The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) presented the IAAPA Brass Ring Awards on November 18 during IAAPA Attractions Expo 2015 in Orlando, Florida, with a range of global operators and suppliers receiving accolades.

This year, IAAPA presented two new awards. The first award recognises team member incentives in the Human Resources Excellence category with the ‘Best Employee Engagement’ award.

Two parks were recognised with this award: a park with overall guest attendance of more than one million in the previous year and one with overall attendance under one million. IAAPA also presented a ‘New Concept’ award to an exhibitor at the Orlando, Florida, trade show.

The winners of the 2015 IAAPA Brass Ring Awards are:

Top Family Entertainment Centre of the World
Winner, North America: HeyDay Entertainment, Oklahoma, US
Winner, International: Kidz Kingdom FEC at Rainbow’s End Theme Park, Auckland, New Zealand

Food and Beverage Excellence
Best New Innovation in Food and Beverage: ‘Fresh Made Churros’, Whiting’s Food, California, US
Best New Menu Item: ‘Makin’ Whoopie Pies’, Hershey Park, Pennsylvania, US

Games and Retail Excellence
Best Game Experience: ‘Kentucky Derby’, Gröna Lund Tivoli, Stockholm, Sweden
Best Game Operator: Bashar Haj Basan, Skara Sommarland, Axvall, Sweden
Hard Good More than One Million Attendance: ‘Harley Quinn 3-D Ceramic Mug’, Warner Bros. Movie World, Gold Coast, Australia
Hard Good Under One Million Attendance: Noah’s Ark Plush with Removable Animals, The Holy Land Experience, Florida, US
Merchandise Display More than One Million Attendance: ‘Lucky’s Toys’, Silver Dollar City, Missouri, US
Merchandise Display Under One Million Attendance: ‘Redemption Center’, Kalahari Poconos Mountain Resort, Pennsylvania, US
Soft Good More than One Million Attendance: ‘Batman vs. Villains’ Reversible Jacket, Warner Bros. Movie World, Gold Coast, Australia
Soft Good Under One Million Attendance: ‘Bag to Life’ Tote Bag, Africam Safari, Puebla, Mexico

Human Resources Excellence
Best Employee Engagement Initiative Programmeme More than One Million Attendance: Ocean Park, Hong Kong SAR, China
Best Employee Engagement Initiative Programmeme Under One Million Attendance: Hurricane Alley Waterpark, Texas, US
Best Employee Reward and Recognition Programmeme More than One Million Attendance: Lagoon Amusement Park, Farmington, Utah, US
Best Employee Reward and Recognition Programmeme Under One Million Attendance: Africam Safari, Puebla, Mexico
Best Innovation in a Training Programme More than One Million Attendance: N Kid Corporation, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Best Innovation in a Training Programmeme Under One Million Attendance: Africam Safari, Puebla, Mexico

Live Entertainment Excellence
Winner: Maggie Lattrell, Hersheypark, Pennsylvania, US
Best Female Performer: Samantha Eberhardt, Six Flags America, Maryland, US;
Best Male Performer: Jesse Brown, Six Flags Fiesta Texas, Texas, US
Best Atmospheric/Street Show Performance Act: ‘Cocoa Rhythm Factory’, Hersheypark, Pennsylvania, US
Best Edutainment Performance Act: ‘Opening Night Critters’, Busch Gardens Tampa, Florida, US
Best Sports Show Performance Act: ‘Mission Ferrari’, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Best Multimedia Spectacular: ‘Paint the Night’, Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland, California, US; Hong Kong SAR, China

Marketing Excellence
Digital Marketing Campaign: Wuhu Fantawild Resort, Shenzhen, People’s Republic of China
Integrated Marketing Campaign: Gröna Lund Tivoli, Stockholm, Sweden
Outdoor Advertisement: Xcaret, Cancún, Mexico
Best Social Media Campaign: Heineken Experience, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Public Relations Programmeme Class 1: Reunion Tower, Texas, US
Public Relations Programme Class 2: Dolphin Discovery, Cancún, Mexico
Public Relations Programme Class 3: Elitch Gardens Theme and Water Park, Colorado, US
Public Relations Programme Class 4: Gröna Lund Tivoli, Stockholm, Sweden
Audio Commercial Class 1: Cliff’s Amusement Park, New Mexico, US
Audio Commercial Class 2: California Academy of Sciences, California, US
Audio Commercial Class 3: White Water Bay, Oklahoma, US
Audio Commercial Class 4: Six Flags Over Texas, Texas, US
Digital Video Commercial Class 1: Luna Park at Coney Island, New York, US
Digital Video Commercial Class 2: West Midland Safari Park, Worcestershire, UK
Digital Video Commercial Class 3: Silverwood Theme Park, Idaho, US
Digital Video Commercial Class 4: Europa-Park, Rust, Germany

Best New Product
Impact Award Winner: Sally Corporation, Florida, US
Major Theme/Amusement Park Ride/Attraction: Sally Corporation, Justice League: Battle for Metropolis 4D, Florida, US
Water Park Ride/Attraction: ProSlide Technology, FlyingSaucer/RocketBlast, Onatario, Canada
Family Entertainment Centre Ride/Attraction: Walltopia, Rollglider, Pennsylvania, US
Technology Applied to Amusements: WhiteWater West Industries, Slideboarding, British Columbia, Canada
Coin-Operated Arcade and Redemption Equipment: Innovative Concepts in Entertainment, Angry Birds Arcade, New York, US
Revenue and Admission Control/Wristbands/RFID Technology: Embed, Texas, US
Services, Equipment, and Supplies: Water Safety Products, The Big Easy Rescue Breathing Mask, Florida, US
Food Services: Syrup Systems, Roto-Molded Create-A-Cone Concept, Maurice, Louisiana, US

Best New Concept
Winner: Mack Rides, Power Splash, Waldkirch, Germany

Best Exhibit at IAAPA Attractions Expo 2015
Winner: Daniels Wood Land, California, US

Winners’ Reactions

“We are honoured to receive this acknowledgement from our industry peers. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Six Flags to bring this experience to the next generation of thrill-seekers.

– Sally Corporation CEO, John Wood

“We are limitless in terms of our energy and our drive to create the world’s best water rides. It’s non-stop, relentless. Water propulsion water coasters have been around the industry for 25 years. We decided to do something different.”

– Rick Hunter, ProSlide president and CEO

“The IAAPA Brass Rings are the ‘Oscars’ of the theme park and attraction world, so to have scooped the Class 2 Best Digital Video Commercial is a real achievement and a testament to the hard work and creativity of all involved. We were up against some of the biggest names in the industry and are the only UK attraction to have received a Brass Ring this year, which makes it even more special.”

– Daniel Griffiths, marketing manager for West Midland Safari Park