Fastline Turnkey Solutions Brochure by Bob Fastlinegroup

FastlineGroup

Fastline Group is a global one stop shop for rental and concession karting venues, which supplies a range of high quality, value for money products and great advice. These services include providing kart track turnkey hardware supply solutions. Fastline Group can provide the complete kart track hardware or individual components of a karting venue, frequently located in multi activity FECs or major theme parks. Kart track hardware requirements include: • Karts • Barriers • Venue management system, including marketing, booking, access control, timing, back office management, etc...... • Venue management system hardware including computers, POS, printers (printing, receipt ticketing, membership/loyalty cards, debit cards), bar code scanners, cash drawers, etc...... • Kart timing and speed control hardware systems • Start/Finish and circuit light system • Race results display and audio system – includes scoreboards • Kart maintenance and workshop equipment • Kart spares – tyres, spare parts etc..... • Kart centre race wear and merchandising items • Various other kart centre operating equipment (e.g. track cleaning, refuelling systems, etc.....)

FastlineGroup

FEC entertainment venue hardware requirements include: • Kiddy rides and play equipment • Game machines (redemption, video, arcade, tables, etc......) • Games debit card system (integrated with venue management system) • Games and turnstile debit card hardware • Redemption tickets • Redemption prizes • Laser tag systems • Corporate and venue clothing (staff and retail sales) • Kiosks for visitor registration (marketing, prize redemption, competition/ award registration) Fastline Group also offers consulting, installation and training services to facilitate new centres to get up and running. “Our aim is to save you money and help you increase your revenue”

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Venue Consulting

Fastline Group is able to offer comprehensive consultancy services to kart centres and FEC’s. This can be a valuable service and the scope and cost will vary inversely with the type of venue proposed, starting with a FIA/FIM/CIK accredited motor sports track through to a small coin operated kiddy ride kart circuit. From our initial scoping visit through to opening and beyond you can be assured that you are in safe hands with our professional in house team who have over 15 years experience in the karting and FEC sectors. Our services cover every aspect of the business from circuit design, equipment requirements and procurement, safety procedures, facility management, staff training, training manuals, operating procedures and much more. At Fastline our aim is to save you money by ensuring good quality equipment is supplied at competitive prices as well as providing training services and the guidance required to run a well drilled and professional outfit to maximise throughput and revenue streams.

Venue Consulting

Venue consulting services are tailored to each client’s individual requirements and can include all or some of the following: • Initial scoping study of site and proposed venue components • Market studies, surveys and evaluations • Venue or venue component feasibility studies • Venue planning approval support services (e.g. noise levels data for kart tracks, track safety advice, etc.....) • Kart centre track design support, including to full FIA, FIM and CIK accreditation for international and national racing facilities ( in association with Apex Circuit Design Ltd, an internationally recognised motorsport circuit design and motorsport consultancy) • Kart centre track construction advice and supervision • Venue operational advice and planning operations facility locations (reception, change rooms, briefing, function rooms, retail, F&B, games/rides, pit area, workshop, stores, etc...). as well as visitor flow patterns • Supply of venue hardware requirements including full kart centre requirements on turnkey or individual basis (karts, barriers, mechanics workshop, circuit lights & controls, timing & results display systems, games, redemption prizes and rides for FECs, etc..., • Supply of complete venue management system (bookings, scheduling, ticketing, retail POS, F&B POS, membership, timing, results display, access control, full back office reporting, etc...). • Supply of all hardware and software for kart track timing, safety control and results display • Venue staff recruitment and training, including contract service operation • Venue operational audits and performance reports

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Venue Consulting 9 ÂŠ FastlineGroup 2010

Venue Set Up & Budgeting

Fastline Group is often contacted by numerous people seeking advice about setting up a new go kart venue, in this section you will find a number of recommendations, guidelines, rules of thumb and sample budgets for setting up a karting venue, be it a stand alone karting centre, integrated within a multi activity theme park/FEC or integrated within an entertainment centre (frequently associated with shopping malls or leisure complexes). When setting up a venue you should first answer a number of questions. The answers to these questions will be able to guide you in the selection of your location, venue theming and product selection. • • •

Who will be your target audience? What type of venue do you wish to achieve? What is your total budget?

The type of karting venue will usually influence the total budget required to develop a quality facility. Types can be broadly categorised as follows: • FIA/FIM/CIK accredited motor sports track • Non accredited motor sports track • Amusement/Entertainment/Leisure track, whether stand alone or part of a multi activity FEC • Kiddy ride small circuit

Basic Rules of Thumb

The most common components of a karting venue and their general rules of thumb and guidelines are listed below.

Venue Set Up

Karts

• Type of kart - petrol, LPG gas or electric, petrol karts are cheapest however have higher running costs. Currently with electric karts you need twice as many karts (due to recharge times) and they are twice as expensive as petrol. • Mix of karts - adult karts, kid’s karts, twin seaters and high performance karts. The answers to the above questions will assist you in determining this mix. • Number of karts - a general rule of thumb is you need twice as many karts as you can fit on the track at once then a couple spare. The rationale for this is that once the last kart from the first group comes into the pits the first kart from the second group should be leaving the pits. By operating like this if you have 15 minute sessions you can normally fit an extra session every hour. • Brand of karts - the trade off you make here is price verses quality, generally the cheaper the kart the more you will spend on maintenance and you will also have to replace your fleet more frequently. • Order timeline - generally 6-8 weeks

Barriers

• Purpose of barriers - The general objective of the barrier system is to define the racing area in a manner that provides safety for the drivers, marshals and spectators. In high risk areas the barrier should be left to float with the minimum of floor fixings, space permitting, a run off area before the barrier is desirable. All barrier systems should be impenetrable and capable of restraining a kart at speed. © FastlineGroup 2010

Barriers (con’t)

• Type of barriers - here you have a number of choices, old tyres which are cheap, are less pleasing to the eye and have a hidden cost of labour and materials needed to secure them together. Alternately, you can use a hollow barrier, which there are numerous and vary in price and quality. The most important characteristics of these types of barriers is their connection method, weight and plastic thickness. • Number of barriers - generally speaking you need two metres of barriers for every metre of track and extra 50 metres for the pit area and if using plastic barriers it is probably sensible to get an extra 10% for breakages. • Order timeline - generally 6-8 weeks

Track Surface & Layout

• Length of track - Generally an indoor track is between 300m to 600m in length and outdoor tracks are between 600m to 1km. • Width of track - It is desirable to have a track width not less than five metres. The width can be reduced to four metres, but only where 90% of the circuit’s length exceeds five metres width. • Size of pit area - should be large enough to house twice the number of karts allowed on the circuit at one time and space for two spares. This can vary depending on the proximity of the workshop and storage area to the pits. • Track surface - typically outdoor tracks use an asphalt mix and indoors are either asphalt or concrete. Asphalt will provide more grip and will also chew through your tyres quicker. With asphalt it is important to make the surface as smooth as possible. • Requirements for a kiddy ride small circuit are an exception to the above, as such circuits are generally a simple oval track with a footprint around 16 x 8 metres, using existing surfaces with small barrier requirements.

• Small low budget karting venues will generally start with a basic timing and results display system, which can be expanded over time to incorporate elements of a venue management system. • Venues requiring the facility to handle payments at a Reception and to place drivers into a race management system will need to incorporate a POS and sales module. • Venues requiring a booking and scheduling system, whether a simple sales person operation or multi staff call booking centre, will need to incorporate a booking module. • Venues expecting to incorporate retail and/or F&B facilities will need to add POS functionality to their venue management system, be it a single POS or multiple POS in each functional area. • Venues requiring kiosk check-in, the collection of visitor details and the issue of waivers will need to incorporate kiosk modules. • Venues requiring the issue of membership cards will need to incorporate a membership module along with associated hardware to take member photos and print membership cards. • Venues requiring online booking and web results display will need to incorporate various web functionality into their venue management system. • Venues requiring email marketing capabilities will need to incorporate integrated email marketing software into their venue management system.

Venue Set Up

Timing/Venue Management System

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Safety Equipment

• Kart control - allows marshals to control the speed of karts on the track. This system is particularly useful as it forces all customers to a walking pace when just in yellow flag/light situations. • Helmets - are generally a mandatory requirement in most countries, they should be full faced with a visor to stop debris for the track hitting customers. When selecting helmets you need to provide a mix of sizes and about three times the number of karts you have. • Customer attire - racesuits, gloves and wet weather gear (outdoor tracks) provides extra safety to your customers and gives them the feel of a real racing experience. • Flags - each marshal will require a set of flag so they can warn customers of dangers on the track. • Track safety lights - is an additional warning device which can alert customers to dangers on the track. • Fuel handling - for safety and fire prevention it is best to refuel karts in the pit lane with a sealed gas caddy as opposed to funnels and jerry cans.

Track Accessories

• Tool kit - is required to keep your karts in good running order, it is usually appropriate to have one kit for each mechanic. • Pressure washer - this is required to keep your fleet clean and presentable to your clients. • Warning signs - display messages for your marshals to communicate with drivers. • Air compressor - used for keeping the correct tyre pressure so karts run better and have lower maintenance costs. •

Venue Set Up

Tyres

• Tyre selection - this can vary with type of kart, circuit layout, track surface, climate, etc...... To choose the correct tyre you should test two sets of each available make and then work out a cost per hour or lap this will give you the truce cost of your tyres. Please note tyre selection may change from summer to winter. • Tyre stock levels - usage and stock levels will depend upon type of tyre and associated wear history and stock level will depend upon access to tyre supply (requiring tracks in some countries to import kart tyres, where country distributors do not exist).

Spare Parts

• Stock of spare parts - usage and stock levels will depend upon type/brand of kart and associated maintenance history and stock level will depend upon access to spares supply (requiring tracks in some countries to import kart spares, where country distributors do not exist). • Selection of spares - will vary according to kart brand and replacement patterns.

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Amenity Requirements

“Always remember you are not selling go kart rides... You are selling your customer an experience, so make it as real as possible!”

Venue Set Up

• Race control - preferably a separate room with full view of the kart track, located close to the pit area. • Reception - counter location in appropriate area for optimal visitor/driver flow, taking account of need to fulfil multiple functions such as refreshments and merchandise sales. • Briefing room - a room large enough to conduct a verbal or video safety briefing for your customers this should be large enough to fit your average corporate group. • Safety equipment store - if you opt to have racesuits, wet weather gear, gloves or helmets you will require an area to store these and dispense these to your customers. If you intend to wash suits on the premises, allow space for washer and dryers or drying room. • Changing rooms - will be required for customers to change into race suits. It is appropriate to fit lockers in these areas so customers can store their valuables securely whilst they are out on the track. • Kart maintenance workshop - an area which is large enough to carry a small inventory of spare parts and allow enough room for each mechanic to work on a kart. • Kart storage - you will need a secure area to store all your karts outside operating hours. This could be equipped with racking and you will probably need lifting equipment for the karts as they weight in excess of 100kg each. • Customer flow - when designing your building layout be mindful of the process a customer will go through whilst at your venue and design your space to create a smooth logical flow and minimise bottle necks.

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Budget for a New Kart Centre

Budget will vary according to type of kart centre and the specific composition of the karting venue. While broad guidelines can be provided, each venue will need to be separately budgeted. The following typical budgets will provide some guidelines. Track and building costs will vary whether indoor or outdoor and the size of buildings involved (also will vary according to whether buildings are new or involve renovation). These costs would not generally be relevant for the kiddy ride circuit, which is usually accommodated in an existing structure/facility.

FIA/FIM/CIK Accredited Motor Sports Track A typical budget is as follows:

Venue Budget

Track Design & Supervision Consultancy Karts (24 adult, 4 high performance, 8 children) Kart Control System Barriers Circuit Lights Workshop Equipment & Tools Basic Timing & Display System Racewear, Helmets & Corporate Clothing Other Equipment Total Package

£340,000 £155,000 £ 7,000 £ 80,000 £ 8,000 £ 20,000 £ 24,000 £ 9,000 £ 10,000 £653,000

Owing to the standard of these tracks, the construction costs for the tracks will be higher than for other venue types below. The track design and supervision budget assumes a full venue consultancy scope (concept, master plan, feasibility, design, drawings, supervision and full accreditation procedure).

Non Accredited Motor Sports Track A typical budget is as follows:

Karts (24 adult, 8 children) Kart Control System Barriers Circuit Lights Workshop Equipment & Tools Basic Venue Management System Racewear, Helmets & Corporate Clothing Other Equipment Total Package

£130,000 £ 6,500 £ 60,000 £ 6,500 £ 9,000 £ 24,000 £ 7,000 £ 4,000 £247,000

Generally this venue would incorporate a venue management software system in the facility. The above budget assumes a basic entry level venue management system and the cost could increase to £50,000 if multiple POS, check in kiosks and online booking were incorporated.

Usually the venue consulting component is relatively modest and will depend whether travel costs (airfare and hotels) are to be covered. Also cost will vary according to the level of installation support provided on site. A budget guide would be £5-25,000.

Amusement/Entertainment/Leisure Track A typical budget is as follows:

Karts (15 adult, 5 children) Kart Control System Barriers Circuit Lights Workshop Equipment & Tools Basic Timing & Display System Helmets Other Equipment Total Package

£62,000 £ 4,500 £48,000 £ 2,000 £ 4,000 £15,000 £ 3,000 £ 4,000 £142,500

Generally this venue would not incorporate a venue management software system in the facility.

Kiddy Ride Small Circuit These circuits are generally low cost and total cost is usually determined by the number of electric karts purchased. A typical £15,000 turnkey will comprise: • • •

4 electric coin operated kiddie ride karts (£9,000). Track barrier system (£1,500) Track setup with simple oval circuit some 16 x 8 metres (£4,500)

Venue Budget