Audio-visual systems supplier Fired Up Technologies has come up with what it considers the main issues facing attractions as they reopen – and some solutions.
The UK-based company says that the “new normal” for leisure and retail will be nothing like it was pre-pandemic.
“It will all change, from mass temperature checks and compulsory hand sanitising to the removal of re-usable menus,” the company said.
Hand sanitiser display kiosks will be everywhere, probably with touch-free sensors. Capacity ceilings for attendance at attractions will be tightly controlled to ensure social distancing.
The company points out that airports have been using thermal camera technology since SARS in 2002-3 and still use them today. They are useful as early warning systems and preferable to checking each visitor with a hand-held device. The cameras check heat, can work in the dark and are highly accurate.
Footfall monitoring is catered for by counters and there are various technologies available to do this from a simple beam break technology to stereo cameras.
Online venue booking systems may come in. Again, they are not new and are usually web-based. They can help to control the number of visitors in a location at any one time.
Apps could be used to avoid touching menus in F&B environments. The company notes that UK pub company Wetherspoons has been using a system for customers to order food and drive from an app for years.
“It is a perfect solution for reducing contact with others, minimising queuing and interaction with waiting staff.”
Re-usable menus will probably be ditched to avoid the passing of bacteria, so motion sensor digital displays would permit venues to display menus on-screen and customers can browse through hand motion.
Even augmented reality may come into play, said Fired Up Technologies.
“As we know, augmented reality uses the world around the customer and allows them to place products in their home or even on their bodies. This technology allows users to play with merchants' products and see how they would look and fit in a room or on themselves.”
The technology can even be used in retail stores’ changing rooms to see how a garment might look on a potential buyer.
The company, which can supply many of the products likely to be needed in a post-pandemic world of attractions, concluded: “The way in which we shop and enjoy leisure time is going to change drastically over the coming months and businesses within the leisure and retail sectors are going to have to adapt quickly to respond. As a company, we believe those businesses that embrace technology to help service changes in customer needs will ultimately win in the long run.”
