Patriots open high tech player facility
Patriots open new high tech player facility with advanced tools and technology for coaches and analysts.
The New Balance Athletics Center, a 160,000-square-foot building, has officially opened as the new home for everything Patriots players need. As the CIO for the Kraft Group, Michael Israel has overseen a connective tech project in the three-story space, featuring facial authentication, biometrics, player-tracking data, and other tools to support coaches and analysts.
A key factor in the project’s success is the longtime relationship between the Kraft Group and tech integrator NWN, a fellow Massachusetts company. The two partnered on a five-year sponsorship deal last year, with NWN becoming the official technology infrastructure partner for the Kraft Group.
Two notable features of the venue are the NFL Draft room and the virtual reality room. The draft room boasts 100-inch LED boards from Daktronics, while the virtual reality room is a digitally infused space where players can run through plays and drills on a 20-yard hashed turf.
Andrew Gilman, NWN’s CMO, noted that the technology integration allows for seamless streaming and video playback with low latency and high throughput, making it a competitive differentiator for the organization. This integration is a result of the collaboration between the Kraft Group and NWN.
Israel emphasized the importance of standardizing the technology experience to make it seamless and even unnoticed. To achieve this, the Patriots campus features 65 Cisco WebEx rooms, with 31 of them located in the new facility. They also utilize facial authentication provided by Wicket, which is used across all league stadiums for credentialing.
Data plays a significant role in the new facility, from monitoring player diets to tracking food consumption in the cafeteria. Tablets allow players to access their personalized meal plans, and an AI application monitors food preparation and donation to optimize efficiency. The Patriots use this data to improve operations and make informed decisions.
Israel highlighted the benefits of using data to improve operations, citing the example of the cafeteria food system. By leveraging technology, they can streamline processes and make data-driven decisions to enhance the overall experience for players and staff. This approach has been successful in other areas of the facility as well.
