FOOTBALL FINDS ITS HOME IN MILTON KEYNES
In September 2003 Milton Keynes could at last boast its first professional football team following the relocation of Wimbledon FC to the National Hockey Stadium in Milton Keynes; in June 2004 the Club was rescued from Administration by new Milton Keynes’ owners which was reflected in the change of the Club to Milton Keynes Dons, and now the new incarnation was to get its very own home – the
stadiummk.
As befits a state-of-the-art facility such as
stadiummk, it was important to maximise not only the latest building and architectural techniques, but also the very latest technology. High on the list was the proven ticketing and access solution from Europe’s number one provider, APT Skidata.
The 72-acre site combined an all-seater outdoor stadium of just over 21,000 in Phase 1 (with the scope for future development on the upper tier to provide an addition 9,000 seats), a triple height indoor arena hosting indoor sporting events for 3,000 seated spectators (where the MK Lions basketball team are based), exhibitions, conferences and product launches, as well as concerts for up to 5,000 people.
The complex will also have a 128 bedroom 4-star hotel and one of the largest conference and banqueting facilities in the South East of England, as well as bars and restaurants. Retailers already on-site include Asda and Ikea.
The stadium was designed by London 2012 Olympic architects, HOK with the main contractor being a local firm, Buckingham Group Contracting. Despite being a League 2 club on the pitch, off the pitch the MK Dons wanted to compete with the very best of the Premiership and, therefore, APT Skidata were called in as access management partners.
MK Dons wanted a light, open and welcoming environment for their visitors, whether they were football fans, concert-goers or corporate visitors. The traditional full height, enclosed turnstiles would not contribute to that environment so more advanced solutions were required and they quickly realised the potential of an integrated access control, ticketing and CRM system
Stadiummk now has three-arm, half height turnstiles from APT Skidata, specially made with red readers to fit with the black, red and white colour scheme. There are a total of 36 around the stadium spread across five main gates, the family stand and the entrance to the Arena, with the corporate areas utilising hand-held readers. An additional 14 will be required when the second phase of construction is completed – which includes the development of the stadium’s upper tier.
The automated turnstiles give greater crowd control and are much more efficient in terms of getting fans into the grounds. APT Skidata’s technology is based around an electronic card and access system that integrates with the club’s ticketing provider – in this case, Tickets.com.
For season ticket holders the electronic card replaces the traditional paper matchbooks, which means they no longer have to find and tear out the appropriate ticket for the game. Instead, the season ticket holder’s details are stored on the card and when it is presented to the reader at the turnstile, it is automatically verified and access is granted. If there is a problem with the card the light at the turnstile turns red, rather than green, and the steward is alerted. Once the card has been read it cannot be re-presented for the same match, eliminating ‘pass-backs’. Match day tickets are barcoded and presented in much the same way.
MK Dons now have 4,500 season ticket holders and the use of season ticket cards, rather than matchbooks will reduce their printing and postage costs. A further benefit that the Club will experience in years to come is that the smartcards can be updated electronically – eliminating the need to reissue season tickets every year. The Club’s ticket office will have control of every ticket so if, for example a season ticket holder loses their card it can be cancelled – tackling the issue of fraud by taking the ‘lost’ ticket out of circulation.
In addition to the cost benefits of the new technology, the ability of the APT Skidata system to integrate will provide many more advantages in the form of additional intelligence where data collected from the readers will serve as another information stream going into CRM and will help with visitor profiling.
The Skidata technology gives real time reporting so staff are able to see who bought what ticket, when and at what time they arrived at the stadium. If people are turning up minutes before kick-off they can be specifically targeted and offered incentives to arrive earlier, so that they spend money in the ground rather than outside it. It will also avoid a mad rush to their seats moments before the start of the match, which can cause issues in terms of crowd safety.
APT are proud to have been a part of this new world class venue, which has given the MK Dons an opportunity to attract new supporters from an eager audience with a new generation of children. They feel it is important to maintain a family-friendly atmosphere and recognise that the experience starts at the gates, hoping that a welcoming environment, with the use of APT Skidata’s turnstiles will help set the tone.
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