In this episode of Case Study Corner, Eirmersive CEO Camille Donegan chats with Aaron Jay, CEO & Co‑Founder of Emagine, to explore Rock to Reality — a VR-powered factory tour created for Irish Cement.

Discover how Emagine used immersive storytelling, cinematic capture, 360 imagery, and interactive Unity-based elements to transform Irish Cement’s recruitment and engagement strategy for school leavers and apprentices.

• Why Irish Cement needed a more engaging way to attract apprentices

• How Emagine designed a VR experience for environments that are inaccessible or dangerous in real life

• The persona‑building workshop that shaped the project’s direction

• Behind‑the‑scenes tech: drones, 360° capture, FPV footage & Unity development

Watch the full podcast interview below…

Our all-island innovation journey kicked off with a consortium meeting hosted at the Digital Catapult Digital Twin Centre in Belfast.

PRISM - PRogramme Innovating Spatial technologies in Manufacturing- is a Pilot Support Programme to empower next generation innovations in Manufacturing through piloting advanced Digital Twinning experiments, that leverage Immersive Technologies, data modelling, and AI.

Led by Eirmersive, the PRISM Programme, brings together cross-border partners including Queen's University Belfast, Regional Development Centre, DkIT, Digital Catapult Northern Ireland to support manufacturing companies in adopting cutting-edge technologies – from immersive technologies and AI to digital twins.

PRISM is supported by InterTradeIreland through the Collaborative Innovation Fund, and we’re proud to be building a support programme that delivers real impact for SMEs across the island of Ireland. Stay tuned for what’s next – and if you’re a manufacturing SME, we’d love to connect. Expression of interest simple form here…

We’re kicking off 2026 with something special – the launch of our brand-new Speaker Directory! This exciting addition to our website, located under the ‘Resources’ menu, is designed to showcase the incredible expertise within the Eirmersive community.

The Speaker Directory isn’t just a page – it’s a gateway to opportunity. We’ll be promoting this resource widely throughout the year to help our Members amplify their voices, grow their reputations, and strengthen their personal and professional brands. Whether you’re looking to share your insights or connect with thought leaders, this is your platform.

If you’re an event organiser searching for speakers who can deliver cutting-edge perspectives on spatial storytelling, immersive media, generative AI, no-code tools, digital placemaking, XR, and other emerging technologies, look no further. The Eirmersive Speaker Directory brings together innovators and practitioners ready to inspire audiences and spark meaningful conversations.

Ger Corbett is Chief Executive Officer at Sandyford Business District. At Eirmersive’s Outward event he made a presentation on the Sandyford Business District Digital Twin Project aimed at sustainability, stakeholder engagement, and visualisation.

Project Goals

• Vision: Position Sandyford as Ireland’s leading sustainable business district.

• Engagement: Bring residents, businesses, local authorities, and other stakeholders along on the journey.

• Approach: Use immersive technology and digital twins to show rather than tell—visualisation is key for awareness and reducing objections.

You can watch Ger’s full presentation in the video below.

As we wrap an extraordinary year at Eirmersive, we are deeply proud of what our community has built together across Ireland and internationally.

Some highlights include:

SXSW (Austin) - Ireland House, PRISM - Immersive Technology Summit (DkIT) and UnitedXR (Brussels) - European Delegation:

Some end of year messages we received from our network members:

"Well done again on bringing all the XR companies together. I really think there will be a lot more collaboration between us all in 2026!"

"It’s been inspiring to see the collaboration and the progress we’ve made together"

"It has really been great to be part of the Eirmersive Network, with such a talented and exciting group of companies and organisations. Thanks so much for all the hard work you do and for pushing the sector forward."

It’s been a busy time for Animotive who announced two new exciting capabilities in their real-time VR virtual production platform for game developers, educators, and creators.

First they introduced AI Legs, a new full-body motion capture breakthrough. This is AI-Enhanced VR Tracking, using only a VR headset and two controllers - no suits, no trackers, no cameras, no long calibration cycles.

“Step in, perform, and let our AI predict and reconstruct natural motion from just three tracked points. Faster pipelines, dynamic character performances, cinematics, and hands-on virtual production for students. Developed in collaboration with Ulster University, Abertay University, and the NVIDIA Inception program.”

Second, they’ve announced full Vicon support – “bringing industry-leading mocap hardware directly into the Animotive workflow”

Sam del Greco is a vastly experienced Senior Researcher (XR - Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality), XR lead at IMR (Irish Manufacturing Research, a member of Eirmersive), who founded IMR’s XR department ~8 years ago. During those years he has delivered demos to thousands of people and scoped 70+ projects, including the completion of 7 multi-company XR projects with ~35 companies. IMR is hardware-agnostic and focuses is on best-fit solutions in terms of devices. It works at mid-level TRL (3–6), focusing on implementation challenges rather than off-the-shelf solutions.

At PRISM '25 Sam spoke about 'Why XR projects fail or stall (“Pilot Purgatory”) - Barriers between inception and implementation, and why projects often die after the pilot phase".

You can watch the full presentation…

Thierry Jourquin is CEO at XRintelligence and a board member at both XR4Europe and Stereopsia Europe. He’s on a mission to accelerate XR technology adoption in Belgium through strategic pillars aligned with EU directives (S3). At PRISM ‘25 he spoke about XR Rapid Prototyping and how it powers AI by Design. In other words, XR and AI are no longer separate but projects now combine XR and AI.

Key Takeaways:
- Rapid prototyping is the best way to engage companies and start innovation journeys.
- XR + AI is now inseparable for future projects. “XR crates the world - AI gives it meaning”
- Adoption requires time, education, and incremental steps.
- Content creation is more critical than hardware—devices will evolve, but immersive content remains central.

Watch the full presentation…

Kevin Doherty is the User Experience & Immersive Technologist at the Digital Twin Centre, Belfast where the goal is to increase adoption of digital twins and explore their integration with immersive technology. At PRISM ‘25 he cited the following Immersive Tech Examples:

• Design Phase: Rapid prototyping with real-world data (e.g., Siemens NX, World Builder).

• Training Scenarios: Flight simulators (Varjo XR), sustainable forestry training.

• Contextualised Data: In-situ dashboards and control interfaces.

• “What If” Analysis: Simulating scenarios for optimisation.

• Storytelling: Using immersive tech to communicate complex processes.

Sue McGuire is Senior Strategic Partnership Manager at Digital Catapult and Barry Kennedy is CEO at Irish Manufacturing Research (a member of Eirmersive). At PRISM ‘25 they joined Mark Sage, Executive Director at the Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance, for a panel discussion to explore how XR (Extended Reality – VR/AR/MR) is solving operational challenges in Manufacturing, the gaps holding back adoption, and what the future might look like.

Shared Insights:
- COVID accelerated XR adoption, but momentum slowed post-pandemic.
- Change management is as important as technology—engage end users early.
- XR success depends on solving real business problems, not just showcasing tech.
- Expect more accessible tools, better ergonomics, and integration with enterprise

Watch the full discussion…

Andrew O’Mullane is Senior Executive Engineer for Active Travel at South Dublin County Council where he’s also Programme Manager for Active Travel Infrastructure Projects. At PRISM ‘25 he spoke about the Council’s use of Virtual Reality to Enhance Public Engagement in Civil Projects.

Challenges
- Planning Process:
--- Complex and often met with public apprehension.
--- Requires public consultation under Part 8 of Planning and Development Regulations.
- Communication Issues:
--- Traditional drawings are hard for non-technical stakeholders to interpret.
--- Councillors struggle to explain plans to constituents.

Learn why Virtual Reality provided the innovative solution…

John Cassidy is Area Manager Training Services at Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board. At PRISM ‘25 he spoke about "Enhancing Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) Skills through [VR] Simulation".

The Training Challenges outlined by John were:

- Traditional approach: integrated learning (practical + theory) and experiential learning are essential for apprentices.

- Physical training requires:
--- Access to specific building structures (e.g., cavity walls, stone walls, block builds).
--- Significant resources and time.
--- All trainees must attend the training centre.
- Difficult to replicate real-world conditions repeatedly.

The Solution was Virtual Reality (VR)…