Quick Start for Learners

Welcome to FacilityVR — an immersive VR learning platform where you can design, build and explore 3D simulations of real-world workplace environments. This guide will help you get started as a learner.

Important: FacilityVR is a simulated environment for educational purposes only. It does not represent the complete features, safety systems, or operating procedures of a real world facility. Always refer to site-specific documentation and live systems for operational decisions.

Using FacilityVR you can learn how to work competently and safely in complex physical environments like chemical processing plants, data centres, energy production facilities, hospitals, mines, and transport terminals. You do this by building and interacting with 3D layouts that simulate real world infrastructure.

You will use FacilityVR in different ways depending on what you want to do.

1. Sign-in to the Console to access your courses, learning scenarios, and activity history. You can access the Console on any modern web browser. Simply sign-in at facilityvr.com. Note that some features may not operated as expected if accessing the Console from a phone.
2. From the Console you can launch our 3D Designer to undertake “Build” scenarios, visually configuring an existing facility layout to make it safe and functional. You can access the 3D Designer from any desktop or laptop web browser that supports the WebXR framework - Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a Windows or Safari, Chrome or Firefox on a MacOS.
3. From the Console you can also launch “Task” scenarios, navigating a facility layout and interacting with its equipment. For the best experience we recommend using a VR headset (like Meta Quest 3) to undertake Task scenarios but you can also use any web browser that supports the WebXR framework. If not using a VR headset, we recommend using a Desktop, laptop or Mac because WebXR is not fully supported on phone and tablet operating systems.

Pairing Your VR Headset

Before you can access learning scenarios using a VR headset, your headset needs to be linked to your FacilityVR account. Pairing connects the headset to whichever user enters the pairing code, and the same headset can be re-paired to a different user at any time by repeating this process.

1. Sign in to the FacilityVR Console at www.facilityvr.com using the email address associated with your FacilityVR account. You may be prompted to enter a one-time-password sent to your email address.
2. Navigate to Pair VR Device in the Console sidebar
3. Put on your VR headset and open the headset’s web browser.
4. Navigate to the URL vr.facilityvr.com.
5. The lobby screen appears, displaying a 6-character pairing code.
6. Take off your headset and return to the Console application. Enter the 6 digit pairing code and click the Pair Device button.
7. The pairing is confirmed — your headset is now linked to your account and ready to use.

Note: Pairing codes expire after approximately 5 minutes. If the code expires, the headset lobby will automatically generate a new one. To re-pair a headset to a different user, simply refresh the browser in your headset to get a new code and have the new user pair it.

If you don’t yet have a FacilityVR account you can skip pairing and explore the built-in Demo Datacentre layout.

Launching a Scenario in the VR headset

The way you launch depends on whether the exercise is a standard (single-player) scenario or a cooperative (2-player) scenario.

Before you launch — review on the Console (recommended):

For both scenario types, it’s worth opening the assignment in the FacilityVR Console first to read the how-to guide and any learning resources your educator has attached. The Console is also where you can revisit your past attempts and results once you’re done. You don’t launch the scenario from the Console — that happens on the headset — but the Console is your reference material.

1. Sign in to www.facilityvr.com on any modern browser (PC, Mac, or even your phone for a quick read).
2. Your Dashboard shows pending assignments under “Up Next”.
3. Click an assignment tile to open the assignment detail page — read the guide and resources.

Standard exercise (single-player) — launch from the headset lobby:

1. Put on your paired VR headset and open vr.facilityvr.com.
2. The headset lobby shows your pending assignments and your organisation’s facility layouts.
3. Tap your assignment to launch the scenario directly into the linked facility.

Tip: if the headset isn’t paired to your account, follow the Pairing Your VR Headset steps first. Until pairing, the lobby will only show the public Demo Datacentre.

Cooperative exercise (2-player) — both players launch self-service:

The cooperative session code is generated by whichever of the two learners have the assignment (the assigned learner plays as the field technician; the partner plays as the control room operator).

1. Player 1 (assigned learner) signs in to the FacilityVR Console on any browser, opens the assignment detail page, and clicks Start Cooperative Session. A 6-character session code appears.
2. Player 1 shares the code with Player 2 (read it aloud, message it, however).
3. Both players put on their paired VR headsets and open vr.facilityvr.com.
4. On the lobby’s “or join a cooperative session” form, each player enters the same code and taps Join.
5. Roles are assigned automatically: the assigned learner becomes the field technician, the other player becomes the control room operator. Both land in the facility together.

Two different codes: The pairing code links a headset to your account (entered in the Console, one-time setup). The session code joins a cooperative multiplayer session (entered on the headset lobby, per-session). Don’t mix them up!

Assignment Detail Page

Click an assignment tile on the Dashboard to open the assignment detail page. This page shows:

• How-to guide — a preparation guide that you should read before starting the exercise to understand the procedure and what to expect.
• Learning resources — PDFs and images attached to the scenario by your educator. Click any resource to open it in a new tab. Review these materials before launching the exercise.
• Launch VR in Browser button — opens the scenario in a new browser tab so you can play it on a PC or Mac instead of a VR headset (for task scenarios only).
• Start Cooperative Session button — for cooperative scenarios only. Generates a 6-character session code that you and your partner enter on your headsets to pair up.

For solo VR play, you don’t launch Task scenarios from this page — open the VR headset lobby at vr.facilityvr.com and tap your assignment there.

VR Headset Controls

Once inside the virtual facility:

Control	Action
Left stick	Walk around
Right stick	Snap turn (45° increments)
Trigger	Interact with equipment hotspots (point and squeeze)
X button (left controller)	Grab and pick up equipment you are pointing at (adds to inventory)
Y button (right controller)	Drop held equipment at the cursor dot
A button (right controller)	increase the elevation of your POV
B button (right controller)	decrease the elevation of your POV
Right grip (side button)	Toggle the Scenario HUD and Ticket panel on/off

Inventory system: You can carry multiple items. Press X to grab an item — it is added to the inventory bar at the bottom of your view. Select an item from the inventory, then press Y to place it. Equipment follows your pointer/beam. Drop near a snap target to snap into place.

On-screen buttons (VR Controls HUD, upper-left of view):

• Hide/Show HUD — toggle the Scenario HUD (tasks, MOP, status) and Ticket panel on/off. Also available via the Right grip button. Use this to get an unobstructed view of the facility.
• Hotspot Discovery — toggle button that highlights all interactive hotspots in the scene with a glow effect. Useful for finding equipment you need to interact with.
• Exit VR — leave the immersive session and return to the browser view.
• Mute — toggle ambient audio on/off (if the scenario uses ambient sound).
• Mic Mute — mute your microphone during cooperative voice chat.
• Ticket — open the Ticket panel to view the scenario’s work order and add notes.

Desktop mode (no headset):

• Use WASD or Arrow keys to move.
• Use the mouse to look around.
• Click to interact with equipment hotspots (buttons, switches, handles).
• Press X to grab and pick up equipment you are pointing at (adds to inventory bar at bottom of screen).
• Click an item in the inventory bar to select it, then press Y to place/drop it.
• Equipment follows your cursor. Drop near a snap target to snap into place.
• The scenario task panel appears as a sidebar on the right.

Completing a Scenario

When a scenario is loaded, you will see a task panel (a floating tablet in VR, or a sidebar on desktop) with three tabs:

Briefing tab:

• Scenario title, description, and difficulty level.
• Time limit (if set).
• In assessment mode, press Start Assessment when you are ready to begin the scenario in assessment mode.

Tasks tab:

• A checklist of steps to complete.
• The current step is highlighted.
• In practice mode, hints are shown if enabled by your educator.
• Completed steps are marked with a green tick.

MOP tab (Procedure Guide): A checklist of procedure instructions for the current step. Each instruction is linked to specific equipment — when you interact with the correct equipment, the MOP entry is automatically ticked off. Complete all MOP entries to finish the step.

Status tab:

• Your overall progress percentage.
• Elapsed time.
• Steps completed out of total.

Ticket tab (when enabled):

• If the scenario includes a support ticket, the Ticket tab shows the ticket subject, priority, description, and a notes log.
• You can add notes to the ticket by typing in the input field and clicking Add Note. Notes are timestamped and attributed to you by name.
• In cooperative mode, both players see each other’s notes in real time.
• Your educator can review the full ticket and notes history after the exercise.

Narrative popups: Some scenarios include narrative text that appears as a cinematic overlay during the exercise. These provide story context or instructions and auto-dismiss after 8 seconds. You may also see an instructional video displayed when you commence a new step.

Finishing: Complete all required steps and their procedure instructions to finish the scenario. Competency is assessed by whether you successfully performed all required equipment interactions in the correct sequence. Your results are automatically submitted.

Practice vs. Assessment mode:

• Practice — hints are visible, you can see the task checklist, and you can freely explore. A Start Assessment button is available on the briefing tab when you are ready to attempt a formal assessment.
• Assessment — hints are hidden, the task checklist is not shown, and your performance is formally scored.

In both modes, you must physically interact with equipment to complete MOP procedure steps. The task checklist shows your progress.

Your educator chooses which mode to assign by default. If assigned in practice mode, you can switch to assessment mode yourself by pressing Start Assessment on the briefing tab. This is a one-way switch — once you start the assessment, you cannot return to practice mode for that attempt.

Build Mode Exercises

Some assignments are build-mode exercises: instead of walking through a pre-built layout, you construct a layout yourself by adding connectors, equipment, labels, safety signs, state conditions and reactions to the layout.

These scenarios can only be performed on a desktop/laptop browser as the required design tools are not available in the VR headset.

You will be graded according to whether you have performed the necessary design tasks to solve a given problem.

Open the assignment as usual — you’ll see a Build Attempts panel instead of the Launch button.

Starting and resuming

• Click Open Editor to fork your own private copy of the layout. Your work never affects the original or anyone else’s copy.
• Re-opening the assignment shows Resume Editor — you pick up exactly where you left off.
• The history list shows every attempt you’ve made on this assignment with status and score.

In the editor

The build editor opens in your browser (not a VR headset — the editor’s overlay panels need a flat 2D screen for the picker drop downs and step list). Use the mouse to look around, WASD to walk, and click the canvas to lock your cursor for first-person navigation. The right sidebar holds Equipment, Connectors, Signs, Labels and more.

A left-side step panel lists every step your educator has set up:

• Each step has a status indicator: green ✓ = all rules pass, red ✗ = at least one rule fails, grey = no rules / not yet evaluated.
• Click a step to expand it and see why each rule passed or failed (e.g. “Found 1 server_rack, expected 2-3”).
• When a step is expanded, every failing item in that step gets a pulsing red ring on the floor and an arrow above it. These are visible through walls so you can find them in a busy layout.

Saving and resetting

• Save persists your work — you can close the browser and resume later.
• Reset (practice mode only) discards your current attempt and starts fresh. The previous attempt stays in your history as abandoned. In assessment mode only your educator can reset.

Submitting

• Click Submit in the toolbar when you’re ready for grading. You’re warned about unsaved changes and asked to confirm — this is irreversible.
• The server runs all the rules and shows a result modal: pass/fail, overall score, and per-step breakdown with rule detail.
• After submit the editor reloads in read-only mode — you can still walk through your layout but can no longer edit. The status badge changes to “submitted”.

Course-step build exercises

If you reach a build scenario inside a course module, the same panel appears in the course-learn page. No one needs to assign it to you — the assignment is created on demand the first time you open the step.

Walking through your build in VR

Your most-recent build attempt for each scenario appears in your VR headset’s lobby under a My Build Attempts section. Pick it to walk through the layout you built — same as a learner would experience a educator-published facility. Only the latest attempt per scenario is shown so the lobby stays clean; full attempt history lives on the dashboard’s Build Attempts panel.

Working Through a Course

A course bundles multiple learning resources into a structured programme — narrative reading, videos, reference resources, learning scenarios, quizzes, and free-form activities. You may have been enrolled in a course by your educator (in which case it shows up automatically on My Courses), or you may have applied to a course via the marketplace. Either way, the experience is the same once you’re enrolled.

Finding your courses

1. Sign in to the FacilityVR Console at www.facilityvr.com.
2. Click My Courses in the sidebar.
3. Each course tile shows your enrolment status, course code (if any), and a short description.
4. Click a tile to open the course-learn page.

If you don’t see a course you expect to be enrolled in, ask the educator or admin who set it up — they may need to re-run the assignment, or your enrolment may still be in Applied status awaiting approval.

The course-learn page

The course-learn page lists every module in the course, and within each module every step you need to complete. A progress bar at the top shows your overall completion (number of steps complete out of total).

Steps are colour-coded:

• Open circle with the step number — not yet completed
• Filled circle with green tick — completed

If your educator has enabled sequential module completion, modules unlock in order: you must finish every required step in the current module before the next module’s steps become clickable. Locked modules show a small “Complete previous module to unlock” badge.

The six step types

Type	What you do	When it ticks complete
Narrative	Read content (rich text with images, links, callouts)	When you click Read to expand it
Video	Watch a Vimeo or YouTube video embedded inline	When you click Watch to open the player
Resource	Download a PDF or image	When you click View to open it in a new tab
Scenario	Launch a 3D learning scenario (browser or VR headset)	Only when you pass it in assessment mode — practice-mode passes don’t tick the step done
Quiz	Answer multiple-choice, true/false, or matching questions	When you achieve the specified pass threshold (e.g. 70%)
Activity	Submit free-form work — rich text, file uploads, voice recording	When you click Submit (not when saving a draft)

Quiz and activity steps may carry a short Instructions preamble shown above the questions or form — read it before answering or submitting.

Launching scenario steps from a course

Same rules as standalone scenario assignments: solo task scenarios open in the headset lobby (or via Launch VR in Browser if you’re on a PC/Mac); cooperative scenarios use the in-page Start Cooperative Session code-sharing flow; build scenarios open the 3D Designer in a new tab. See Launching a Learning Exercise in the VR Headset for the full detail.

Auto-completion of the course

When every step is done, the course is automatically marked Completed and stamped with the date. You retain read-only access to all the materials and your transcript afterward — you can revisit narrative steps, re-watch videos, and review your past attempts at any time, but you can’t make new submissions or scenario attempts unless your educator resets your enrolment.

If you need to retake a quiz or scenario after completion, ask your educator to Reset to Enrolled on the Class List page. Your past results stay attributed to you; you’ll just be able to add new attempts on top.

Statement of Completion

Once a course is marked completed, a Statement of Completion PDF can be generated for the course. Open the course on the Console and look for the download link on the course-learn page. The statement includes the course name, your name, completion date, a unique document ID, and (unless you’ve opted out under Settings → Privacy) a QR verification code that anyone can scan to confirm authenticity on the FacilityVR website.

Viewing Your Activity History

1. Click My Activity in the sidebar to see your FacilityVR learning history.

2. The page shows summary cards (total exercises, pass rate, average score) and a detailed table of all your attempts.

3. Use the filters to narrow by status (Passed, Failed, Abandoned) or mode (Practice, Assessment).

4. Click View on any attempt to see detailed step-by-step results.

5. Click Export CSV to download your activity data as a spreadsheet.

6. Click Statement of Attainment to generate a PDF certificate listing all your passed assessment exercises. This document includes:

   • Your name and organisation
   • A table of successfully completed assessments with dates and scores
   • A unique document ID for verification
   • A QR code (if enabled by your organisation) that links to a public verification page

7. If you prefer not to have a QR code on your statement, you can opt out via Settings > Privacy > Opt out of QR Code verification.

Cooperative (2-Player) Mode

Some scenarios are designed for two players working together:

Field Technician — you are physically present in the virtual facility. You walk around, interact with equipment, and follow the procedure steps. If the scenario has a ticket, you can view it and add notes describing your observations and actions.

Control Room Operator — you monitor equipment from a control room screen in the VR environment. You can view the same ticket and add notes to coordinate with the field technician. Both players’ notes appear in real time.

Both players communicate via built-in voice chat. Use the Mic Mute button in the HUD to toggle your microphone.

Important: Each player must use a separate headset paired to their own account. The lobby shows “Signed in as: [email]” — verify this is your account before joining. If the headset shows someone else’s email, tap Disconnect first, then pair the headset to your own account.

Why? VR headsets remember login credentials even after power cycling. If a previous user paired this headset, their session may still be active. Always check the identity banner before joining a cooperative session.

To join a cooperative session:

1. Your educator generates a 6-character session code from the assignment detail page and shares it with both players.
2. Each player puts on their own VR headset (paired to their own account) and opens the FacilityVR lobby.
3. Verify the “Signed in as” banner shows your email address.
4. Enter the session code in the session code field and tap Join.
5. The assigned learner automatically becomes the field technician. The other player becomes the control room operator.

Remember: Both players must have already paired their headsets (see Pairing Your VR Headset before joining a cooperative session.