The above screenshot is from the ST-80 simulator I can demonstrate on location. The ST-80, also known as an “iron roughneck,” made the job of making and breaking connections far easier and safer in the right hands. These machines cost 400,000.00 each and a set of the spinners you can see to the right of the pipe connection cost 18,000.00 to replace. The could be ruined in a few seconds by a poorly trained operator. Until I designed this simulator, the only way to train was OJT, which could be expensive and costly if the students didn’t do well. The goal was to be able to make or break a connection in 20 seconds or less, a considerable skill level. This simulator took the hit or miss teaching of the sequencing of the controls away from the actual device. Once they mastered it here, time on the machine to duplicate was reduced by 90% and wear and tear on the machine by a similar amount.