The Atlanta Falcons have deployed an army of drones to sanitize the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in anticipation of NFL live fans’ return to games.
Atlanta Falcons Deploy Sanitization Drones
Drones are going to fly in and over the Atlanta Falcons’ Mercedes-Benz Stadium and they won’t be used for surveillance. Instead, Lucid Drone Technologies‘ flying robots will do some house cleaning, sanitizing the 71,000-seat stadium.
As the Falcons prepare to welcome back fans, a squadron of D1 disinfecting drones has been deployed to ensure that everyone stays safe.
The NFL’s Falcons already played three games in the NFL behind closed doors. Now, they are preparing to reopen for fans at limited capacity. The first challenge is their matchup against the Carolina Panthers on October 11.
The fleet will be used after the game and sanitize specific high-touch and high-traffic areas of the stadium, such as the seating bowl, glass partitions and handrails.
The drones will use special, electrostatic spraying nozzles. That allows them to focus squirts of medical-grade disinfecting chemicals on specific surfaces without wasting disinfectant or missing spots.
D1’s drones have a special inhibitor. That makes it impossible for viruses and bacteria to attach themselves to surfaces without leaving a residue. In turn, it becomes easy to track potential infections.
The D1 robots will reduce the time necessary to disinfect surfaces by 95 percent. In addition, they can operate 14 times more efficiently than regular backpack foggers.
Atlanta Responds to Fans Health Concerns
Drones, though, won’t be the only solutions deployed by the team in ensuring the safety of attendees. With the Tennessee Titans becoming the first NFL team to confirm COVID-19 outbreak, everyone is anxious to ensure that the virus won’t spread to other teams, putting the season to a halt.
The team has already added 600 hand sanitizer dispensers around the sectors designated for fans. Atlanta is spending money on a monthly anti-viral coating to ensure that the risk of infection is minimum.
Dietmar Exler, chief operating officer at AMB Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Falcons franchise, had this to say:
“We have worked tirelessly to provide a safe environment for not only our associates, players, and staff, but especially our fans.”
AMB Sports and Entertainment chief operating officer Dietmar Exler
Exler said that the team has spent a lot of time listening to fans’ concerns and responding properly. Part of this response is to roll out all the safety measures that fans have requested directly or indirectly, Exler explained.
As Drones help out with the health & safety side of things, Atlanta is hoping to see Julio Jones return on the time for the game against Carolina.