FIGHT OR FLIGHT
Victoria-based RaceRocks 3D is helping Canada's
defence and aerospace industries take off
54 R a c e R o c k s 3 D
B C B U S I N E S S . C A
A P R I L / M AY 2 0 2 5
MÉTIS ENTREPRENEUR Anita Pawluk
was always determined to balance family
with her work. She started her career at
Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt, working
in the water mapping department. She
then earned a CPA designation and moved
on to head accounting at Victoria-based
book and collectible marketplace Abe-
Books, which was then an independent
startup. There, Pawluk saw the potential of
technology to streamline processes, which
inspired her to start ventures of her own.
In 2010, Pawluk co-founded RaceRocks
3D to improve legacy training systems for
the Canadian military. "The older tech-
nology didn't have a lot of room for large
files, so we used innovative techniques to
increase the fidelity of those models," she
explains. "Trainees 10 years ago used to
[go through] a very large training program
offered by the Canadian Armed Forces that
cost millions of dollars to build, and then
they would go home, turn on their Xbox
and have a more immersive experience due
to the virtual world."
RaceRocks aimed to bridge that gap by
modernizing military training. As a leader
in training and simulation technology,
RaceRocks offers distributed learning to the
aerospace and defence sectors. Its clients
include Boeing, the Royal Canadian Navy
and, most recently, Lockheed Martin. One
of its products is a boat simulator that helps
train Navy operators using a full-motion
platform and virtual reality technology.
The online system allows trainees to prac-
tice under different sea conditions, times of
day and locations, providing an immersive
and cost-effective training experience while
reducing human risk at sea.
For example, with Boeing, "to ground
a plane just to train on it is super expen-
sive," says Pawluk. RaceRocks built a VR
simulator that can be used to teach Boeing
trainees the proper procedure for packing
away oxygen masks on airplanes without
stepping on an actual plane.
The company also has specific pro-
grams (such as Kishkayhta) dedicated to
increasing Indigenous participation in
STEAM fields.
"Trainees 10 years ago
used to [go through]
a very large training
program offered by the
Canadian Armed Forces
that cost millions of
dollars to build, and
then they would go
home, turn on their
Xbox and have a more
immersive experience
due to the virtual
world."-Anita Pawluk
