Ever stood in the middle of your leisure centre and wondered, "Is this space working for us?", you're not alone. From rotating kit to squeezing more value out of every square metre, knowing how your members use your centre is the missing piece for so many operators.
That's why we're excited to partner with TwinLabs, specialists in real-time spatial intelligence. Their technology helps you move from guesswork to grounded insights, using your existing CCTV to show exactly how spaces and equipment are being used - minute by minute.
To launch the partnership, we hosted a webinar with TwinLabs where they introduced their Gym Twin solution, demonstrated its benefits, and answered live questions from operators. If you missed it or want a recap on what happened, you can watch the session here.
In this blog, I'll take you through what TwinLabs does, how it links with us here at Gladstone, and how it's already making a huge impact for operators like Newport Live.
So, what is TwinLabs?
TwinLabs is a specialist in something called "spatial intelligence", but don't let that term put you off. In practice, it means they use your existing CCTV cameras, overlay them with AI, and turn your gym floor into a 3D digital twin.
This means no new hardware, no privacy issues, just clean, visual insights. And the real value comes when you connect that data with Gladstone. Through our Restful API, TwinLabs can layer in age, gender, membership type, and more. It's not just about heat maps, it's about who's doing what and when.
What You Are Doing to Track Usage?
We polled webinar attendees on how they currently track usage, here's what they said:
Many of these are tried and tested methods - but each one only offers a slice of the picture. Staff feedback is invaluable, but it's often anecdotal. Surveys can miss silent users. Connected machines don't tell you much about the rest of the gym. And for the 10% who aren't tracking usage at all - that's a risk. Without data, it's incredibly difficult to justify investment, plan programming, or adapt to shifting member behaviour.
That's where TwinLabs come in, filling in the blanks, giving teams confidence in their decisions, and helping everyone from front line managers to C-Suite Executives to see the full picture.
Newport Live: Using Insights to Make Smarter Choices
Newport Live is one of the operators now using TwinLabs to better understand space usage. By implementing TwinLabs Gym Twin, they've gained real-time insights into equipment and space utilisation.
The data has uncovered surprising trends - like the popularity of certain treadmills just because of their view of the TV, and how the free weights area was the busiest on weekends despite assumptions otherwise.
With hard data in hand, Newport Live can now make informed decisions on equipment upgrades, space allocation, and staffing - ensuring they invest where it matters most to their members. It's a great example of using data to support staff intuition and strengthen the case for change.
What Can You Do With The Data?
The practical use cases go far beyond layout:
- Programming decisions: Use footfall and dwell data to spot underused areas, then schedule sessions that draw more traffic to those zones.
- Funding support: Generate reports that show who's using what spaces and when. Perfect for backing bids with data that proves community engagement.
- Supplier negotiations: Demonstrate actual usage patterns when choosing or justifying new kit purchases, helping you spend wisely.
- Maintenance planning: Know which machines are working hardest and get ahead of wear and tear before it affects service.
- Targeted Marketing: Combine space usage with member profiles to design promotions that reflect actual behaviour.
For those wanting to go a step further, this insight can feed into smart, segmented marketing through our upcoming Audience Builder tool.
Segmented Marketing Campaigns
Launching soon, our Audience Builder tool helps you turn these insights into action. By combining the data from TwinLabs with your member profiles, you can build segmented marketing campaigns based on real behaviour, not guesswork.
For example, if Gym Twin shows that 20-30 year olds are using the free weights zone most evenings, you could send a strength training campaign tailored to that demographic. Or, if the data reveals quieter usage on weekday afternoons, you could promote an off-peak membership or 'bring a friend' offer to boost engagement during those times.
You can also tailor imagery to match the way different audiences interact with your spaces - for instance, showcasing high-energy free weights content for one group, and relaxed stretching zones for another. Whether it's promoting underused areas or tailoring messages to actual usage, Audience Builder makes it easy to engage the right members at the right time, all without stepping foot in the centre. Register for our webinar on the 8th of May to find out more.
Easy to Use & Built with Privacy In Mind
TwinLabs is designed for busy operators, not analysts. The dashboard is visual, intuitive, and built to give fast, clear answers.
And with CCTV involved, GDPR matters. TwinLabs handles this by anonymising all data and processing it on-site. No footage is stored. No personal data leaves the building.
Up & Running in Under a Week
If your site already has decent CCTV coverage, TwinLabs can typically get you live within a week.
Here's what happens:
If coverage is lacking, TwinLabs will recommend simple camera additions, and they can support you in arranging new CCTV installation, where needed, ensuring your setup is fully optimised from the start.
Final Thoughts
At Gladstone, we believe in partnerships that give you the practical tools to solve everyday problems. TwinLabs does exactly that, turning your leisure centre into a source of clear, meaningful insight.
This isn't just about smart tech, it's operational value, member experience improvement, and ROI insight all rolled into one.
Want to Explore TwinLabs in Your Centre?
Head straight to the TwinLabs Marketplace page to fill out a quick form and request a personalised demo with the team.