SKIDATA at Nuovo Polo Exhibition Centre in Milan

Italy's largest car park – and, incidentally, one of the largest in Europe – is currently under construction at the Nuovo Polo trade fair centre in Milan. When finished, this new exhibition complex will house eight interconnected halls with a total exhibition area of 530,000 square metres, as well as 80 conference halls, 20 restaurants, and 25 bars. Designed by prominent Italian architect Massimiliano Fukas, the building can house various different events at the same time. Nuovo Polo attracts large numbers of visitors and exhibitors from all over the world.



Ensuring the trouble-free operation of a car park of this size is a tall order: what's required are speed, security, ease of use, and intelligent administration of transactions. Tough requirements like these are prcisely what SKIDATA™ Parking System APT 450 has been designed for. The system, which is used with great success at more than 250 parking facilities in Italy, is constantly perfected and refined. As a result, APT 450 offers everything it takes to meet the tough requirements of this latest and greatest parking complex.

Innovative, secure, and convenient – hallmarks of a SKIDATA™ solution

Innovative technology, flexible adjustment to a wide range of applications, reliability, and security are key characteristics of the SKIDATA™ system that mean a great advantage for operators of large parking facilities,

as convenience and speed are vital factors in managing car parks of this size. A traffic guidance system directs motorists along the optimum route to the nearest free space. Ticket dispensers and gate terminals are controlled by powerful software for speed optimised ticket dispensing and validation. A special speed passage system allows for entry and exit gates to open automatically upon approach.

Still, here, as throughout the system, providing and maintaining high-level security is a main priority. Security at the Nuovo Polo facilities is ensured through full round-the-clock CCTV monitoring and a series of easy-to-use SOS emergency call terminals.

Real-time parking management

The flexible SKIDATA™ software is optimised for uncomplicated, intelligent control, which makes administering all 10,000 parking spaces at Nuovo Polo a relatively easy task. To maximise convenience, the car park is divided into several sections, each of which is equipped with its own local control server and software. This high degree of independence ensures that the system remains fully functional even in the event of a total blackout. The entire system is configured in “mission critical” mode. And thanks to extensive RAID support, critical transaction data are safe even in case of a hard disc failure. Administration of the car park is further simplified by open TCP/IP interfaces and a remote management system that supports DSL, HTML, and SMS.

However, there is another important reason why the SKIDATA™ solution was chosen for Nuovo Polo: the aesthetic design and quality of the hardware components. Gates, barriers, POS terminals, and autopay stations of the SKIDATA™ Parking System offer a perfect combination of sleek, innovative design and powerful performance.