Immersive simulation technology is helping train the next generation of railway colleagues at Network Rail’s Gresley Institute.
The training centre in Doncaster is named after engineering pioneer Sir Nigel Gresley, who was born 150 years ago today (19 June).
And as the railway community celebrates the life, history and achievements of the design mastermind behind Flying Scotsman and Mallard, the centre named in his honour has a firm focus on the future of the industry.
The Gresley Institute, on Carolina Way, will eventually train up to 1,000 rail industry colleagues each year. Its 21 classrooms and equipment such as signalling simulators – both traditional lever-pull models and modern systems with visual display units.
The centre – opened in 2025 – recently took delivery of a second custom-built simulation, called Immersiv, which is the largest set-up of its kind. It is used to train mobile operations managers – also known as MOMs – the frontline responders who attend and deal with incidents on the rail network.
The Immersiv set-up comprises three 86-inch screens weighing 65kg each and arranged to display a 3D space through which the user can move around using a videogame controller.
This gives the opportunity to create any sort of railway landscape, scenario or challenge as part of the MOM training.
Malcolm Johnson-Chappell, a lead trainer at Network Rail, said: “When I first started this training, it was a PowerPoint projection for three days. You sat there, did a test paper, and when you passed it was: ‘Congratulations, you can now attend major incidents.’
“But as technology has come on, so has the training. This set-up gives a much more blended approach because it’s interactive. It puts people as close to a real-life situation as you can get without being out on track. It’s an immersive, safe environment where they can make mistakes and learn from them.
“We can set up any kind of scenario as a challenge and change conditions like the time of day or weather to make dealing with incidents even more complex.
“We’ve showcased the system to many people, and everyone who sees it is impressed and can immediately see the benefits to our training. Anyone who visits the centre wants to try it out!”
Looking ahead, Network Rail is exploring portable versions of the technology which could be used to deliver the immersive training experience anywhere, complementing the larger fixed installations at the Gresley Institute.
Image credit: Network Rail
