You don’t see footballers running onto the field without a game plan. So what’s your playbook for managing crowds, safety and evacuations?

Right now, venues of all shapes and sizes need to adjust to new realities. How can they help people transition from being isolated at home, to dealing with crowds? How will venues enforce social distancing protocols while keeping people moving?

There will be new directives to communicate each day, week or month. Accepted ways of moving people around spaces are no longer valid. Airports will need to manage bottlenecks and minimize queues at security and departure gates. Campuses need to prevent large congregations of students using space notifications, sensors and heatmaps. Stadiums will need to have a strategy for managing large crowds safely, especially on game day.

To plan for any scenario, cutting-edge digital solutions will become a vital infrastructure investment. According to Deloitte, “Stadiums’ transition to a fan-focused, technology-driven immersive environment has already begun. Multiple aspects of the live game experience are being redefined, everything from ticket and concession sales, to security, advertising and on-field action.” 

Be prepared for anything

At PAM, we’re helping our clients adjust to new realities the can handle everything from social distancing to emergency evacuations.

Our Smart Navigation software is designed to help large and complex venues manage bottlenecks, evacuations, natural disasters, safety hazards and security threats. PAM does this by keeping people moving with live navigation updates, dynamic maps and routes, and contextual notifications. 

Our clients are now using sensors, beacons, heatmaps, location-based analytics and space notifications to manage crowd flow and minimize queues. They’re also going touchless, using QR codes to provide live updates and dynamic directions to mobile devices.

One of PAM’s most powerful features is its ability to schedule navigation “Scenes” to create an operating ‘Playbook’. Each ‘Playbook’ is a detailed outline of your operating strategy for handling events where vehicular routing and crowd management scenarios are key to its success. From managing inbound crowds to exiting safely and if necessary initiating an emergency evacuation, each playbook consists of a pre-planned navigation sequences, so your district is prepared for anything.

When activated, each Scene automatically populates digital touchpoints with relevant messaging, directions, event information, security alerts and sponsorship branding to address any specific operational situation. Digital signage guides visitors to entrances and exits along the safest routes, when necessary diverting them away from hazards, roadblocks and bottlenecks.

PAM’s Playbooks empower venue managers to instantly update content at any given time, or in response to any event. They herald a new level of control for venue owners and managers.

Build something that lasts

People are ready to take on the world again – they just need to be assured that when they do, they’re in an environment that’s getting them where they need to be as safely as possible.

Technology will play a major role in improving the safety and security of large venues. As Intel observes, when “60,000 to 100,000 excited people are packed into a relatively small space, stadium operators have to be ready for anything.”

If you don’t have a game plan for managing crowds, evacuations and other hazards, now’s the time to reconnect visitors with experiences they love – while keeping them safe.