Air Curtains Protect Against Vehicle Emissions
Challenge
When two icons of Americana stand face-to-face across a well-traveled retail street, it's a given that people will come.On the north side of Chicago sits Wrigley Field, home to the legendary Chicago Cubs, and the second oldest Major League ballpark. Across the street, at Addison & Clark, sits one of the area’s newest mixed use retail projects where the latest Fox Motors outpost of Harley Davidson resides in a newly constructed 10,000 sq. ft. showroom. To provide heightened visibility and invite retail traffic, the showroom hosts large garage-style roll up doors that open direct to the sidewalk and adjacent street. Savvy retailers know such accessibility drives traffic, buyer engagement, and ultimately sales. Situated less than a mile from Lake Michigan, the city’s wind-driven conditions are no insignificant climatic condition and can be problematic for open retail environments.
The Solution
Known for supply chain excellence and a zealous dedication to top performance, Harley Davidson is the kind of American brand that knows value.Deploying a series of Mars Standard 2 commercial air curtains across the expansive opening provides an industrial/commercial hybrid solution for the dealership that needed a strong, steady performer. Featuring a 1/2 horsepower motor and available with ETL sanitation features when needed, the Standard 2 air curtain is suited for large spaces that need protection from dust, untreated air (hot or cold), debris, flying insects, and smelly vehicle emissions while forming that protective barrier against the clammy midwestern air that runs an average of 70% relative humidity year-round. Now store managers, who know that open doors increase sales, can readily host the kind of warm midwestern welcome they want to deliver without any compromise to their operation.
STUDIES REVEAL A 6%-9% POSITIVE EFFECT ON WORK PERFORMANCE BASED ON IMPROVED AIR QUALITY AND TEMPERATURE. (WYON 2004)
KEEPING WIDE OPENINGS FROM ATTRACTING THE WRONG CROWD
When a popular sports bar in downtown Overland Park, Kansas added a track-guided garage door and a series of fold-out windows along the second-floor dining area to open the space and bring the outdoors in, Johnson County health code regulations threatened to halt the experience enhancing plans. Prohibitions against open exposure to flying pests in food prep and food serving areas were circumvented when Mars Air Systems formed the backbone of a solution to meet regulatory requirements, enhance guest comfort, and cut utility bills. A cleverly-designed exterior- mount solution worked double duty as an architectural mullion as well as a supportive ledge to cradle the hardworking air curtain units. A painted protective covering was then custom-made and placed around the units to shield them from the often harsh Midwestern elements, all while blending in with the building and appearing to be part of an intentional facade. Now the threat of flies and mosquitoes has been halted as the air curtains provide the proven invisible protective shield the health code demands. Able to operate continuously whenever the garage door or windows are open and still provide trusted defense, patron experiences are also protected as any drifting cigar or cigarette smoke from the patio is prevented from reaching inside diners.
TOP CHAINS ORDER UP PEAK PERFORMERS
While a Health Department code may prescribe air curtains to create cleaner, pest-free food prep areas, the real mandate comes from patrons.Creating a pest-free space with evenly–distributed conditioned air does more than give guests the impression of cleanliness, it’s actually a building block to designing a truly hygienic venue. Food poisoning is directly linked to flies who carry pathogenic organisms that cause E. coli, salmonella, and shingles, and introduce other bacteria. Working hand-in-hand with the sanitation protocols you already have, Mars Air Systems’ air curtains above entry doors, pass through windows, and back receiving doors become silent sentries that seize control to keep out the uninvited. We’ve been doing that for over 50 years for iconic hospitality brands such as Panda Express, In-N-Out Burger, Taco Bell, Subway, and Olive Garden as well as growing up-and-comers like Smashburger and Five Guys Burgers. Whether you need a recessed unit that blends seamlessly with a well-defined décor, or defense against brutal weather conditions (hot or cold), or vigorous defense for food storage areas, Mars products have been the solution of choice for the most demanding operators world-wide.
MAXIMIZE MONEY-MAKING INTERIOR SPACES
Being asked to partner with what may be the most beloved American treasure is a big responsibility.It means helping to create a special experience for the more than four million tourists (Americans and foreign visitors) who visit the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island every year. While studies consistently affirm that consumer buying intention increases with warmth (Journal of Consumer Psychology), the prevailing winds off the Atlantic were created an ongoing chill at this national monument, causing discomfort for gift shop visitors. But when four of Mars Air Systems’ electric-heated air curtains were installed to form an invisible barrier to the wind gusts and contribute to a consistent temperature at the site’s gift shop, the entire interior space (including entryways) was liberated from the wind and restored to profitable comfort.
NEW COMFORT FOR OLD SPACES + RAMPED UP ENERGY SAVINGS
When a cavernous brick 35,000-sq ft. Romanesque Revival-style structure built in 1888 called for climate control and flying pest protection, they realized only the Mars Air Systems air curtain would do. Occupying nearly the full sprawling city block, upgrading the energy efficiency of historic Central Market York building was a challenge as such structures don’t easily adapt to modern precision mechanical systems. To welcome the daily throngs of visitors and food shoppers, the building hosts a series of entry doors that also introduces flying pests, dust and debris. Frequent opening of entry doors also exposes the interior to the Eastern Seaboard – chilled air in the winter and pervasive stuffy conditions during the humid summers. Now with the Mars solution in place to create an appealing (and safe) internal atmosphere, this community gathering spot is as welcoming as it is significant.