Session Recap: Hardhats and Headsets: Bringing the Field to the Office

At Industrial IMMERSIVE 2025, Dace Campbell of Cintoo and Ricky Burns of BP took the stage to discuss how extended reality (XR) is transforming industrial operations by connecting remote sites to office environments. Titled "Hardhats and Headsets: Bringing the Field to the Office!," their session provided a compelling look at how XR technologies like digital twins, VR, and AR are improving fieldwork in the energy sector.

Bridging the Gap Between Field and Office

Traditionally, industrial operations—especially in sectors like energy, construction, and manufacturing—require frequent site visits to assess progress, troubleshoot issues, and ensure compliance. Historically, engineers and project managers relied on static reports, 2D drawings, and delayed communication to understand conditions in the field. 

XR technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are changing that by eliminating these bottlenecks through real-time, immersive collaboration.

Dace Campbell emphasized the role of reality capture in this transformation, stating, “There's this idea that you're capturing the physical world and you're moving that into the digital. So that is clearly an emergent, although rapidly maturing, set of technologies.” 

Ricky Burns of BP echoed this sentiment, describing how BP has leveraged XR to do field work without going offshore, which has reduced the need for costly and time-consuming site visits and improved safety. “When we reduce the amount of work that we do in the field, we can save a lot of money and make it safer and more efficient,” he said. “There's constant pressure to become more efficient, more productive, more profitable—and projects aren't getting any less complex.

Burns also shared the story of a skeptical offshore worker who, once he saw XR in action, said, "I don’t think I’ll ever need to go offshore again."

Key Benefits of XR in Industrial Settings

1. Enhanced Remote Collaboration

XR enables real-time collaboration between field operators and remote experts, reducing the need for costly and time-consuming site visits. Whether it’s inspecting pipelines, monitoring construction progress, or troubleshooting mechanical failures, teams can work together seamlessly through immersive digital environments.

2. Improved Training and Safety

Safety is a top priority in industrial environments, and XR plays a critical role in workforce training. By simulating hazardous scenarios in a controlled virtual setting, workers can gain hands-on experience without exposure to real-world risks. 

3. Better Decision-Making with Digital Twins

Digital twins—virtual replicas of physical assets—are becoming indispensable for predictive maintenance and operational planning. “We have other technologies like XR, VR, AR, etc. that help people consume that data from digital twins in a way that's intuitive and understanding,” Campbell explained. This proactive approach minimizes downtime and optimizes asset performance.

4. Cost Savings and Sustainability

By reducing travel and enabling remote assessments, XR contributes to both cost savings and environmental sustainability. Burns pointed out, “We are in the crisis of our lives facing climate change, and there's a lot of pressure to develop more sustainable solutions no matter what industry you're in.” For companies looking to meet sustainability goals, XR offers a practical solution without compromising efficiency.

The Power of Digital Twins

Expanding on one of the main benefits of XR, Dace Campbell focused on the role of digital twin technology in creating a seamless link between physical assets and their virtual counterparts. Cintoo’s platform, for instance, enables energy companies to visualize and analyze 3D data. 

He highlighted the cyclical nature of data flow between the physical and virtual worlds, involving capture, computation, consumption, and action. "XR at its most basic level is a tool or a technology that enables effective decision making," Campbell said. "No matter what your industry, no matter what the use case, it helps you make decisions."

By integrating laser scans, reality capture, lidar, and other data, digital twins provide insight into site conditions, allowing engineers to identify issues before they become costly problems. This technology is particularly valuable for offshore and remote energy facilities, where accessibility is limited.

The Future of XR in Industrial Workflows

As XR technology advances, its role in industrial workflows will only expand. Campbell and Burns both emphasized that organizations embracing these tools today will gain a significant competitive edge. From improving maintenance planning with AR overlays to integrating AI-driven insights into digital twins, the potential for XR in energy and other industrial sectors is vast.

Campbell said, "If you don't have a digital twin strategy or you haven't been exploring solutions in the industrial metaverse, now is the time. It's not too late, but the cost of inaction is growing." 

The session underscored a clear message: XR is no longer a futuristic concept; it’s a critical component of modern industrial operations. By breaking down barriers between the field and the office, digital twins, AR, and VR are empowering energy companies to work smarter, safer, and more efficiently.

As hardware becomes more advanced and software more sophisticated, XR will become even more deeply integrated into industrial workflows. That will continue to grow adoption, and we’ll see companies that invest in these technologies today will be the ones leading the industrial workforce of tomorrow.

Playbook for Industrial XR in the Field

The time to explore and invest in XR is now. Companies that integrate digital twins, AR, and VR into their workflows see increased efficiency, cost savings, and a stronger competitive advantage.

Here’s how you can leverage digital twins, AR, and VR to bridge the gap between field operations and office-based decision-making.

1. Assess Your Current Operations

Identify bottlenecks where field-office collaboration is inefficient and pinpoint tasks that could benefit from remote visualization.

2. Invest in Reality Capture Technology

Deploy 3D scanning, laser capture tools, and other data sources and choose a platform that integrates with XR solutions and allows for real-time updates.

3. Adopt Digital Twin Strategies

Create virtual replicas of critical infrastructure to improve predictive maintenance and operational planning. Establish workflows that enable field personnel and office teams to interact with digital twins in real time.

4. Enhance Collaboration with XR

Equip field teams with AR headsets or VR platforms and use XR collaboration tools to connect on-site workers with remote experts for live problem-solving.

5. Prioritize Safety and Training

Develop VR-based training programs that simulate hazardous scenarios without real-world risk and complement that with in-the-field guidance using AR overlays. 

6. Measure Impact and Scale Up

Track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as reduced site visits, improved safety metrics, and cost savings. Use that data to expand XR applications beyond initial use cases.

7. Future-Proof Your Industrial Strategy

Continuously test and integrate new XR capabilities to maintain a competitive edge. Make sure to align XR investments with broader digital transformation initiatives, including AI and IoT integration.