to evaluate driving skills in a completely virtual environment. Rudolf Wiegand, vice president, after sales, MAN MEA, said: “This latest initiative reflects MAN’s commitment to enhancing driver efficiency across customer fleets in the Middle East by introducing innovative training solutions.The use of advanced simulators to support ongoing training is very helpful in training drivers to drive with foresight, remain calm and confident in critical situations, and stay in control of the vehicle. “We place a huge emphasis on driver training as part of our ProfiDrive Training Packages which are designed to enhance a driver's practical capabilities in addition to fundamental driving techniques so that they can maintain their vehicles better and contribute to increased fuel efficiency which translates to tangible cost savings for our customers.” Dr Richard Brown, MAN product expert and training manager, said: “We have now introduced the off-road module to our ProfiDrive Training as a further enhancement of our training portfolio to support drivers on more difficult terrain. As part of this training, we teach them how to get optimum traction, operate on different surfaces and to keep their vehicles under control using the latest MAN safety features such as hill-hold brake for manual gearboxes and MAN EasyStart for TipMatic gearboxes.” The simulator has an onscreen projection directly onto the window of the driver's cab and the driver is completely immersed in the simulation environment and the virtual reality of the exercise. The simulator can simulate various vehicles with different combinations - different types of trailers or semi-trailers, vehicle load; special situations - side wind, brake failure, tire blow-outs; training in different environments - mountain roads, urban areas, highways; and a manoeuvring course. Advanced simulators play an important role in supporting the ProfiDrive training programme. The Truck driving simulator consists of an original MAN truck driver‘s cab with all functional operating and display elements, simulation of return forces on steering wheel and pedals in addition to an Instructor Operation Station (IOS). The simulator allows the instructor to quickly generate scenarios and thus, to optimally customise training for the driver. Using “drag-n-drop,” a scenario can be newly created by simple clicking or an old scenario can be easily called up again and changed in real-time while driving. Source: TradeArabia