Theme Park University: You’ve seen the pictures and video all over social media. Every time a Disney animatronic breaks, we know about it. TPU reader Alison writes “Hey Josh, what happened to Disney’s maintenance for their animatronics? They used to be the leaders in the industry. Now they seem to be a joke. Is this because of careless management?”
9 comments:
Disney – as in, the Disney company – is the textbook example of what can happen if a company gets too big. Areas that were supposed to be center stage, in this case, the theme parks, are suddenly being neglected. The article did point out, that part of the reason why we notice these flaws so much has to do with how we are documenting them. This is valid, but I still think it serves as a warning for us to be on the lookout for the details. By being aware things exist and assessing the risk of doing or not doing something, we can prevent events from snowballing into a potential tragedy. I find it interesting to notice where the priorities lie within management. As the article examined the company looks like a well-oiled machine, even though it really just functions as a massive bureaucracy that is functional at best. Overall, my takeaway is to be as vigilant as you can be for malfunctions within technical elements.
I find it interesting that companies that are so focused on putting on a show in every aspect of what they do allows for instances like this to occur with frequency. At the same time, many people find these experiences to be harmful to the magic, I love seeing the rare look that is not consistent everyday. I do not expect any company, no matter how large, to have a full grasp of their technology, but sometimes it is easy to question why it might not be given the proper attention. It is easy to assume that companies do not want to have to close an experience in order to update it, but at the same time where is the line of when it is worth it. Closure notices on the website are rarely read or obvious unless you are in the park and checking the app for experiences. While some people just like to stir the pot, I could see how a closure can be disappointing. I miss the Peoplemover being open, but I am glad they are making necessary updates for the safety and improvement of the guest experience. A large part of me does feel that necessary updates could have been more of a focus during the pandemic based closures, but another large part of me puts emphasis on the health and safety of the maintenance team and engineers. While many of us who read this article could make a big deal of it, I do think the point that it is exacerbated by smartphones and spreading the word is true. In my Guest Experience in Theme Park Design, few people recalled actually getting stuck on a ride or noting a serious malfunction. It is not the majority guest experience, but it should be clear then if the priorities of these companies are for the majority or for the experience of every guest at all times.
With a park the size of Disney and with the number of different types of rides and attractions as well as so many employees it makes sense that it could be difficult to have everything running perfectly. Anamatronics have to run all the time which I am sure makes them prone to wearing out and needing repairs. There are so many all over Disney and in the rides and I think that it is hard to keep these complex machines running as best they can all the time. Especially if rides will have to be closed or customers have to be redirected to other locations it makes it complicated to coordinate repairs. I think that sometimes people forget that Disney is just a corporation and while they create a magical environment in the end it really is just machines and people working. Disney has created some incredible rides and sets and machines to help cultivate this environment but ultimately as well it is a huge undertaking to maintain all of this.
I have always really enjoyed disney theme parks, and as one of those high schoolers who went to Disneyland almost every night for 4 years, have seen so many broken animatronics in my day. I genuinely believe it adds to the charm of the entire experience, and doesn't take away from it, but I also know that I am privileged in that I was able to be on these rides so many times that I wasn't looking for a perfect experience and thought that it made riding them way more interesting when something was broken. Me and my friends made a game out of trying to go ned rides when we thought they would break down so that we could be escorted through the background of the ride and see the behind the scenes. And then you get a free pass for the front of the line on another rides, what's better than that! But I also know how much these rides constantly needing to be stopped for maintenance can ruin the Disney magic.
While I haven’t been to a Disneyland location in years at this point, I still have plenty of fond memories of times where I have visited. I certainly noticed broken animatronics, both in rides and not. I never really thought much of it, until I would see the same animatronics in further and further states of decay and destruction over subsequent visits in the years following. This article provides some interesting insight into the issue, and the somewhat lose-lose situation that management faces with the issue. Closing rides during park hours is never good for business, patrons will understandably get upset, but at the same time, leaving the animatronics to continue to decay and fall apart is also an issue. It is clear that there is a somewhat lack of vigilance in keeping the animatronics in working order. The parks are big, there are countless rides, and even more animatronics within the rides, and the parks aren’t even the main focus of Disney as a company. However, if broken animatronics regularly get ignored, or repairs keep getting pushed back, what if a situation arises where an animatronic breaks like many others have, but it breaks in a way that creates a fire hazard, or some other hazard that could affect the safety of the park goers? It creates a difficult situation without a clear solution.
I have never been to any Disney theme park location in my working memory (though I may have when I was very little), so I can't speak to the frequency or severity of malfunctioning animatronics that I have witnessed. However, when I first saw the article title and preview text, my first thought was definitely along the lines of more advanced technology allows for more frequent and faster spread of information, and for that reason, Disney's animatronic malfunctions are being better catalogued and shared to the world, in a similar way that "more people nowadays are mentally ill" might not actually mean the proportion of mentally ill people has increased (though it is likely to have), it's that these diagnoses did not exist or were not emphasized in the past. The factor that affects what we perceive to be the result might actually be multiple factors. Like the author says, it's not a "here's your villain and call it a day" situation.
Growing up near Disneyland, I have experienced many ride malfunctions to the point where you know to ride or at least get a fast pass for Space Mountain and Indiana Jones right away because they will always be closed at some point in the day. Although it can be disappointing when a ride has to be shut down, especially for people who are traveling from out of town, these repairs are bound to happen considering the complex mechanics involved in making the ride function. I definitely think it’s best to close the ride for a little so when guests do have the chance to go on it they will fully experience the attraction. It would be worse to ignore the problems and have guests see glitchy animatronics that can ruin the magic. I will say the free fast pass they give you for any ride does cushion the disappointment when something goes wrong.
I can definitely speak from experience when I say that closures and delays on rides at Disneyland and California Adventure are things that you always have to plan for. I always budget for getting the FastPass service whenever I go to the Disney parks, just because I know that the FastPass will be the only way I might be able to experience some of the rides I really want to. Either that or you wait for 2-3 hours in line for a single ride and end up missing out on some of the other attractions in the park due to that lost time, and a lot of the time the ride can break down while you're in line and you end up having wasted all that time you were waiting. This article actually did challenge a lot of my perceptions about the parks, since I always get frustrated when I experience these hiccups that take me out of the overall Disneyland experience. I always think that these things are avoidable, but clearly, there is a lot more going on behind the scenes that challenge that theory. Of course, those behind the scenes things can still be blamed on Disney, because no one makes them do their hiring and contracting the way that they do
I am very interested in animatronics. It totally makes sense to me seeing how complex animatronics have become in the past decades that they would be incredibly difficult to repair. I also totally get the dilemma when it comes to opening or closing a ride when an animatronic is broken. It is kind of the whole idea behind Disney World that it's a magic place and if you go on a ride and one of the animatronics is broken it breaks that magic. But if you close the ride people will still be disappointed because they can't go on the ride at all. It's a double-edged sword. However, I think there is something interesting in going on a theme park ride that is somewhat broken. It feels almost exclusive and that you were getting a behind-the-scenes look on a ride that is supposed to be "magic". And for someone like me who is so interested in animatronics and theme parks, it's its own ride in and of itself.
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