SurfBox Kiosks Prove Their Worth
SurfBox Internet Kiosks proved their worth at several airport locations during last week’s chaos caused by the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland. Even though airports were effectively closed for most of the 6-day period, there were still consistently high levels of usage on the kiosks.
Many passengers who were stranded away from home were still turning up at airports in search of flights. For them the SurfBox kiosks were an invaluable means of accessing airline information, re-scheduling their flights, keeping track of their other travel arrangements, and keeping in touch with home.
"On average, almost 700 passengers per day were still using the kiosks in Dublin Airport during the period of disruption", according to Thomas Marry, Managing Director of Surfbox. "Most of this usage was at the kiosks in the landside areas of the airport, especially in the Departures Hall and Food Court, emphasising the value of locating kiosks in these areas".
The printers provided in these locations saw an unprecedented high level of usage. About 25% of users were accessing the kiosks to print documents. With many passengers needing to reprint boarding passes, other travel documents and book alternative travel arrangements, the provision of a reliable printing service is becoming an essential part of the SurfBox internet kiosk service.
"Even in this era of the mobile internet, incidents like this one and January's airport disruptions due to adverse weather conditions emphasise the need to provide high-quality internet kiosks in airports and other travel hubs", says Declan Lennon, Technical Director of SurfBox. In fact the recent "Best Practice Report on Internet Access" from ASQ (Airport Service Quality) indicates that 70% of airports worldwide now provide internet kiosk services. With the increasing need for passengers to use web-based check-in and print their own travel documents, it is easy to see why usage is still on the increase.
All SurfBox airport kiosks are now designed with integrated A4 Laser Printers as a standard option. In addition, SurfBox have just announced the provision of a new mobile phone charging solution. This will be integrated in the SurfBox kiosk, providing a battery charging service for all types of mobile phones, including iPhones. This new service, coupled with the recent addition of the Skype phone service, really emphasises the company's position as Europe's leading provider of internet kiosk services.
SurfBox is an Irish-based company supplying Internet Kiosk services to airports, hotels, ferries, shopping centres and other venues. We now operate in 10 airports in Ireland, UK and Channel Islands, as well as over 300 hotels throughout Ireland, UK, Belgium and France. The company is attending this week's ACI Trading Confrerence in Malta, where we will be seeking to consolidate our position within the airport sector.
Further Information:
Thomas Marry, Managing Director, +353 86 220 8008
Declan Lennon, Technical Director: +353 87 906 5626
http://www.surfbox.net
