Theme park of the future
An interview with Brian Machamer, Vice President of Theme Park Operations for Dubai Parks and Resorts
5
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W
Theme park of the future Business Review Middle East talks to the man responsible for theme park operations at the ambitious Dubai Parks and Resorts project
Writ ten by: LU CY D IXO N Produced by: J O RDAN PLATTE N
3
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W
“I WISH I was 16 again so I could work another 30 or 40 years on this project,” says Brian Machamer, Vice President of Theme Park Operations for Dubai Parks and Resorts. The project he is so enthusiastic about comprises three theme parks, a hotel and a retail and dining area, due to open later this year in a prime location between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. And Machamer has been working in the theme park industry since he was 16, so clearly knows this is a project 4
worth getting excited about. He says: “It’s not just the construction that’s unique, it’s the offering that we have. We’ve got a Bollywood theme park that caters to multiple demographics. Legoland® Dubai more for the younger kids and a water park that is designed specifically for younger kids. And we have motiongate™ Dubai, a Hollywood movie-based theme park. So when a guest comes to the resort, with kids of all different ages and there is really something for everyone to do and I
16 think that’s unique as well. If you went to Orlando you would have to spend time driving between different parks, taking away from your experience. Here you can stay at the hotel and park hop to really maximise your time since all of our theme parks are located so close to each other.” From his first job serving food in Disney’s Magic Kingdom as a teenager, Machamer now looks after operations for all the theme parks at Dubai Parks and Resorts. Each
The number of rides and attractions
of the parks is run independently, and it is Machamer’s job to ensure a high quality guest experience, emphasising the fact it has been designed to offer an integrated resort destination experience. He says: “It’s really about looking at everything from guest services to safety, and the overall guest experience. Somebody comes to the park, whether they go to Bollywood™ Parks Dubai, motiongate™ Dubai or Legoland® Dubai, it should feel like a very seamless experience 5
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W on all fronts. So, it’s really important to bring the operators together and get them to single mindedly worry about the experience.” And when the project first began three years ago, there was a very limited management team so it was the job of the general managers to deal with everything before the more specialised team started. Machamer says: “As your director of food and beverage comes online, he might say, ‘I want the kitchen laid out this way’, versus what we have already designed. So we
“I wish I was 16 again so I could work another 30 or 40 years on this project” –B rian Machamer, Vice President of Theme Park Operations for Dubai Parks and Resorts
6
have to manage those expectations and limit changes. Of course, we want things to work as efficiently as possible and sometimes we will go back and review a change request, but as you get closer to opening, you have to stop doing that or you will never finish building. So on opening day it’s as close to perfect as it can be.” Machamer says how important it has been to get the operations team involved in the project from an early stage. He says: “This helps to make sure that when the park opens
The number of rides and attractions including Smurfs Village, The Hunger Games and Ghostbusters
27
7
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W it’s designed in the most efficient way from a guest experience and operations standpoint and major changes don’t have to be made after opening day. We see a lot of things at other parks that we would redo or do it differently.” Machamer’s working week is changing as the park opening date approaches and ironing out any issues or picking up on where the construction has deviated from the plans is a key part of his role. Recruitment is also one of his main tasks at the time of our visit “I’m mostly focused on recruiting to get the park staffed and ready to go later this year.” And hiring over 4,000 staff is not easy, particularly when you consider the limited availability of local theme park skills, something that Machamer has experience of from when he was recruiting for a theme park in Singapore. “It was a similar situation where we didn’t have a theme park operating in Singapore so we had to hire all the staff from other industries, and we hired 99 percent Singaporean. We basically had to look at who would be the right candidate to work in a theme park – people with a hospitality background, 8
40
+
The number of Lego-themed rides
9
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W
‘Each of the parks is run independently, and it is Machamer’s job to ensure a high quality guest experience, emphasising the fact it has been designed to offer an integrated resort destination experience’ or who had been working in a guest services function in a hotel or perhaps the zoo. We look at what sort of hospitality and service background they have and that will hopefully set them up for success in the theme park model. And there’s a lot of that in Dubai.” Training of staff for the park has already started, and ten UAE nationals have been sent to Orlando to pick up the necessary know-how.
20 10
The number of water slides and attractions
Machamer adds: “That gives them real on-the-job experience versus reading a training manual. Those initial staff that we hire usually then progress within the next year into more of a team leader or even a supervisor role as they get a better understanding of how theme parks operate. There’s a lot of growth from the ground up.” Listening to Machamer talk about Dubai Parks and Resorts, its easy to see why he was drawn to the ambitious project. As he says: “The last project I was on was a very large integrated resort in Singapore, but I’ve worked in the theme park industry my whole life and this is the first time we are building three theme parks and a water park, with a nighttime entertainment complex and hotel. We have over 100 attractions coming online out here and its a
11
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W
12
big deal to open even one major ride. So to have all those attractions coming online simultaneously, that’s what makes it so unique.” One element of the project that is really innovative is the use of smart technology, alongside partner Etisalat. Machamer explains: “We wanted to take advantage of all the technology that’s out there, and set ourselves up for adaptability or expansion in the future.” Technology will be used
throughout the park to improve and enhance the guest experience in a number of different ways. For example, smart technology will give guests accurate and up-to-date waiting times for popular rides. “In the past, the attraction wait time sign was a metal wheel with numbers on it and staff would just spin that wheel and change it from 30 minutes to 45 minutes to 60 minutes. Then we got to a digital wait time sign. So what we’re
Themed dining and shopping destination, with over 50 units
13
LEA DERSHIP I NTER VI E W looking in our parks is when the queue wait time is changed from 30 minutes to 45 minutes, that automatically updates the main information boards around the parks and updates your mobile app, so as you’re navigating the park, you can adapt your plans. So, it’s smart and the communication
Polynesian-themed family resort
14
is instantaneous.” Other ways Dubai Parks and Resorts is harnessing technology is by using an e-wallet system, which essentially means you dont need to take any cash or credit cards into the park. “When I buy my theme park ticket, that ticket has RFID capability and I can load it up with credit so I can purchase food, retail merchandise or even onboard ride photos. Everything gets charged back to your one portfolio and it makes it very seamless, which equals a good guest experience and usually higher per capita spending.” Queueing is an unavoidable part of
visiting a theme park but, Machamer says, it is something that guests are expecting so it isn’t really a problem. “The tolerance that some people have for queue lines if it’s a very popular attraction is amazing. We do have a queue fast system that you can get you front-of-the-line access and we limit the number of those tickets on a daily basis we also have guided VIP tours of the parks. Using the mobile application to plan your day will also help – looking to see what wait times are. All of our queue lines are interactive, with themed video monitors
and other elements, so really the experience starts when you enter that queue and that’s really for me the difference between an amusement park and a theme park. An amusement park will have a standard queue line with minimal interactivity whereas the theme park, the experience really starts the moment you enter that attraction.”
15
Emaar Square, Building 1, Level 2, Dubai, UAE T. +971 4 5114500 | F. +971 4 5114992 www.dubaiparksandresorts.com