In the Industrial XR Forum newsroom, we work hard to keep you updated on the latest news about how enterprises are innovating with AR, VR, and MR, which we lovingly wrap under the term XR.

We want to make sure you see the most important news, so, in case you missed it (ICYMI), here are our top stories from the first three months of 2021.

3. Enterprises Immersed in VR/AR/XR Through COVID

Not sure if you’ve heard, but we’re still amid a global pandemic. A year ago, business realities changed drastically—entire industries shut down, in-person work was restricted, and everyone was adjusting on the fly.

For enterprises, immersive technology became a way to keep employees and customers in contact without breaking social distancing restrictions and putting people at risk.

Over the past year, XR tech has been even more widely deployed for remote field service and hazardous training scenarios. While COVID sped up adoption, the shift to hands-off is likely here to stay.

Read the full article. 

2. Global Digital Twin Market Seeing (More Than) Double

Enterprises are using digital twins—dynamic virtual representation of a physical entity—to collect data, issue alerts, run diagnostics, and give operators the information they need to maintain and repair assets.

As just one example, BP has been using digital twins in its operations for years. APEX, BP’s simulation and surveillance system, creates a virtual copy of all BP’s production systems throughout the world. In 2018, BP Gulf of Mexico Petroleum Engineer Carlos Stewart said, "Engineering time has been the biggest payback—a system optimization could take 24-30 hours. In APEX, it takes 20 minutes.”

Data and visualization from digital twins is helping energy assets run more efficiently and safely. 

Read the full article. 

1. New Report Shows State of AR for Field Service

Librestream and Worldwide Business Research (WBR) released a report on adoption of AR in the field service industry. Jereme Pitts, COO of Librestream, said, “Sophisticated organizations are harnessing the full power of AR-powered remote assistance platforms...to improve productivity, enhance service ROI, and even create new revenue streams. 

The tl;dr (too long, didn’t read)? Enterprises have been increasing adoption of and investment in AR tech, and most (54%) of enterprises surveyed are planning an increase in their AR investments in the next year.

The biggest challenges center around scalability and the human element—change management, feedback, etc. But as enterprises emerge from pilot project status, adoption is expected to continue its growth trajectory.

Read the full article. 

We just re-lived Q1 in one blog post. Which tracks because the passage of time makes no sense right now.