When I visit a ski area I like to see how problems indigenous to the industry are solved. After a quick glance at lifts sales desks and restaurants, I head for the rental shop.It’s easy to find. The space allocated to rental facilities is usually low priority basements or outbuildings. The shops are often small, the wrong shape and with poorly placed entrance and exit.
However, even with poor space allotment, rental shops can be designed for efficient operation. The problems which management must consider are: the order in which rental equipment is dispensed and recovered, the allocation of space and traffic flow (physical layout).
The order rental equipment is dispensed and recovered is reasonably universal: shops dispense and recover equipment in the same order. Only very small shops or those with unalterable physical plants should deviate from the following order: get the money and do the paper work first; fit and dispense the ski boots; dispense, fit and adjust the skis (fitting and adjusting being unnecessary in a pre-mated operation); dispense the poles, and instruct the customer in the use of the equipment.
Collecting money and doing paper work first solve two problems. First it saves space. Because lines often form at this station, it is cheaper in space and money to back lines up into a hall or outside than to fill up the shop. Second, taking money just allows the shop to regulate the number of people entering the facility.
Dispense boots next. It will create havoc if your customer has to manage his skis while trying on boots. Whether a shop dispenses, fits and adjust skis at one or two stations will depend on equipment and rental procedures. However, it should be done prior to dispensing poles. Dispensing poles at the end of the rental procedure gives the customer the shortest distance to carry all the equipment.
Whether instruction is given at each station or at a final station is not important. What is important is that instruction is given. Most people who rent are first-time or beginning skiers, everything from how to buckle the boot to the proper use of poles is usually completely foreign.
When designing a rental shop on paper, deciding on proper space allocation can be difficult. There are guidelines which one should keep in mind. The space you allocate is the space which your customer and employees use. Storage space of boots, skis or poles is relatively fixed and should be substracted while allocating space. As an example, a shop decides to allocate twice as much total square footage to dispense boots as skis—2,000 and 1,000 square feet respectively. Although there are the same number of boots and skis, boot storage takes four times as much space as ski storage—500 and 125 square feet respectively. The shop ends up with 1.7 times more usuable boot space than ski space—i.e., the space available for employees and customers is 1,500 square feet for boots and 875 square feet for skis. Allocate your space by the time it takes to complete a job. It will take more time (space) to fit boots than dispense skis, and more time (space) to dispense, fit and adjust skis than to dispense poles. Someone sitting down requires twice as much space as someone who stands up. If a shop wants to allocate twice as much space to fit boots the shop will require four times the space if they wish to fit boots if the customer is sitting.
At this point a rental manager should know the order in which equipment will be dispensed and the percentage of total space each station will require. You can now start designing the actual floor plan. Individual physical plants dictate the layout to some extent, but keep in mind that it is easier to bring the customer to the equipment than the equipment to the customer. The more steps your customer takes and the fewer your employees take, the more efficient your shop will run. Some of your equipment such as boots may even be dispensed in a self-service manner. Skis and poles, on the other hand, are easier to have your employees dispense.
The best manner to move your customers is in a straight line: in one door and then moving in a straight line picking up equipment at each station and exiting at the far end of the room. Unfortunately most rental facilites are not long and narrow with a door at each end, but in designing your traffic pattern try to create one-directional paths. In a square room, for instance, it is better to channel the customers around the perimeter of the room and store the rental equipment in the center than the other way around. Eliminate areas where your customers can sit and congregate.
Before starting the design, there are a few additional spaces to consider. You may require office space. You will certainly require storage space and a repair center. Finally for large shops (500 units and more), it may be advantageous, especially if there are definate peak and low periods, to build two separate yet adjacent facilities. When properly done this reduces the customers walk. It also allows you to shut one facility down during slow periods to conserve heat and electric bills.
