With this project, we aimed to digitise vocational education in the field of ship engine and enable students to overcome the limitations they face in practical training. By developing an interactive simulation-based training platform, we aimed to enable students to practice preventive maintenance, fault detection and ship machinery management. In addition, we aimed to improve the quality of vocational education and to develop digital content suitable for hybrid and distance education models, thus making ship machinery education more accessible, repeatable and cost-effective. The open-source education platform created within the scope of the project will not only be limited to the project partners, but will also contribute to international vocational education communities and help to close the qualified labour force gap in the maritime sector.
82.84% of world trade is carried out by sea and the need for qualified labour force in the field of ship machinery is increasing day by day. Practical training is critical for students studying in the field of ship machinery and maintenance, but these trainings cannot always be carried out effectively due to high costs and safety risks. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the necessity of digitalisation in vocational education, but the lack of practical courses in the distance education process has emerged as an important problem. This project aims to develop an innovative digital simulation for ship engine education, to provide students with a realistic workshop experience and to create an interactive platform that supports the learning process. By supporting digital transformation in vocational education, the project contributes to a repeatable, safe and cost-effective education process that is suitable for students' individual learning speed.