Multiple Contracts for GSE’s VPanel Training Simulators
– Edited by April Murelio –
GSE Systems, Inc. (GSE), a leading global provider of real-time simulation and training solutions to the power, process, manufacturing and Government sectors, announced the award of approximately $3.3 million of new work in its nuclear simulation and training sectors. Approximately 20% of these awards occurred in the fourth quarter of 2009 and will be reflected in the 2009 year end contract backlog. The balance of these awards have occurred in 2010. These multiple contracts are to provide simulator upgrade services for existing customers in the United States, Europe and China, as well as multiple soft panel simulator (VPanel) awards in Canada, the United States and China.
As described in our October 21, 2008 Press Release, the VPanel™ simulator and training program was developed for Southern Company to help create the next generation of nuclear plant operators. It utilizes proprietary software to create life sized digital images of a nuclear power plant control room. These images are loaded onto touch sensitive computer screen monitors and linked to an existing simulator’s plant models. Any control that can be manipulated in the real control room can be manipulated on the touch screens with exactly the same plant response, audible sounds and alarms. Thus far the Company has been awarded contracts to provide the VPanel simulator in Canada, China and three in the United States.
John V. Moran, GSE’s Chief Executive Officer stated, “Our nuclear customers around the world continue to utilize GSE for major upgrades to their existing simulators. Also, due to the current and projected shortfall of qualified nuclear workers, we anticipated that the nuclear operator training program the Company is executing for the Southern Company would be in high demand from other nuclear operators both in the United States as well as overseas. We received our first confirmation of this with the recent award of five of our proprietary VPanel simulators in three countries. The advantage of the V-panel is that it provides a very realistic control room experience that is ideal for training purposes, but can be deployed in a fraction of the time and cost of a traditional full scope. Since each nuclear plant is still required to have a traditional full scope simulator, the VPanel simulator sales are largely accretive to GSE’s base simulation business. We anticipate a steady stream of these VPanel awards as we progress through 2010 as well as additional nuclear operator training contracts."
GSE Systems, Inc. provides training simulators and educational solutions. The Company has over three decades of experience, over 362 installations, and 100 customers in more than 40 countries. Our software, hardware and integrated training solutions leverage proven technologies to deliver real-world business advantages to the energy, process, manufacturing and government sectors worldwide. GSE Systems is headquartered in Sykesville, Maryland located in the western suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland. Our global locations include offices in St. Marys and Augusta, Georgia; Tarrytown, New York; Nyköping, Sweden and Beijing, China.