Eden Park introduces Axess multi-platform solution

New Zealand’s largest stadium, Auckland’s Eden Park has recently introduced an Axess multi-platform solution to manage guest traffic into and out of the venue.

The move follows a 2019 decision to support and invest in upgrades at the venue, with part of the work being a requirement for the implementation of a state of the art, flexible access control solution to facilitate fan entry and replace the stadium’s previous turnstiles that were over 12 years old.

After considerable due diligence by Eden Park Chief Executive, Nick Sautner and his team, the decision to partner with Austrian access control company Axess AG, which has offices in Australia, was made.

With the Axess solution a proven solution at many of the world’s leading technically driven stadiums, Eden Park’s decision was based on superior technology, reliability, strong track record of service and flexibility.

Since installing the new Axess solution, Eden Park has hosted a diverse range of events including regional rugby games, Bledisloe cup matches, football internationals, FIFA Women’s World Cup events and several sell out concerts - all without a hitch.

The speed of ingress has improved dramatically and the long entry lines of the past have disappeared altogether.

As Sautner explains “we are delighted to partner with Axess - a global leader in ticketing and access management systems to significantly enhance the experience for all our guests.

“Axess’ software is internationally renowned for its speed, support, and integration. The tailor-made system has been instrumental in ensuring the capacity crowds we’ve had at the international sporting matches and concerts over the past few months have been able to easily enter the venue.”

Axess Australia provide access gates for several markets including the snow ski market and the leisure / theme park markets. They’ve existing business in the ski and leisure industry in the region which they have been supporting for the past 15 years. Eden Park communicated with several of these customers as part of their due diligence and received extremely positive feedback on support and service.

Eden Park invested in 40 x fixed cabled Axess AX500 Smart Gates, 20 x portable Wi-Fi/battery AX500 Smart Gates, 17 x portable Wi-Fi/battery Smart Post Pedestals and 70 handheld devices. This set up allows Eden Park to quickly add capacity even during an event. They can tailor event settings for specific events, including screen animation, sounds, language and direction. They adopted the smart asymmetric two arm turnstile which allows for free passage when the arms are in the open position. This reduces the need for expensive panic options with drop arms and are easier to maintain.

Managing the installation is easy using Axess’ Clicks management tool. All gate configuration and live data is at your fingertips in real time.

Eden Park’s IT Manager, Paul Thompson commented “we have full visibility at all times and can pull reports when required without having to rely on third parties.

“It’s made a significant difference to our event operations.”

Summing up the installation, Axess Australia Managing Director, David Brown advised “we are delighted to have Eden Park on board as a trusted business partner.

“Apart from being our first stadium in the region and a world renowned venue, the Eden Park team were fantastic to work with.

“All aspects of the process were professionally managed and coordinated through our project management team, resulting in a world class installation.”

Click here to contact Axess’ Australasian branch via their entry in the Australasian Leisure Management Supplier Directory.

Images (from top): Crowds enter Eden Park thanks to Axess technology, Axess Director of Sales International Christian Hedigger with Eden Park Chief Executive Nick Sautner, Axess turnstiles on site and Axess Australasia Managing Director David Brown.