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ASM Global announces Clorox hygienics partnership

ASM Global has announced a partnership with The Clorox Company to enhance health and wellness in venues across the US.

The multi-year “advanced hygienic” link-up will span ASM’s portfolio of arenas, stadiums, theatres and convention centres, with Clorox products, including disinfecting wipes, hand sanitiser and electrostatic sprayers, used to help protect fans and guests.

To honour Covid frontline responders and health care workers, Clorox will also provide $1 million in tickets to premier sports and entertainment events across the country.

ASM previously initiated a series of hygiene protocols, dubbed VenueShield, in 2020 to provide “trusted protection” for visitors in response to Covid-19.

“Clorox’s industry-leading solutions allow us to continually enhance the quality of our event experiences”

“Since the very start of the Covid pandemic, our focus has been on reimagining the future of live events and preparing clean and safe venues for the return of our team members, athletes, fans, partners and guests,” says ASM Global president Ron Bension. “Clorox’s industry-leading solutions allow us to continually enhance the quality of our event experiences, and we’re excited to partner with them in honouring the heroic workers that have supported all of us as we’ve navigated through the pandemic.”

ASM and Clorox will officially launch their partnership at the Oakland Arena in California on 1 June, prior to rolling it out to the venue giant’s other US facilities, with an eye toward expansion across a wider portfolio of worldwide venues.

“Clorox is committed to supporting people’s health and well-being no matter whether they’re at home or out in the world, which is why we are incredibly excited to be working with ASM Global,” adds Tad Kittredge, VP and general manager at Clorox. “It’s especially rewarding to extend our support to those who have been on the frontlines during the pandemic with the well-earned thanks they deserve.”

 


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Show producers offer venue disinfection

As venues in many markets prepare for a gradual reopening process, a number of show producers and production companies are adapting their business model to help spaces of all sizes maintain stringent hygiene conditions once back in business.

Sanitisation has been identified as a key issue for venues preparing to open their doors, with industry bodies warning that failure by those reopening first to maintain hygiene standards could “set back the entire event industry”.

One of those currently advising in the space is theatre producer and marketing firm Right Angle Entertainment, which has pivoted to develop a healthy venue solutions programme. The company claims its equipment and protocols can be used to disinfect event spaces in just half an hour.

As Right Angle Consulting, its portable machines can be used to disinfect auditoriums, backstage areas and lobbies in a short amount of time. “The live entertainment industry has been hit especially hard by the pandemic. As we plan for the future, we can help these venues and productions provide a safe experience for workers and guests that complies with local, state and federal guidelines,” says Justin Sudds, co-founder of Right Angle Entertainment.

“We can help these venues and productions provide a safe experience for workers and guests that complies with local, state and federal guidelines”

“As each venue has different needs, we are offering a variety of packages to fit any scenario so we can all gather again to experience live entertainment.”

Another company providing sanitary venue solutions is Baltimore-based Revolution Event Design and Production – the brains behind the social distancing cocktail table – which has developed a range of air purifier systems for use in venues. With a range of 2,000 square metres, the purification machines provide continual sanitisation of the air in a given space.

Walk-through sanitiser stations are another option for venues looking to maintain top hygiene standards. Hong Kong convention centre, AsiaWorld-Expo, recently began testing out santising pods, dubbed CleanTech.

The three-in-one device combines air sanitising and purifying technology, anti-bacterial application and negative room pressure to provide effective, non-toxic sanitisation in just 12 seconds. A temperature check is also in place to detect whether the person inside has a fever.

 


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OVG chief joins Well entertainment venues advisory

Tim Leiweke, CEO of Oak View Group, has been named a co-chair of the Well Advisory on Sports and Entertainment Venues, the advisory group behind a new rating system that aims to help venues reopen safely in a post-Covid-19 world.

The Well Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management, an initiative of the International Well Building Institute (IWBI), is an “evidence-based, third-party verified rating focusing on operational policies, cleaning protocols and design strategies to address a post-Covid-19 environment”, according to its creators. The rating – which draws on guidance from the World Health Organization, US government agencies including Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health, and IWBI’s own Covid-19 taskforce, among others – will also apply to theatres, offices, hotels, restaurants, schools and retail businesses.

“Given the current challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, the sports and entertainment industries are going to be changed forever,” says Leiweke, whose Oak View Group is developing venues in Milan, Manchester and Seattle, among other cities, and is partnered with many more through its International Arena Alliance.

“We’re pleased to help lead the reopening of venues with the International Well Building Institute, the world’s leading standard bearer and certifying body for healthy buildings, and to provide guidance on how best to ensure people can return safely to sports and entertainment facilities this year.”

“We’re pleased to help lead the reopening of venues with the International Well Building Institute”

Leiweke is one of seven co-chairs of the entertainment and sports group, alongside the likes of Doug Behar, director of stadium operations for the New York Yankees, Tim Romani, CEO of venue consultancy CAA Icon, and former US surgeon-general Richard Carmona.

“We look forward to working with IWBI and the other partnering companies to ensure the industry has the necessary tools, training and world-class industry standards to offer both a secure and welcoming environment for all players, artists, touring personnel, venue employees and fans,” adds Leiweke.

OVG’s backing for the Well Health-Safety Rating follows rival venue group ASM Global’s unveiling of its own in-house reopening protocols, called VenueShield, in May. Live Nation is also believed to be close to revealing a how it will make its venues safe after coronavirus; sources tell IQ its VenueShield equivalent will be “best in class”.

Participation in the Well Health-Safety Rating programme, which launches in June, will require the submission of policies, protocols and strategies for review by a third party, as well as annual compliance verification, according to IWBI. Current Well-registered ‘healthy buildings’ will be able to earn the Well Health-Safety Rating as part of their existing certification.

“I believe this collective group will accomplish what the sports and entertainment sectors and other market sectors are seeking”

“Restoring the sports and entertainment sectors is among the most complicated challenges that the Covid-19 pandemic has engendered, socially and biologically. And doing so is also among the most desired goals with the public,” says Allen Hershkowitz, chairman of Sport and Sustainability International and environmental science advisor to the New York Yankees. “IWBI’s effort to help provide confidence to all stakeholders – from fans, audiences, players and performers to staff and the medical community at large – that a sports or entertainment venue is taking proper, verifiable precautions is of the utmost importance.”

Mike Biggs, VP of sports and entertainment partnerships for cleaning company Jani-King, adds: “When it comes to disinfecting and cleanliness of sports and entertainment venues and assisting in securing peace of mind with the public, the two things we have heard most often are the desire for industry consensus and the backing of science.

“With the support and expertise of IWBI and the group of leaders assembled to date and joining us in the coming weeks, I believe this collective group will accomplish what the sports and entertainment sectors and other market sectors are seeking.”

 


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VenueShield: ASM Global prepares for venue reopenings

ASM Global, the world’s biggest venue operator, has taken the first steps towards reopening its properties with a new series of hygiene protocols, dubbed ‘VenueShield’, to be put in place for when restrictions are eased after the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic passes.

Described as a “comprehensive, best-in-class programme” which will provide “trusted protection” for visitors, VenueShield will be rolled out at more than 325 of ASM Global’s venues, which include leading entertainment arenas such as Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK; König-Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, Germany; the Globe in Stockholm; the SSE Arena in Wembley, London; Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai; and American Airlines Arena in Miami.

“At the very heart of this effort is our focus on making our employees, tenants and guests safe and comfortable in a welcoming environment,” comments Bob Newman, president and CEO of ASM Global. “ASM’s unique and unmatched worldwide footprint of leading convention centres, arenas, stadia and theatres provides the input, data and resources to adapt to our guests’ needs and expectations while further enhancing the quality of their experience in our venues.”

VenueShield protocols will be tailored towards each venue, according to ASM, with a VenueShield taskforce responsible for implementing the new measures (in accordance with international healthcare guidelines from the US’s CDC, the UK’s NHS, Australia’s PHAA and the WHO, among others).

“At the very heart of this effort is our focus on making our employees, tenants and guests safe”

Among the measures being explored are the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), food safety measures, air quality control, surface cleaning, physical/social distancing, temperature checks, thermal cameras, hand sanitisers, reduced touch points, contactless transactions and daily monitoring systems.

Additionally, consultants have been hired to assist with “more technical aspects of the protocol”, adds the company, such as air purification, filtering and the maximisation of fresh-air exchange.

“We realise that each of our venues across the globe are economic engines for their respective communities, representing local tax revenues, travel revenues and jobs,” continues Newman. “We look forward to reopening these local and regional economic foundations, stimulating local economies and again delivering the entertainment experience that has defined us for decades.”

ASM Global, headquartered in Los Angeles, Manchester, Brisbane, Dubai and Sao Paulo, was formed last October by the merger of AEG Facilities and SMG.

The company’s rivals in the international large-venue space, including Live Nation and Oak View Group, are also believed to working on similar guidelines in anticipation of the lifting of lockdowns around the world.

 


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