Bit Space Development Ltd.

I am the Vice President of North Forge Technology Exchange. We are a hybrid incubator, accelerator. and the innovation partner for the Province of Maniobta. We have Canada's largest publicly accessible fabrication lab in North America.

Development of a VRSafety Orientation Experience at our Fabrication Lab. Our goal was to develop a course that would provide an understanding of the potential hazards associated with the use of high risk equipment as well as the safety precautions required to prevent those hazards from occurring.

Using VR Safety software, Bit Space Development captured the equipment rooms and high-priority equipment in the Fabrication Lab and augment it with information about the machines and safe work procedures that are required for working in the shop. We will have interactive safety hotspots that members can click on that will load further safety information.

During the project Bit Space Development worked towards the development of VR focused training resources specifically designed to enhance the safe work practices for manufacturing and fabrication lab spaces. During this project they developed and streamlined a process for creating this content, adapted our web-based SaaS tooling to deliver the content, and created a scalable and sharable set of course content which will be used in the North Forge Fabrication Lab. A summary of technical activities: Content planning – the initial course planning using the XR content builder process - Content shooting – onsite content capture. - Hotspot creation – initial work produced by the XR team to translate the starter content provided by the working group. - Content support – Working with the working group to insert hotspot and embedded content into the XR learning environments. - Development of review builds 1 & 2. - Pilot and deployment of course content delivered by our VRSafety tool. - The procurement and set up of Pico VR hardware at North Forge. - The deployment and optimization of the VRSafety Pico application for deployment to the lobby.In addition to these items the technical team advised North Forge on sanitization and safe operation practices for the XR equipment via the UV cleaning systems deployed to the space. This will allow for the sanitization of the head mounted display between users in the physical space.Along side the VR based training we have also deployed a web VR based training experience which uses the same content and is considered an accessible alternativefor users who can not use the VRSafety VR headsets. This can be used via the iPads already present in the space

Dan Blair, CEO Bit Space Development Kevin Carbotte, Marketing Director, Bit Space Development Gabriel Lascano, CTO, Bit Space Development

Bit Space Development finished the project for us on time and within budget. And this will all completed during a pandemic and we were very fortunate that the team adapted so well to working virtually.

Bit Space Development utilized microsoft project for the work plan and timelines, ASANA Project Management and SLACK for contact communication.

They always found solutions to our business problems. The are a very knowledgeable team.

Nothing to add here.

At the time that I was working with Dan and BitSpace Development, I was the Executive Director of the Construction Safety Association of Manitoba (CSAM). CSAM is a non-profit organization run by and for the building construction industry in Manitoba, with governance provided by the Winnipeg Construction Association’s Board of Directors and the CSAM Advisory Committee. Established in 1989, CSAM has earned the reputation as a leader in the safety landscape of Manitoba, as well as within the Canadian Federation of Construction Safety Associations.

CSAM was involved in a two-year research project with the Institute of Work and Health surveying construction companies on the subject of Leading Indicators used in the Safety and Health program. The challenge was how to display the results of the research project and to provide a platform for the survey and benchmarking reports to live on past the research phase to ensure that companies could measure and react to progress in years to come.

The goal was to build a platform that would allow companies to take the survey, benchmark the results against anonymized aggregate data to show where the company stood against other construction companies in Manitoba The baseline data provides participating firms with an opportunity to benchmark their safety performance against other companies within their trade and region of Manitoba’s construction industry in areas such as safety culture, employee engagement, hazard identification, and ergonomics. The Dashboard, INDICATOR then provides links to resources to help improve scores for each of the survey measures. The intention is to move the needle on an organization’s average score for each measure and raise the standard of safety in Manitoba.

Having worked with BSD as a Project Advisory Committee member on multiple previous projects, Dan Blair and BitSpace Developments were well known to me. I had engaged with two other companies within Canada but Dan’s approach to his business stood out from the rest. During the initial concept meetings, BSD asked lots of questions and demonstrated a desire to fully understand the requirements of the project.

In phase one of the work BSD developed a dashboard to display the results of the research project which included secure login for companies, tabular and graphic representation of the data and the ability for companies to retake the survey with an algorithm to produce benchmarking reports that compare to the original research project reports. In phase two links were developed to resources that were designed to help to improve scores for each of the survey categories.

CSAM Representatives – ED, Training and Communications Manager, Operations Manager. BSD Representatives – Dan Blair CEO/Founder, Chief Technology Officer, Design and Developers.

The successful completion of the project has provided Construction companies in Manitoba the opportunity to measure the effectiveness of their safety and health program and safety culture. By being able to compare against the mean results of other companies within their trade and region of Manitoba’s construction industry in areas such as safety culture, employee engagement, hazard identification, and ergonomics. It will give firms a wholistic perspective on their safety efforts where they can compare their results year on year to see improvement. With links to resources the Indicator dashboard not only tells companies where you need to improve, but it also shows them how.

Communication lines were set up between CSAM staff and BSD with regular meetings to discuss progress and look forward to the next stages. Dan was also involved in meetings with the IWH research team. His input was instrumental to how the dashboard developed which ultimately ended up with a very useful and functional product.

Dan is creative, flexible and has a very can do/will do attitude. This attitude is contagious which is evident when working with the BSD team. Dan immerses himself into everything that he does, on a previous project involving working at heights, Dan took a full fall protection course and spent time on job sites to fully understand the issues. Dan was always available for discussion and problem solving which kept the project on track and within budget.

I have been working with BSD since the very beginning and have seen this start-up grow from humble beginnings. The growth does not seem to have affected the quality and efficiency of projects, I am convinced that under Dan’s leadership BSD has a very bright future.

I’m the training director of Piping Industry Technical College. We’re the training arm of UA Local 254 Plumbers and Pipefitters Union. I run the day-to-day dealings and training. That includes training premises as well as training contracts with indigenous groups and everything from military to hospital to service workers. We do all kinds of work beyond our membership as well.

We work with electricians as subject matter experts. In this engagement, we were creating a VR program funded through workers’ compensation. It was a grant proposal written by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), and we came in because of our expertise.

BSD provided VR development services. Although it was through IBEW, they built a version of the program for our use. We use it for our pre-apprentice students and at trade shows. The solution allows high school students to get an idea of what the job site looks like. Upon initiation, BSD came to all of our job sites to record site issues and show what an actual one looks like. The VR solution lets students walk around and through a 360° view of a typical job site.

I worked with Dan (CEO & Founder) for 99% of the engagement. There was another man who came with him to record the job sites, but I didn’t interact with any other individuals besides that.

We came to work with them through IBEW. They had bid on other projects that BSD was already involved in so that’s how they met. I personally met Dan year ago on a welding project I was a subject matter expert for.

I wasn’t part of the financial part, but I’m pretty sure it was between $50,000–$70,000.

The project ran from October 2016–June 2017.

The application has been a handy tool in our trainings and trade shows. Showing students our job sites and capabilities has been effective. Also, the app has been good in terms of pulling up bits and pieces of it for unforeseen opportunities. However, it’s difficult to quantify how its grown our business, but it’s definitely had a positive impact. It’s been a helpful tool to have, and we use it anytime we get a chance to.

They did an excellent job with project management. I’d send an email, and they’d respond within 10–15 minutes. Their responsiveness is top-notch. BSD is one of the fastest companies in terms of communication, and I’ve dealt with a lot of IT companies.

The high quality of their work is their most impressive trait. They did an excellent job with the application, and we’re very satisfied.

No, I can’t think of anything. We’d been talking about starting other projects with them. It just depends on funding, because it’s not something we fund ourselves. I’d definitely work with them again.

Be clear about your expectations and what you want. Understand that BSD is not of your business. They’re here to augment your business. So, your job is to be clear in order to get the results you need. They’re good at what they do, but if they don’t understand it may be because you didn’t tell them exactly what you need.

MITT is a post-secondary institution that provides training in Health Care, Human Services, Business and IT and Skilled Trades. I work as the Coordinator of Student Recruitment and Pathways, managing our domestic outreach strategies in Manitoba.

We hired Bit Space Development to create a custom welding VR simulator.

Our goals for the project were to provide an safe and efficient means for prospective students to try welding and expose more students to careers in skilled trades.

We chose Bit Space Development based on an evaluation of the local marketplace and through a number of discovery sessions with Bit Space.

Bit Space Development designed a custom VR welding simulator for the college, including technical support and after sales service.

The team comprised of MITT's Student Recruitment and Career Services teams and sales, developers and technical teams from Bit Space Development.

The welding simulator has proven to be a huge draw at career fairs and off campus events, allowing students the opportunity to explore this career in a safe and impactful way. This is contributing to more interest in skilled trade careers and a more economical means of career exploration for the college.

The projected was managed through an initial consultation to discuss our objectives, with meetings at regular intervals to discuss revisions and upgrades to enhance the user experience. At every turn, they provided exceptional client support and went the extra mile to create an outstanding finished product.

Dan and his team are extremely easy and fun to work with, and provided exceptional service and customer support at every turn. They were very attentive to our needs and goals for this project and stayed within the confines of a very tight budget. Furthermore, they're passionate about what they do and that translated to a finished product that exceeded our expectations and is vitally important to our department.

I don't have much to offer in terms of improvements, other than on one occasion the simulator was glitchy. They were very quick to offer solutions, and even went so far as to offer personalized support at the event. Thank you!

I’m the director of apprenticeship and training for the Manitoba and Nunavut region of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. We are a union organization that also provides for the educational needs of our electricians. We have our own school, which I am also the director of.

In Canada, our northern regions are incredibly remote and rural, so we can't provide the same services that we do in city centers.

We wanted to use AR and VR technology to bring the job site back to the classroom, instead of taking the classroom to the job site. We engaged with Bit Space Development Ltd. on a project that would move the required safety training for electricians in remote regions to a VR platform.

I worked exclusively with Dan (Owner and CEO, Bit Space Development Ltd.). I believe he had quite a large team behind him, as well. We also had a hired project manager to help oversee this project.

We reached out to several companies, got quotes, and met with their teams. Based on those interviews and our assessments of their cost-effectivenesses, we went with Bit Space Development Ltd.

We invested $100,000 CAD (approximately $76,000 USD).

We began work in February 2017, and the project was finished in April 2018.

The technology is working well for us. Every school struggles to recreate the real world within the lab setting. With regard to the content and the makeup of the program, what we created with Bit Space Development Ltd. has worked wonders for us.

We had zero issues with our timeline. The project finished ahead of schedule, and there was little frustration. They bent over backward to meet our needs and then went above and beyond with support throughout the whole process.

Dan and his team were very proactive and reactive, and they were great to work with. Whenever there were any bumps in the road or if something didn't work, they were very quick to find a solution.

One constructive piece of feedback I could give is that they occasionally forget that you’re not in the VR/AR industry. They get so excited and will occasionally start throwing around acronyms and industry terms. I'll have to slow them down and ask for an explanation in English. But, this was also a testament to their passion and work-ethic; when they get on a roll, they just don’t stop.

Make sure you work with them to explain your industry. If you put in the time to explain what you want, it will be much easier for them to deliver it.