[School-Enterprise Visit] Exploring New Models of Cooperation — Nicola Visits Jiangxi Universities

Foreword

Deepening the reform of the modern vocational education system hinges on adhering to the principles of promoting industry through education, supporting education through industry, integrating industry and education, and facilitating school-enterprise cooperation. Industry-education integration, by guiding and promoting industrial transformation and upgrading through talent development, acts as a "booster" for industrial transformation and upgrading, and will undoubtedly enhance the ability of vocational education to serve economic and social development. This year, eight departments, including the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Education, jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for the Action to Empower and Enhance Vocational Education through Industry-Education Integration (2023-2025)" to better integrate industry needs into the entire process of talent cultivation and further deepen industry-education integration.


Nikola Visits Universities

To deepen school-enterprise cooperation and promote the integration of industry and education, the company's general manager, Feng Zhenying, recently led a team to Jiangxi Electric Power Vocational Technical College, Jiangxi Modern Vocational Technical College, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, and Jiangxi University of Technology for technical exchanges and learning.

First stop: Jiangxi Electric Power Vocational Technical College


Leaders and skilled experts from Jiangxi Electric Power Vocational Technical College warmly welcomed the delegation from Nikola Company, providing a detailed introduction to the college's teaching philosophy, curriculum, and recent honors. Following this, the company's technical team toured the school's specialized training labs for power transmission, substation, distribution, and marketing, and engaged in in-depth discussions with the experts and teachers present, exploring how virtual reality and AI technologies can enhance skills training, safety training, and on-site learning.

During the visit, General Manager Feng Zhenying and Technical Director Dr. Fan Zhongkui greeted all the teachers and power grid experts participating in training at the school.

A lecture titled "Digital Education: The Application of Virtual Reality Technology in Teaching" was shared, and technical exchanges and sharing were conducted based on the company's latest technologies and products for applications in industries such as power, emergency response, fire protection, and education.


In his report, General Manager Feng Zhenying provided a detailed explanation and analysis of the applicability of virtual reality technology in the digitalization of education in the new era, focusing on four aspects: "the policy orientation of industry-education integration, the characteristics of virtual reality technology, the application of virtual reality in the industry, and the R&D direction of Nikola." He also discussed how virtual reality technology can solve the problems and pain points in teaching and practical training, such as high investment, high risk, high difficulty, difficulty in reproduction, difficulty in implementation, and difficulty in observation.

Dr. Fan Zhongkui introduced the application of virtual reality technology in teaching, including theoretical knowledge of virtual reality, virtual reality empowering education, VR practice in power education, and artificial intelligence-assisted teaching. He particularly focused on the application of virtual reality technology in power professional teaching and training, and analyzed the development trend of power VR and the important role of VR/MR, AI artificial intelligence, big data, digital twin and other technologies in the construction of power virtual simulation base, further exploring the ideas of science, industry and education integration. 

At the end of the lecture, the company's technical team demonstrated the company's self-developed power operation VR experience system to the experts and teachers present, such as: transformer safety VR simulation training system, cable trench collapse accident VR experience system, and emergency rescue products, such as: cardiopulmonary resuscitation MR training system, emergency rescue equipment MR training system, etc.; the video showed the meter mounted MR experience system, 10kV power distribution room switch cabinet display experience system, and 10kV switch cabinet overhaul MR experience system.

Finally, the two sides have in-depth exchanges on the integration of science and education industries, school-enterprise cooperation, the construction of virtual bases, and the application of virtual reality technology in teaching, so as to jointly explore a variety of cooperation methods, improve the comprehensive competitiveness of students, and deepen school-enterprise cooperation.

The second stop was Jiangxi Modern Vocational Technical College.


A delegation from Nikola visited Jiangxi Modern Vocational Technical College, where they discussed with school leaders and experts the use of virtual reality technology to improve teaching and explore the establishment of a distinctive virtual simulation training base. The two sides also held in-depth discussions on talent cultivation, industry-education integration, and industry-university collaboration. General Manager Feng Zhenying introduced Nikola's basic information, including its development, product portfolio, and R&D direction. He discussed future cooperation with school leaders on internships and employment, industry-education integration, and collaborative innovation between schools and enterprises, and demonstrated the company's latest products and technologies. Meanwhile, leaders of Jiangxi Modern Vocational Technical College expressed their hope to use this opportunity to accelerate cooperation between schools and enterprises under the background of industry-education integration, the development of off-campus practice bases, and the application of VR/MR technology in teaching and the construction of virtual simulation bases.

The third stop was Jiangxi University of Science and Technology.


Nicolas and his party, accompanied by Dean Hu of the School of Education, visited the VR laboratory of the School and the Nanchang VR Perception Interaction Key Laboratory, and shared their research and development directions and experience in virtual reality technology and products. During the demonstration, the company's technical team focused on demonstrating the cardiopulmonary resuscitation MR training system, home fire escape science VR, natural disaster VR experience system for VR laboratory R&D personnel. Through the hands-on demonstration, the application results and advantages of virtual reality technology in teaching were demonstrated. After the demonstration, the laboratory teachers and students also conducted hands-on experiences. Through the hands-on experience system, the company's VR/MR technology was highly recognized for its industrial application and integration of industry and education.

Fourth stop: Jiangxi University of Science and Technology

The final stop on the Jiangxi trip was Jiangxi University of Science and Technology. As a partner in a university-enterprise cooperation program, both parties have achieved excellent results in recent years in areas such as virtual simulation training bases, standard setting, curriculum development, and off-campus practical training for university students. Leaders and experts from the School of Emergency Management warmly received the Nikolai team and conducted in-depth exchanges and discussions on issues such as how to build the virtual simulation training base into a comprehensive training base integrating teaching, practical training, training, scientific research, competitions, and popular science.

The theme of this visit and exchange activity by Nikola focused on the integration of industry and education and school-enterprise cooperation, aiming to promote in-depth cooperation between education and industry and provide students with higher-quality educational resources and practical opportunities. At the same time, by combining product case studies, it provided inspiration and reference from practical content and theoretical analysis, building a platform for cooperation and exchange between schools and enterprises, offering students more practical opportunities, and helping them better adapt to future career challenges.

Virtual reality technology applied to education and training

Looking at industry-academia-research collaborations in recent years, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies have begun to emerge in the education field, providing students with a more immersive and safer learning experience. By designing virtual simulation training projects, building virtual simulation training systems, and constructing virtual simulation training bases, these initiatives address pain points and challenges in practical training, such as "high investment, high difficulty, high risk, difficulty in implementation, difficulty in observation, and difficulty in reproduction," thereby achieving the informatization, intelligentization, and modernization of talent cultivation.

Strong combination of industry, academia and research

For many years, Nikola has continuously deepened its cooperation with universities and enterprises, promoting the integration of industry and education. It has successively established strategic partnerships with institutions such as Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Guangzhou City Polytechnic, and Guangdong Water Resources and Hydropower Vocational College, engaging in in-depth cooperation in areas such as industry-education integration, virtual simulation training labs, and high-quality virtual reality courseware. Nikola has also collaborated with several central state-owned enterprises, state-owned enterprises, and research institutions on technical cooperation, jointly establishing VR/MR Collaborative Innovation Centers.

In the future, Nikola will continue to collaborate with more institutions to explore new forms and approaches such as industry-education cooperation and collaborative talent cultivation, thereby contributing to the output and transformation of scientific and technological achievements and making new contributions to building a strong nation in higher education.