Gita in the “food delivery” service at the Philadelphia International Airport (United States).
Image source: www.facebook.com/PHLFoodandShops
2 March 2021 – “SURPRISE! If you use the Grab app or www.orderatphl.com to get your food delivered in the airport, our new robot might deliver it to you! We are incredibly excited to add this new amenity to our contactless ordering program”: this is the post by PHL Food and Shops, the marketplace in the Philadelphia International Airport (home to more than 170 restaurants, stores and services). The message is accompanied by a clip that shows the novelty: it is the innovative gita robot (by Piaggio Fast Forward) “in service” at the Philadelphia airport, delivering food to travellers who have ordered over the app or from the website.
PHL FOOD AND SHOPS FACEBOOK:
www.facebook.com/PHLFoodandShops
A new service that certainly not pass unobserved and which piques curiosity and makes people smile. Gita, the elegant and quiet carrier robot, roams the corridors of the mega airport from one gate to another, following the AtYourGate team employee. And then it delivers the ordered food to customers (kept in the insulated food bag inside it) or other items sold in the airport shops that passengers may order. A true convenience, especially for those last minute purchases, without having to leave your gate.
INFO: www.mygita.com
The airport website illustrates the new service: “The unit is part of a robotic food delivery pilot program being launched through OrderAtPHL.com, PHL Food & Shops’ contactless food ordering program. The pilot begins February 22 and runs through April. The gita, which can carry up to 40 pounds, features a cargo bin to hold guests’ orders. Guests are able to open the bin and remove their items themselves.”
Here is the article published on the PHL International Airport website:
www.phl.org/newsroom/OrderAtPHL-Gita
“Now more than ever we are looking to be forward-thinking and innovative regarding our contactless ordering options,” said Megan O’Connell, PHL Food & Shops Marketing and Customer Service Manager. “Gita allows our guests to customize their experience by choosing how much or how little human interaction they want when having their food delivered. We are thrilled to offer this feature as part of the seamless contactless ordering experience at PHL.”
The article goes on to say this: “The gita robot uses visual sensors to pair to and follow the AtYourGate representative through the airport. The units were developed by Piaggio Fast Forward and have been piloted at several other U.S. airports.”
“We think passengers and employees will be pleasantly surprised to see their AtYourGate delivery being handled by a robot,” said O’Connell. "At the end of the pilot, we will look at feedback from customers and from the AtYourGate team members working with the gita to better understand how we can utilize gita in the future."
The news was picked up by numerous newspapers (like the New York Post: nypost.com/2021/02/24/philadelphia-airport-offers-robot-food-delivery-to-travelers).
According to USA Today, the AtYourGate teams will soon by supported by gita carrier robots in other American airports as well, such as JFK, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Denver and San Diego, as reported on the Piaggio Fast Forward Facebook page (www.facebook.com/PiaggioFastForward).
So, not just Philadelphia: the gita carrier robot by Piaggio Fast Forward is also a great helper for passenger baggage transport for those travelling through Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG).
Speaking of which, this is a rather interesting testimony from Brian Cobb,Chief Innovation Officer at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (editor’s note: in the photo above) who uses gita in his daily movements. Here is the Q&A published on blog.mygita.com, full of numerous other testimonies from customers who talk about how their lives are with the new ‘companion’ gita: blog.mygita.com/gita-irll-in-real-local-life-1.
In this article’s background photos: beautiful night image of the Philadelphia international Airport, source: phl.org
INFO PIAGGIO FAST FORWARD-A COMPANY OF PIAGGIO GROUP:
www.piaggiofastforward.com
ALSO READ THE PREVIOUS ARTICLE ON THIS SUBJECT:
wide.piaggiogroup.com/en/articles/innovation/piaggio-fast-forward-with-gita-starts-pilot-programs
