My small park operates in a mid-sized market and we’ve never had any safety or security issues.  I have now read that Disney and others are putting in metal detectors.  There seems to be so much violence anymore.  I’m wondering what steps a small operator like us should take.  Obviously the safety of our guests comes first, but we operate on such a limited budget.

William

Dear William,

You are absolutely correct.  One only needs to watch the evening news to see how crazy our world has become.  Amusement and theme parks, as we well know in the industry, are the safest places on the planet to be.  This is due to our continuing upkeep and inspection of product, property, and personnel.

 

Just Sunday in Las Vegas, a woman with a child in the car, ran down people on a crowded major thoroughfare in the heart of Vegas.  Every week, we see more and more situations occurring that 5, 10, or 20 years ago, we could never have imagined happening.

Everywhere we go now, metal detectors are becoming a “way of life”.  We see them at hospitals, schools, churches, businesses, banks, malls, sporting events, concerts, bars, etc.  It is very normal now to pass through a metal scanner or be wanded to gain entry to a venue.

Last week was a very busy week in our industry from the media standpoint, due to Disney, SeaWorld, and Universal announcing the addition of metal detectors at all of their facilities.  William, it’s only a short matter of time before we see more and more security added to both main entrances and service entrances at major parks.  Metal detectors really do not inflict any invasive search.  Depending on how they are set, they alarm when a park believes an unusual amount of metal is being carried into the park.  Typically, guests who alarm are pulled aside and are “wanded” by a security guard to determine what set off the alarm.  Normally, it has been a view that metal detectors do not greatly slow the admission process.  Most importantly, an overwhelming number of guests do not really care or worry about being screened.   The majority actually feels safer for both themselves and their family members.  Through the years at facilities which have used metal detectors, there has been very little negative feedback from guests for utilizing this process.

William, metal detectors are a good first line of defense against getting various types of weapons in a facility.  With all the “permit to carry” holders, we have seen where they have brought a firearm to a park, but because of metal detectors, they were identified and asked to deposit their firearm with the park’s security department until they were ready to depart.  Permit or no permit, parks are not places to have people toting guns.

You indicated you are a small operator with a minimal budget with which to invest.  My suggestion is meet with your operating staff, and identify all of the points of ingress and egress to your facility.  Once complete, go online to study the myriad of types available.  Here at ITPS, we bought two metal detectors online for a local small project for around $2800 each.  Not too pricey when you consider the inherent technology that went into their manufacturing, and how valuable they can be to your operation.

In addition, I suggest that you have some type of secure system where employees pass through.  The “back of house” in many parks can offer a much easier way to sneak something in or out if desired.  Today’s world dictates stepped-up security here as well.

I also suggest that you identify your needs as stated before, and then test the process to actually determine how many detectors you require.  It is a smart consideration that you are evaluating.  This program can provide you with added safety, security, and great piece of mind.  For a relative small investment, you can make a facility safe.

Please let me know if you proceed and how the programs work in your park.