The race to takeover the automobile industry by the tech giants in Silicon Valley accelerates by the day…
Whether it’s electric cars or completely autonomous ones, the ambition and capital exists to drastically disrupt an age-old space. Lately, the movement surrounding such an endeavor has ramped up–at least the conception of it starts to become clear. The degrees in which traditional norms will be impacted are largely unknown. These ventures tilt towards a potential realization of the sharing economy ideal.
Intangible value earmarks brand equity.
Even though a company isn’t first to enter a market segment or hold the most market share from the outset, technological innovation and elite design can ultimately triumph.
These imperative aspects are what has propelled Tesla to forge ahead among electric car companies. They are spearheading this transition due to its innovative pedigree in software, mechanical, and electrical engineering. Other manufacturers have doled out millions in their own research and development efforts to no avail. Execution is paramount when these kind of resources being spent. No one can match the performance produced by a Tesla vehicle, especially in terms of mile range.
With respects to design, Tesla cars tend to these users’ desires, a byproduct of its technical management. They have consistently dropped exquisite design for their three cars to date, gestating its competitors. This forward-thinking approach virtually supplants conventional practices. It’s a staple by which others have a difficult time to grasp.
The long-tail position should serve Tesla well, where greater consumer adoption should ensue.
Google, likewise, could be doing the same for self-driving, user-friendly car systems–albeit being a pioneer in the fields of autonomy and mapping technologies.
By investing in Uber and Lyft, Google can pivot its driverless vehicles project into a practical function for electronically paid, hailing cars. They have had the luxury to firsthand assess the strengths and weaknesses of these services, with proprietary integrated tech, too. If they so choose to combine their efforts, Google, in theory, would outlap–pun intended–these incubated properties. There’s significant opportunity to seize this undefined space.
Newsmakers from Silicon Valley–even when it’s just rumors–project transformative outlooks of the future that permeates societal changes.
Yet, visionary pursuits also reside in Daytona Beach, Florida, where Daytona International Speedway, home of the DAYTONA 500, is undergoing critical, technological developments to this landmark venue.
During this past year, the International Speedway Corporation that owns the stadium reached revenues of $612.6 million, an uptick of over $10 million from the year prior. Meanwhile, operating income was about $93.4 million versus $78.7 million. Due to its brand equity and fan loyalty, a primary driver for these figures derives from corporate involvement, with nearly a quarter of the Fortune 500 companies sponsoring NASCAR and an 11 percent improvement since 2008.
Daytona Rising personifies the steppingstone to modernize this prestigious marvel into the 21st century.
This project marks its first major renovation in 56 years. An investment of $400 million represents the commitment for this redevelopment, in its second of a three-year plan that takes place throughout the 250 annual dates that Daytona operates.
“Imagination fuels desire.”
That’s the underlying philosophy of Daytona by which it’s been built upon since its inception, Joie Chitwood, President of Daytona International Speedway, tells SportTechie.
As a publicly traded company, return on investment is very important. There’s a premium to what extent they can perform a radical design build contingent on their board of directors, with $15 million lift to jump-start it. They are quite sensitive to retrofitting the venue every few years in order to compete with other sports. Also, being weary of implementing any technology that could quickly be deemed a flash in the pan at the same time, too.
With this in mind, their foundational design intersects subtle, yet profound effects within the scope of enhancing the fan experience.
ROSSETTI, an internationally renowned architectural firm based in Detroit who has worked on sporting stadiums like the USTA National Tennis Center and Incheon Football Stadium in South Korea in the past, has been tasked to remodel the configuration of the Daytona International Speedway, with partnership from a leading and locally-based construction company Barton Malow. The core new features include: five expanded fan entrances known as “injectors”, 40 escalators and 17 elevators for vertical transportation to the three different concourse levels, and refurbishing every seat (40,000 completed of the 101,000 expected) on the frontstretch of the track.
In order for ROSSETTI’s engineers to execute such a complex and extensive site, they’re utilizing virtual design and construction (VDC) technology, virtually a watershed use case among building sports venues. This tech constitutes the management of several modeling, analysis, and visualization consideration aspects all in one interface. They tackled this asset as part of a decisive ecosystem that enables integration and consolidation for the surplus of data involved, expediting processes as well as an completely paperless project.
Upwards of 25 different software programs have been used, including REVIT/Navisworks (image below) serving as the key platforms for building information modeling. This 3D component allows them to empirically digest the various interrelationships between, electrical, plumbing, heating, and cooling elements; the spatial alignments of external environmental areas, ticket gates, the infield, and racetrack also came into play. The visualization functionality, undoubtedly, stands as an integral facet to facilitate everything involved.
Throughout the course of the design endeavors, however, three challenges presented themselves, with the aim in “creating destination points better than ‘stick and ball sports,’” Matt Taylor, Senior Designer and Associate at ROSSETTI, notes to SportTechie.
First and foremost, the sightline perspective–its most impressive and daunting facet–for viewing in-venue motocross is atypical to other major sports. There’s usually a traditional, central focal point that fans target the action–in NASCAR, it’s literally the opposite for what’s the best seat in the house, the very top. Considering the slope, distance, and the track’s elevation, the two-thirds of a mile length of the grandstands–on par with three Empire State Buildings if laid flat–necessitates for an 180 degree view of the facility. Otherwise, just .1 of a percent would be visible if seated front row, center, on top of the average 180 MPH car speed and the emissions produced.
To overcome this hurdle, ROSSETTI drew up 30 unique sightlines versus the six common in sports venues, which was done via their proprietary “Sightline Designer,” a parametric plug-in within a software generator called Grasshopper. This module enables the engineers to adjust the shape of the vantage point and its heights in real-time. The end result is a flawless view that caters exactly and enhances a NASCAR’s fan experience.
Secondly, the ISC wanted to maintain the current grandstand steel composition of the stadium’s bottom seating bowl and seating steel. This decision needed to be factored in, instead of a design from scratch.
For this situation, ROSSETTI used a Point Cloud 3D Scan. A lasered account of every 30 feet was measured and then morphed into a 3D model, which provided them a geometrical position data to examine and juxtapose with external field surveys conducted. Not only did this route saved time, but $10 million costs for close to 3,000 tons of steel that would have been added. The old and new steel integration would seamlessly work well together.
Thirdly, sales in advance for hospitality purposes posed a challenge as well. Normally, these spaces for sponsorship entailed constructing them as it were a model home, with selling occurring before design development.
This time, though, ROSSETTI leveraged iPads and software to walk-through with potential sponsors about how suites could look like during the process. Interactive PDFs showcased renderings and animations for any idea desired. In fact, this kind of presentation netted Daytona its first multi-million founding partner in Toyota that will run through 2025. They will receive 20,000 square feet specifically for this space option, another 50,000 square feet of interior and exterior branding, and Injector 4 of the site.
The design phase has been a success on multiple levels. Interestingly enough, Taylor notes that the firm’s prior work with the Michigan International Speedway proved to be an “incubator” for them to think outside of stadium norms, which served as a solid footprint to conceive and execute something now at the scale of Daytona.
The technological implementation ensued after its design, continually evolving under an honest admission made by Brandon McNulty, Chief Technology Officer of International Speedway Corporation, to SportTechie.
“What’s the fan going to need in 2016?”
“We didn’t know. But just a build a platform that we could grow.”
Huge pipes and more power. All the basics have been needed for the expansion. Connectivity had to be solved for the track, around it, over it, and numbers of antennas heighten.
Well before the commencement of Daytona Rising, McNulty mentions that they signed an exclusive agreement with Sprint in 2004 through 2013 that–after the years have gone by and smartphone consumption has grown exponentially–they had to revisit to ensure fair access for all the parties. For the future viability of the venue to grant adequate mobile wireless solutions to its fans, they have since purchased back their rights, including Wi-Fi and DAS capabilities opened to all the carriers. They partnered with the American Tower Corporation to put together a plan to ensure all the logistics are covered. This deal has allowed Daytona to update the wirings that have been around since the 1960s, clean up the airwaves, appoint RF connections over fiber, and maximizing the new DAS to address the density.
These negotiations and network installations are the most significant technological push in the history of Daytona International Speedway, dating back to when a public address system and televisions were the only tech devices in the whole property.
McNulty emphatically exclaimed: “Ever!”
Moreover, there’s sufficient fiber and copper connections to fulfill the extreme needs of the broadcasters, fans, and facility, itself. The broadcasters, specifically, are quite averse to wireless insofar as being nervous about it. Fiber-optic communication allows them to have an unabated transmission signal, not concerning themselves on what radio frequencies have been turned on or off.
On mobile, their app functions the practical purposes a venue should inform users, with event schedules, parking and transportation intel, and ticketing. In light of the massive space occupied, they offer a sundry of maps to view the facility, ranging from GPS-enabled, Google Maps, 3D, and augmented reality. One striking feature, in particular, pertains to a “Friend Finder”; by simply inputting one’s name, a PIN number will be provided that can be exchanged with another friend who has also opted-in. Both users would have access to view their respective location on a map for the next 24 hours, as long as app is open. Location-based services and startups out there attempt to fill this void to connect mutual users serendipitously; here’s an option that can be built independent of third-parties and straight to its point.
Again, every aspect of the venue falls in line according to McNulty’s emphasis on a strategic approach that works from a macro into a micro level, bearing in mind the total journey of a fan’s gameday.
A data center has been built in-house, too. They wanted to create a more cost-efficient way to enable all of the computing capacity needed for operation. There’s some risk in having an automated system versus one run by a person, where a phone call is triggered in case something happens. The positives outweigh the risks so far, creating desired segmentation, space that’s rentable, and more opportunities on the retail-side. When the data center was installed in 2006, cloud systems weren’t even an option; although it’s something that will be considered if it make sense later on.
Other notable tech additions include: CDW, Peerless-AV for impervious displays around the televisions to withstand all kinds of climate, and Florida Power and Lighting Company to further progress greening efforts through installing over 5,000 solar panels on several canopy-esque spaces that will prevent carbon dioxide emissions equal to an average vehicle driving 2 million laps around the Daytona track.
By the 2016 Rolex 24, the Daytona Rising initiative will be completed. 6,300 jobs are expected to be created as a byproduct of it, $300 million in labor income, and $80 million-plus in tax revenue.
The design and technology improvements reflect similar effects–relative to its sport’s standards–to that of the aforementioned Silicon Valley powers, where it’s intended to break barriers…