11_Leitner News.indd - Leitner Ropeways

LEITNER-NEWS
October 2006
Reinhold Messner at Expo Zaragoza 2008
LEITNER will
again be keeping
a World Exhibition
moving
in co-operation
with the famous mountaineer
Reinhold Messner – this time
at the Expo 2008 in Zaragoza,
Spain.
The main consideration for
awarding the contract to
LEITNER was, without a doubt,
the success of the SKYLINER
at Expo 2000 in Hanover which
was much more than a visitor
transport system for the vast
exhibition site. With its panoramic
views of the grounds
and pavilions plus a moun tain
experience facility created for
the mid station by Reinhold
Messner, the gondola was an
attraction in its own right, generating
almost 9 million rides
during the course of the Expo.
In Zaragoza, the gondola will
also serve as an innovative and
ultra-modern mode of transport
for the three months of the exhibition.
The theme selected
for Expo 2008 is “Water and
Sustainable Development”, and
Reinhold Messner will be organizing
an exhibition relating
to this subject in one of the
stations.
Editorial
Dear Readers,
LEITNER is realizing a holiday resort north of Beijing
Dolomiti-style skiing experience in China
With its booming
economy, China
is very much in the
news today. For us too, the Chinese
market is becoming increasingly attractive.
Ten years ago, skiing was almost
unknown in China, but today the country
has a number of small ski areas with
very basic lifts and mostly short trails
that are inadequately groomed.
China’s rapidly growing affluence suggests
that the number of skiers is also
going to grow in the years ahead. That
assumption is confirmed by a poll conducted
at various colleges in Beijing
which shows that about 80 percent of
students are interested in giving the
sport a try. That in turn means increasing
demand for modern ski areas plus
hotels and other amenities. Where such
projects are planned, it makes sense to
offer China the necessary support in
terms of know-how, as in the case of
the new Saibei Dolomiti ski area near
the capital Beijing. This is to ensure
provision of the full range of products
and services that modern ski area operations
involve.
In addition to China’s potential for winter
sports, the Middle Kingdom also
offers other exciting opportunities.
On the one hand, the sector of wind
power as Beijing intends to increase
the share of renewable energy. On the
other hand, the construction of the new
gondola in Hong Kong is a significant
event for both the city and our company.
For Hong Kong, it is a milestone on
the road to becoming an international
tourist attraction, and it also underlines
the city’s standing as a center of trade
and commerce in south-east Asia. For
us, the gondola is a fine reference model
for the use of ropeway systems in urban
transport.
Yours,
Michael Seeber
Saibei Dolomiti – a promising
name for a promising ski area
including a holiday village
that LEITNER is constructing
in China’s mountainous province
of Heibei.
The name Saibei Dolomiti is a direct
reference to the world-famous Dolomiti
Superski Ski Area in the Italian
Dolomites and can be seen as a commitment
to the highest standards of
quality. Both words are meaningful in
Chinese: Saibei means “beyond the
Great Wall” and "Dolomeiti" – which
is the way it is pronounced in Chi nese
– means “wonderful pleasure in a
beautiful place”!
For an estimated total of three million
skiers, China has only a small number
of mostly very small winter sport
areas. To help solve the problem, the
Chinese province of Heibei is investing
in know-how and high-tech solutions
from the Alps: in co-operation with
Alessandro Marzola, son of Dolomiti
Superski’s founder Gianni Marzola,
LEITNER has been appointed to de-
Winter feeling in Chongli
Saibei Dolomiti with
6 installations, 15
slopes and 4,200 beds
sign a ski area complete with a holiday
village on the model of the successful
winter resorts in the Alps.
Saibei Dolomiti – the six-seater chairlift ("A") and children’s park will be ready in a few months
The new resort, with a planned total
of 4,200 beds, is located in an uninhabited
valley in the Chongli district
247 kilometers north of the Chinese
capital Beijing. The aim of the proj ect
is to provide an attraction in the area
for summer and winter tourism. For
that reason the district authority in
Chongli has taken responsibility for
site de velopment and infrastructure including
the access roads, power and
water supply, and so on.
This is the first time the LEITNER
group has been more than a competent
partner for planning a ski area;
with Saibei Dolomiti, the company is
also playing a role as advocate for a
successful winter and summer tourism
blueprint from the Alps. In addition to
six LEITNER ropeways and fifteen ski
trails, the know-how for the construction
of the holiday village around the
base lodge, complete with wellness
hotels, restaurants, condos and the relevant
tourism infrastructure all comes
from the Alps, where several notable
models are to be found. The first stage
of the project involves the construction
of a six-seater chairlift with protective
canopies including base lodge facilities
in the form of a service center with ski
school, ski hire and restaurant, plus a
conveyor lift and a children’s ski park.
The ski trails will be kept in good shape
with the help of PRINOTH groomers.
The master plan provides for continuous
development of the ski area and
village so as to create an attractive allyear
resort complete with cross-country
ski trails, wellness facilities, golf, a
children’s world, aquarena, summer
slide, tennis, biking trails and toner attractions
making it ideal for summer
and winter.

THE WORLD & ITS MARKETS
LEITNER-NEWS
2
October 2006
Innovative public transportation system for Asian metropolis
Hong Kong’s bicable gondola opens
The longest bicable gondola ever
built by LEITNER was recently
commissioned in Hong Kong.
It offers fast and conv enient
access to Ngong Ping, a tourism
center where among other
things a 26-meter-high statue of
a seated Buddha is located.
The 5.7 km line is divited into
two stages, which link the residential
area of Tung Chung with
Hong Kong International Airport
and the district of Ngong Ping
in the mountainous outback of
Lantau Island.
In the last few years Lantau Island,
once the location of poor
fishing villages, has been modernized
with a number of major
infrastructure projects relating to
the construction of Hong Kong’s
new international airport on an
adjoining artificial island. The
modernization process includes
construction of the bicable gondola,
which is designed to bring
more visitors to the gigantic
seated Tian Tan Buddha and to
a nearby village with its various
cultural and spiritual attractions
and choices of entertainment.
Today the gondola ride, with its
Kong metro. For them the key
arguments in favor of the ropeway
were its low environmental
impact and ability to harmonize
with the scenery and existing
and international tourist attractions.
The construction work in the
Asian metropolis was not always
panoramic views, is in itself a infrastructure. The large glass
tourist attraction.
facade of the lower terminal at 1,400 - meter - long
The NGONG PING 360, as the
gondola is called, is a highlight
in Hong Kong’s sophisticated
public transport network. To
cope with the hilly terrain in the
city, the Hong Kong authorities
have invested in other innovative
Tung Chung was specifically
designed to match the architecture
of the adjoining metro station.
The gondola is not run by
MTR, however, but by Skyrail-
ITM (Hong Kong), a professional
operating company for ropeways
span above
the sea
easy, and a twin-rotor Kamov
helicopter had to be shipped
specially from Europe for the
public transport
erection of the
solutions
in the past, including
Technical Description
ropeway.
helicopter
The
was
esca-
2 Drive stations Airport Island Station
needed in order
2 Return station/Rope tension Tung Chung Terminal and Ngong Ping Terminal
lators and moving
Inclined length
5828 m
to penetrate the
walkways. Total number of towers 8
towers number
The LEITNER Total number of vehicles 117
4 till 7 and the
Capacity of a vehicle 17
bicable gondola
has been Transport capacity 3500 p/h
mediate station
complete inter-
Operation speed
7,0 m/s
financed by Power of the main drive 6 x 420 kW
Nei Lak Shan.
the MTR Corporation,
which
drawing in the
Track rope diameter 70 mm
Fourthermore,
Hauling rope diameter 42 mm
Garage location
Tung Chung Terminal
owns the Hong
ropes over the
sea was also a logistical problem,
and ultimately ships had
to be used to pull the 110-tonheavy
rope across the sea with
the area closed to other shipping.
As the airport is located
nearby a rope had to be spanned
in order to warn airtraffic. Some
of the construction sites were
only accessible along narrow
footpaths, and for the erection
crews it was a two-hour walk to
reach tower number four. The
close vicinity of the airport also
meant that warning ropes had
to be slung between the terminals
and towers. In addition, the
work was significantly impeded
by the tropical humid climate,
with frequent rainfall and dense
mist.
Today Hong Kong’s NGONG PING
360 is a calling card in the Asian
region for LEITNER and for the
intelligent use of modern ropeway
systems for public transport
applications.
Panoramic view at the new International Airport
Tung Chung Terminal in the residential area of Hong Kong
Passengers look forward to the pleasure trip
Return Station on Airport Island
Ngong Ping Terminal and the 26-meter-high seated Buddha

3
ROPEWAY HISTORY & THE PIONEER
October 2006
LEITNER-NEWS
First chairlift in Italy launched a successful career
Col Alt & Erich Kostner: two names that made ropeway history
On December 24th 1947 - Christmas
Eve 59 years ago, employees
of the Italian Ministry of Transport
completed the acceptance
tests on the first Italian chairlift
in Corvara in Val Badia. The single-seater
chairlift was planned
by Erich Kostner, winter tourism
pioneer and spiritual father of the
world-famous Alta Badia ski area,
and built by LEITNER.
The history of the chairlift connecting
Corvara with Col Alt is
also the history of the economic
development of Val Badia and
its tourism industry over the last
sixty years – a history of successes
and achievements that are inseparably
linked with the name
of Erich Kostner, and a history
in which LEITNER has been privileged
to play a major role. At
the age of 85, Erich Kostner is
still very active today wherever
developments in winter tourism
are involved.
It all began, way back in 1947,
“The people were
looking to escape
from poverty.”
with the commissioning of Italy’s
first single chairlift. It was built to
replace a sledge lift, which had
been operating since 1938 with a
capacity that had previously been
adequate for the small number
of winter tourists on the mountain
at the time. In the following
years and decades, Kostner did
everything possible to equip the
whole area with the latest types
of chairlifts.
“The people were looking to
escape from poverty,” says Erich
Kostner, “and it was clear that
the future belonged to tourism
rather than to agriculture, which
could hardly be profitable at such
an altitude. So I set to work on
the lifts, while others concentrated
on the accommodations
and others went into retail for
the equipment. That got things
moving in the village.”
In this mood of fresh optimism,
Erich Kostner came up with the
idea of a new transport system to
serve Col Alt. He signed a contract
with Karl Hölzl, who was
collaborating with the LEITNER
Company at the time, for the
planning and the engineering,
while Kostner himself handled the
structures, including construction
of the towers, and installation of
the ropeway systems. The wooden
towers that Kostner decided
to construct for cost efficient
reasons are probably absolutely
unique in the history of ropeway
A unique feature in the history of ropeways: Erich Kostner’s timber towers
Erich Kostner was born in Corvara
(Bozen) in 1921. His career in the
fi eld of winter tourism, which is
still not yet over, began with the
construction of a single-seater
chairlift to Col Alt in 1947. Over
the years he has been the moving
power behind the construction
of some sixty ropeways, most of
them built by LEITNER. These installations
serve a total of 63 km
of ski trails and are located in a ski
interconnect with some 200 lifts
and ropeways covering the ski
areas of Val Badia, Val Gardena,
Val di Fassa, Val Livinallongo and
the Marmolada.
Erich Kostner was also responsible
for the construction of about
20 km of roads linking the heights
of Col Alto, Piz La Ila, Piz Sorega,
Pralongià and Boè with the val-
Lift capacity on
commissioning: 158
persons per hour
In the coming winter season
skiers will be using the new
detachable 8-seater gondola
for the ride from Corvara to
Col Alt. This is a replacement
for the quad chairlift built by
LEITNER in 1990. The gondola
is state of the art in terms of
the quality of the ride, safety
and reliability. It will be in operation
in summer and winter,
serving a site of historical
importance for the tourism
industry.
At a line speed of 6 m/s and a
line length of 970 m, the new
gondola has an hourly system
capacity of 2,400 passengers.
Erich Kostner
Bio Sketch
ley fl oor. In addition, he built two
mountain lodges and a mountain
refuge in the Vallon area at an altitude
of 2530 meters above sea
level.
The new 8-seater gondola
Today modern steel towers are used
1947 – Italy’s first single-seater chairlift
In 1952 Kostner became a founding
member of the ropeway group
within the Italian National Transport
Operators Federation (FENIT)
and in 1953 he established the
Corvara tourism association. In
1972, together with the late Gianni
Marzola, he created the famous
Superski Dolomiti, and two years
later he played a leading role in
the creation of the Alta Badia
ropeway operators association
and in 1983 of the Corvara - La
Villa - S. Cassiano ski interconnect.
Finally, in 1987 he set up
the Italian Association of Ropeway
Operators (ANEF) and was its
Chairman until 1991. On 1 June
1996 the Italian President, Oscar
Luigi Scalfaro, made him a “Cavaliere
del Lavoro” in recognition of
his great achievements.
engineering.
During the first weeks of operation
at Christmas time in 1947,
a transport capacity of 158 persons
per hour was achieved with
the new chairlift. But Kostner refused
to rest on his laurels and
therefore he decided that the
lift needed active marketing. His
ideas showed once again that he
had a strong entrepreneur ial talent:
“We had to attract the public
to the lift, and at first that wasn’t
so easy. So we started to plan
various activities. In the summer
of 1948, for example, we organized
a big open-air concert at
Col Alt complete with a famous
band from Bozen. That was a
big attraction for the region, and
to get to the concert there was
no other alternative but to use
Italy’s first single-seater
chairlift commissioned
60 years ago
the chairlift!” As a result more
and more curious people came
to enjoy the exciting ride on the
LEITNER single chairlift, which
at this time was an incredible
experience. In the early days
there were still a few weak points
in the system such as problems
with the power supply. The power
cable was actually laid from the
Kostner’s house. A few years earlier,
Erich Kostner’s father Franz
had constructed a small power
plant in order to provide Corvara
and the surrounding areas with
electricity. At first only a small
portion of the power generated
was intended for the chairlift.
The result, as Erich Kostner
likes to tell, was that there was
not enough power to operate the
lift with a full load. To solve the
problem they simply diverted
power from the households in
Kolfuschg, a neighbouring village,
because it took them some
time to get to Corvara and by
then the shortage was over.
Be that as it may, the chairlift
built in 1947 remains a pioneering
accomplishment, and it was also
the first step in establishing the
Alta Badia ski area, which today
enjoys an international reputation
as one of the gems of Dolomiti
Superski – the unique ski
interconnect that also goes back
to the idea and work of Erich
Kostner in collaboration with the
late Gianni Marzola.
Shortly before its sixtieth anniversary,
the Col Alt chairlift, which
was modernized in 1956, 1978 and
1990, is being replaced with a new
LEITNER 8-passengers gondola,
and work is now moving quickly
ahead. The new installation will
have a system capacity of 2400
persons per hour and will offer a
modern standard of comfort and
safety. This is the last achievement
to date of the untiring Erich
Kostner, who can still be found at
the construction sites in Corvara
and Col Alt – where everything
began sixty years ago and where
Erich Kostner is still writing ropeway
history today.

ITALY & FRANCE
LEITNER-NEWS
4
October 2006
Another ropeway for the Tonale Pass
Two ski areas move closer together
Val Gardena
Quad chairlift with
a quiet touch
In the future a 5 km long twostage
gondola will link the
Ponte di Legno and Temù ski
area with the Tonale Pass ski
area.
The LEITNER company, which
has been very active over the
years in the field of retrofitting
and refurbishment, is
also playing a major role in
this project. Ponte di Legno
and Temù already have six
LEITNER chairlifts, including
three detachable installations
that were built in the last two
years.
In 2004 a state-of-the-art bicable
gondola was commissioned
as a link between Tonale
Pass and the Paradiso Pass
area. Two quad chairlifts were
also built in the years 2002
and 2005.
Following decades of de bate,
an agreement was finally
reached to go ahead with the
new gondola. The decision
was due in no small part to
the untiring support provided
by Mario Bezzi as Mayor of
Ponte di Legno. The new ropeway
will make a big contribution
to the development of the
tourism industry in the whole
region, which already attracts
skiers and snowboarders from
The upper terminal of the second stage in the immediate vicinity of the Tonale Pass
The installations built by LEITNER in recent years
Year Installation Customer
2002 SA4 Valena Carosello Tonale SpA
2004 S2 Sozzine - Corno d’Aola S.I.T. SpA
CA15-2S - Tonale - Paradiso Paradiso SpA
2005 SA4 Malga Valbiolo - Cima Tonale Carosello Tonale SpA
SA4 Ponte di Legno - Valbione S.I.T. SpA
SA4 La Croce - S. Giulia
S.I.T. SpA
SA4 Temù - Roccolo Ventura S.I.T. SpA
S4 Casola - S. Giulia S.I.T. SpA
S4 Casola - Doss delle Pertiche S.I.T. SpA
2006 CA8 Ponte di Legno - Colonia S.I.A.V. SpA
Vigili - Passo Tonale
Lombardy, the Trentino and
the rest of Europe.
The link between the two
spectacular ski areas naturally
makes both of them much
more attractive to winter visitors.
It is also a welcome alternative
to the 12 km long road
that connects the two areas.
The new economically friendly
solution helps to reduce the
amount of traffic on the roads
in the mountains significantly,
so that the visitors can get a
real feeling of the quiete and
peaceful country site.
Claudio Rifesser, CEO at Seilbahnen
Saslong AG, knew
exactly which installation he
wanted to build right behind the
Hotel Sochers in Val Gardena.
The specifications were clear:
the highest standards of comfort
and safety and the best
possible solution for reducing
the noise levels.
It was important that the
ropeway should not disturb
the visitors who come to the
Hotel Sochers for the wonderful
scenery and the peace
and quiet. A detachable quad
chairlift with direct drive from
the house of LEITNER was the
perfect solution.
In 2002 LEITNER had already
built a detachable six-seater
chairlift with direct drive in Val
Gardena, and the system had
proved a great success. For
that reason it was decided to
replace the old surface lift next
to the Sochers with a low-noise
chairlift.
At a line speed of 5 meters
per second and a line length
of approximately 600 meters
for the 178 meters of vertical,
transit time is just 2.4 min utes.
The new installation has a capacity
of 2,200 passengers per
hour.
Refurbishment of the Naples funicular
More than a hundred years of public service
After more than a hundred years
of reliable service – and with all
the nuts and bolts still firmly in
place – the Naples funicular is
still carrying some 25,000 passengers
a day as a key link between
Vomero and Piazza Montesanto
in downtown Naples.
Vomero is a major retail center
and the residential heart of the
city and in general the biggest
suburb in the hills around Naples,
with a population comparable
to that of a medium-sized
town.
The funicular has already been
modernized several times over
the decades since it was first
commissioned in 1891. Last
spring LEITNER TECHNOLOGIES
won the contract for a complete
refurbishment involving the drive,
most of the line works, and the
fire protection and automatic
The new-look Naples funicular
operation systems.
The Montesanto funicular has line speed of 7 meters per of transport between the city
a line length of 840 meters second for a transit time of center and Vomero. On top of
for 170 meters of vertical. It 3 minutes and a maximum this, it has to be said that this
operates with two twin-car system capacity of 6000 persons
per hour, the funicular sential for the residential area
means of transportation is es-
trainsets with a capacity of
300 passengers each. With a is the most efficient mode connection.
Follow-up orders for LEITNER FRANCE
Loyal customers of detachable lifts
This year the French winter resorts
of Vars, Châtel, Pralognan
la Vanoise and La Plagne have
once again demonstrated their
loyalty to LEITNER FRANCE
with orders for four detachable
six-seater chairlifts in the French
Alps for the coming winter season.
This means our French team will
this year be supplying Châtel’s
fifth detachable ropeway, as a replacement
for a fixed-grip chairlift,
and the fourth in Vars, where
the ski area is being upgraded
to keep pace with increasing hotel
capacities. A further LEITNER
chairlift in La Plagne-Paradiski
will serve as a new gateway to the
ski area, while the new installation
in Pralognan la Vanoise will give
skiers and boarders access to the
Fontanettes ski area.
LEITNER is delighted to see its
close co-operation with these
resorts continuing and is looking
forward to playing a part
in the further modernization of
the French winter mountain
facilities.
GENEPI six-pack with (from the left) F. Favre, D. Abinal and D. Ribot

5
PRODUCTS & ENGINEERING
October 2006
LEITNER-NEWS
Research and development new products and ongoing work
Keeping ahead of the competition with surface lifts
LEITNER’s design engineers
are constantly working to ensure
that tried and tested systems
like surface lifts are also
state of the art.
The new LEITNER surface lift
stations are based on an intelligent
modular system with
a high degree of standardization.
Drive output is in the
range of 55 - 60kW, with asynchronous
motors for maintenance-free
operation and
continuously variable drive
speed. The new stations also
incorporate LEITNER’s own
electrical control system. They
are a highly compact design
and offer advantages in terms
of fast and easy installation
and a minimum footprint. All
operations have been greatly
simplified for a higher level of
safety and reliability on the
one hand and enhanced user-
New grip with the helical spring
Spring box
friendliness on the other. This
also includes safe and simple
maintenance of the transmission
without the need to release
the tension in the rope.
There is also a backstop on
the bullwheel for maximum
operating safety. The new
station design is in full compliance
with the EU ropeway
directive.
Rope grip: The new LEITNER
grip is a simplified design incorporating
a helical spring.
This solution avoids internal
friction and guarantees optimum
reliability with regard
to grip force. For the operator,
one advantage of the new
state-of-the-art grip is that
grip relocation or even removal
can be performed quickly
and easily without the risk of
disturbing the grip force setting.
That is because the nut
on the moving jaw remains
Towing unit
closed. Finally, new and more
modern grip tongues ensure
smooth passage over the depression
towers and combination
sheave assemblies.
Spring boxes: LEITNER’s upgraded
spring box features
an improved brake assembly,
which is more user-friendly
in terms of brake-shoe replacement
and detecting friction
plate wear from the end
stop.
Sheave assemblies: The
new combination sheave assemblies
with spring-loaded
shock absorbers are des igned
to ensure optimum grip passage.
Following positive feedback
on the performance of
LEITNER’s chairlift sheave
batteries, a similar design
– including the various safety
features – has been employed
for surface lifts.
Exciting design by Pininfarina
SIGMA unveils the red Ruby
Shortening of the safety line
Optimized grip coupling for detachable lifts
The Ruby was unveiled to the industry at the SAM.
SIGMA took advantage of
this year’s SAM in Grenoble
(France) to present its new
Ruby gondola to a highly interested
audience. The dominant
features in terms of looks
are rounded contours and a
bright shade of red.
The Ruby has been developed
in collaboration with the
famous Italian star designer
Pininfarina. The result is a
highly aesthetic, but also
timeless appearance. The new
aluminum gondola is based on
a modular concept and offers
all the advantages of the successful
Diamond series, including
outstanding scenic views
for passengers and ease of
maintenance for operators.
In the coming months the
new Ruby gondola will be
subjected to the various tests
required for certification in
accordance with the new EU
ropeway code, and it will come
onto the market in 2007.
In accordance with the general
provisions of the EU ropeway
directive, any carrier that is
not correctly attached to the
rope must be stopped before
it leaves the terminal so as to
prevent it from falling off the
line. In keeping with this requirement,
LEITNER has developed
safety systems for all detachable
circulating ropeways
to exclude the possibility of a
fault in the coupling procedure
and thus prevent the need to
suddenly stop a carrier, which
is in itself a hazardous operation.
In combination with the new
LEITNER grip, these safety
systems ensure correct grip
attachment to the rope even
under the following fault conditions:
- damage or fracture of terminal
rope sheaves
- deropement on the first tower
before the terminal
- ice or foreign bodies in the
running rail
- wear or failure of grip operating
components
This patented system, which
has received certification from
TÜV Süd, is a key to terminal
design without the horizontal
safety section specified in EN
12929-1. This often permits a
much better line geometry to be
found with a lower rope in the
critical zone on the approach
to the mountain terminal.
The optimized safety line is much shorter...
... than in standard systems

LEITNER-NEWS
6
October 2006
Quality grooming for satisfied skiers
Appearance versus quality – a critical distinction for ski trails
Every morning skiers expect
to find perfect trails and
snow conditions. But there
is more to quality grooming
than driving a groomer as
quickly as possible over the
worn and icy patches that the
skiers have produced with
their thousands of turns in
the course of a day’s skiing.
The same applies to ski runs
as to everything else in life:
good looks do not always
mean good quality!
The first step, especially on
sections of the trail that take
a lot of wear, is blading. The
front blade is used to break
up the ice slabs and move
snow onto the trail. The loose
snow is spread to cover the
hard surface so as to create a
well ventilated layer of snow
on a firm base. The tiller is
then deployed to break up
any hard lumps of snow, and
the top layer is once again
loosened for optimum ventilation.
To give the trail an
attractive, even finish with
the typical groomer pattern,
a final pass is made with the
finisher. The result is a ski
trail that not only looks good
but also has the structure
and cohesion needed for maximum
skiing pleasure until
well into the afternoon.
Where the trails are less
steep or attract less traffic,
it may be enough to make
a single pass with the tiller
– paying close attention to
such factors as travel speed,
tiller speed and working
depth. The deeper the groomed
layer, the more hard-
A perfectly groomed trail takes time and precision groomer operation
cm
cm cm
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
poor piste appearance
poor piste quality
superficial, inadequate preparation
undefined tilling depth
tilled snow
optically good piste appearance
no lasting piste quality
low tilling depth (approx. 2 cm)
tilled snow
optically good piste appearance
well aerated snow
high tilling depth (approx. 6 cm)
high use of tilling power
tilled snow
subsurface
(snow, ice)
subsurface
(snow, ice)
subsurface
(snow, ice)
wearing the trail will be. This
requires powerful machines
and the right attachments for
the job.
Above all, the number and
configuration of the tines on
the tiller shaft are a critical
factor for obtaining a well
ventilated and homogeneous
layer of snow that will freeze
over night to produce a very
compact layer.
Many people are taken in by
the good looks of a groomed
trail. In fact, it is not hard to
achieve. But a snow surface
that has only been groomed
to a depth of 2 cm, say, will
not withstand much wear,
and after one or two hours’
skiing the top layer will have
disappeared and the surface
will be bone hard and
icy again.
At the same time the finished
trail should not show
any grouser marks from the
groomer’s track, as that is
usually indicative of fast and
careless working.
Martin Runggaldier, head
of PRINOTH's research and
development department,
comments on the subject:
“Groom ing the trails takes
time, requires powerful machines,
well matched attachments,
keen drivers and
operations chiefs who know
what it’s all about. PRINOTH
provides the hardware, and
that is an investment that definitely
pays off in the long
term – in the form of satisfied
customers and good capacity
utilization of the lifts and
ropeways.”
Another highly successful event in Sterzing
New visitor record at the 2006 used Vehicle Fair
A customer from Slovakia won the first prize
On September 16th PRINOTH
invited customers and journalists
from all over the world to
this year’s exhibition of used ve-
hicles in Sterzing-Unterackern.
The show, which has become
something like a PRINOTH tradition,
featured a wide range of
Almost 400 visitors from all over Europe
groomers and again attracted a
considerable turnout. In fact the
total of almost 400 visitors was
a new record for the event.
This year’s used vehicle offering
comprised a selection of over
60 second-hand machines representing
a variety of brands,
models, price categories and
also PRINOTH’s four overhaul
categories. There is no other
event anywhere in the world
where visitors can see and
compare such a wide range of
quality pre-owned machines at
one single location. The majority
of the groomers had been
overhauled for the fair and were
offered for sale with the firstclass
service guarantee for the
best possible after-sales support.
The success of the event was
reflected in the contracts signed
and the new customer contacts
made and once again con firmed
that PRINOTH knows how to
cater to the needs of a growing
market.

7
October 2006
LEITNER-NEWS
Antarctica: Unusual assignments in an unusual location
Groomers and their precision work in the eternal ice
Five PRINOTH snow vehicles
are now demonstrating their
aptitude for precision work as
snow groomers and goods vehicles
for an Antarctic research
station.
With their bullish power and
maneuverability, the PRINOTH
T4S and Everest Power are normally
considered the machines
of choice for all routine operations
requiring convincing performance
in combination with
maximum reliability. The fact
that they are also ideal for operations
involving high-precision
work under extreme climatic
conditions is clearly shown by
the five machines now stationed
in the Antarctic, namely one T4S
and four Everest Power.
Almost every year since 2003,
PRINOTH has supplied groomers
to the research station run
by the Norwegian Polar Institute
in Troll, in the midst of the
eternal ice fields of the southern
hemisphere. The purposes to
which these machines are put
in this inhospitable region are
both unusual and varied. For
the heavy transport aircraft
fl ying in from Cape Town to
be able to land on the airstrip
20 ton containers – no problem for the PRINOTH machines
The PRINOTH groomers fully loaded and ready to go
Penguins at home on the coldest continent
at Troll, the surface of the ice
mass on which the airstrip is
located has to be kept in perfect
condition. The groomers
are also used to transport passengers
and freight, including
very heavy loads. Not even 40
foot containers weighing 20
tons can stop these versatile
machines in their tracks. But
the key argument for selecting
PRINOTH machines was their
outstanding reliability under extreme
climatic conditions. At
the research station, temperatures
typically vary between
minus five and minus forty degrees,
while wind speeds are
always well above average.
These factors have prompted
the Belgian Polar Institute to
follow the example of their Norwegian
colleagues and order
two Everest Power groomers
for shipment to the Antarctic
in the course of 2006. For the
South Tyrolean groomer manufacturer,
this is further proof
that the company’s research
and development efforts have
paid off in the form of quality
products combining exciting
performance with reassuring
reliability.
A special sleigh ride in the frosty North
Snow groomer traction for coach travel
PRINOTH Drivers Club
Real advantages for real drivers
A luxury coach on Spitzbergen,
an island at the limit
of the ice pack in the Arctic
Ocean, with a PRINOTH
T4S providing the traction
on off-road routes over the
glacial ice.
The Norwegian island of
Spitzbergen in the Svalbard
archipelago at the limit of
the ice pack is a popular
destination with Scandinavia
fans and travelers to the
Arctic Ocean. The climate
is frosty all year round and
that creates certain problems
for the island’s 3,400
inhabitants, especially when
it comes to providing a safe
means of transport for visitors
across the sub-Arctic
ice of the interior.
Some smart locals decided
the answer was a PRINOTH
T4S, and in the future Trond
Solbakk, who runs the Svalbard
Taxi Company, will be
carrying passengers in a
tractor-trailer that is really
a combination of a groomer
and a coach – a mode
of transport that is perfect
Luxury coach on Spitzbergen behind a T4S
for the climate and also for
the spirit of adventure of
Spitzbergen’s visitors.
The tractor unit is a brandnew
PRINOTH T4S fitted
from the factory with allsteel
tracks especially designed
for the job, i.e. for
optimum traction for all
loads and in all conditions.
The trailer is a coach which
has also been customized
for its unusual role. Above all
PRINOTH’s Norwegian sales
agent Trygve Owren AS of
Vingrommit has fitted the
coach with four skids, with
full steering control over the
front pair. The coach also
boasts a luxurious interior
complete with bar and WC.
Following successful trials
in the surroundings of
Lillehammer, Norway the
PRINOTH T4S with its unusual
trailer was shipped to
the Svalbard archipelago in
September. In addition to
Trond Solbakk at Svalbard
Taxi, visitors to Spitzbergen
will soon be able to admire
this unusual off-road
train and the powerful performance
of the PRINOTH
T4S.
Since it was founded in
January 2004, the club has
recruited 500 enthusiastic
members, and its activities
will shortly be extended to
include the French-speaking
area of the Alps. That
will make the club even
more international. The
thinking behind the club
is to provide a platform
for people with a common
interest: drivers, mechanics
and other grooming
professionals. Members
are kept supplied with
first-hand information and
have more than a head
start over others thanks
to the advantages offered
by the club: personal gifts,
reduced prices, rebates at
the PRINOTH Shop, club
events like this year’s canyoning
experience at Lake
Garda, an exclusive Internet
portal, and of course
the Club magazine!
To register for a membership: club@prinoth.com or
phone +39 0472 722622

MINIMETRO & MORE
LEITNER-NEWS 8
October 2006
Two decisive steps on the road to completion of the Perugia installation
MiniMetro is coming: rope drawn and first trials held
In the last two months LEITNER
has taken two decisive steps
on the road to completing the
MiniMetro in Perugia. In July,
with Renato Locchi as Mayor of
Perugia in attendance, the haul
rope was drawn in along the full
length of the line from Pian di
Massiano, near the football stadium,
to the town center. The
work involved about six kilometers
of rope with a diameter of
34 millimeters.
This meant everything was
ready for the initial trials to be
held in August. The trials were
conducted with the same car
that had been used in spring to
test the station approach and
departure systems. With the
haul rope in place and the first
trial runs successfully completed,
LEITNER is a decisive step
nearer to final commissioning,
The 430 m long tunnel connecting Cupa and Pincetto stations
which is planned for the beginning
of 2007.
From then on the MiniMetro will
operate with 25 cars for a rated
transport capacity of 3,000
Parking for 15 cars under the station at Pian di Massiano
persons per hour in both directions.
At a maximum line speed of 7m/s
– higher than the average speed
of urban trams and buses – passengers
will be able to sit back
and enjoy a fast and safe ride to
their respective destinations.
In the meantime, the Red Line
created by the Parisian architect
Jean Nouvel snakes between
the various “palazzi” against the
backdrop of the Perugian countryside
and is in itself an exciting
addition to the urban scenery.
Big move came in mid-September
New offices for Customer Service & Support
Moving up with top technology
New umbrella brand name
In mid-September “Customer
Service & Support” relocated to
Gasteig near Sterzing. The decision
to move the department
to new premises in Gasteig
was taken after careful consideration
with the objective
of offering customers an even
better and more effi cient range
of services as well as customer
support at the local level on a
round-the-clock basis.
The extra offi ce space now
available means there are
no more obstacles to growth
within the department. That
will permit a more effi cient
response to be made to the
constantly increasing level of
demand and offer additional
scope for an even more professional
response – from the
space needed to give customers
a fi tting welcome to a comfortable
environment for discussing
possible modifications
or overhaul projects.
The spare parts store will also
be moved from Unterackern to
Gasteig so as to be able to offer
a faster and more effi cient
response in that respect also.
For customers, there are no
changes in terms of their contacts
including mail addresses
and mobile numbers. The new
postal address and land line
phone numbers are listed in the
table opposite.
Exterior view of the offices in Gasteig
New address and phone numbers
LEITNER AG
Handwerkerzone 7 – I-39040 Gasteig – Ratschings (Italy)
Tel +39 0472 779 -711 Fax +39 0472 779 739
customer.service@leitner-lifts.com
Manager: Thomas Vieider ext. 710
Secretary: Vittoria Rossi ext. 711
Mechanical engineering:
Oskar Huber ext. 730 Franck Legendre ext. 722
Roman Graus ext. 731 Arnold Rieder ext. 733
Karl Rainer ext. 732 Michael Teissl ext. 734
Electrical engineering and spare parts:
Ivo Clari ext. 725 Meinrad Wieser ext. 728
Thomas Braunhofer ext. 726
Mechanical parts:
Martin Gschnitzer ext. 720 André Hinzmann ext. 721
Hannes Weissteiner ext. 723
Customer service – planning & engineering:
Stefano Lenzi ext. 716 Markus Stampfer ext. 717
System overhaul and refurbishment Italy:
Antonio Minati ext. 715 Paolo Fantinato ext. 727
At the SAM trade show held in
Grenoble at the end of April,
the LEITNER Group sur prised
the industry with a new development
in its branding
strategy. While the logo itself
– the styl ized two-tone triangle
with a blue “L” for LEITNER
– remains unchanged, the
word mark is now “LEITNER
TECHNOLOGIES”. The phrase
goes beyond the designation
“Group” insofar as it not only
indicates a common platform
for our several companies
but above all focuses on the
high standard of technological
competence that all group
companies have.
LEITNER TECHNOLOGIES is
a strong brand and a name
that unites our internationally
competitive companies under
one roof. It stresses the unity
within the group as a competent
partner for convincing
solutions in the fields of rop e -
way engineering, groomers,
urban transport systems and
wind power. To that extent
the umbrella brand unites four
independent but related disciplines
and reflects a continuous
process of knowledge sharing in
which all companies learn and
benefit from one another.
Impressum
Publisher: LEITNER AG, Brennerstraße 34, I - 39049 Sterzing, Tel. 0039 0472 722 111, Fax 0039 0472 724 111, www.leitner-technologies.com