Allow me to renew my sincerest thanks for your loyalty and confidence.

The past year has seen a number of important mileposts for Poma, including the selection of a new integrated management information system. The process of finding the ideal system was far from easy as many of you can testify. However, parts of our old system dated back to the early eighties and its replacement with up-to-date technology was long overdue.

Other notable achievements in 1999 included the new shipping and storage facilities at Voreppe, a significant contribution to the improved logistics performance of the company.

The Voreppe test track has now been completed, together with its own Poma 2000 shuttle, and following the success of Poma-Otis this track will shortly be extended to include a switch gate for a tracked hovercraft vehicle of the type chosen by Zurich airport.


At the beginning of the new millennium, it is appropriate for me to congratulate the Sigma and Semer teams who contributed so much to the construction of the ³London Eye², the largest ferris wheel in the world, in the heart of the British capital. Their skill and experience is certain to attract a great deal of additional business in the coming months.

Poma intends to welcome the new millennium in style with a huge party for our present and potential customers and staff during the forthcoming Salon de l'Aménagement de la Montagne exhibition.

Jean-Pierre CATHIARD

Président


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The London Eye is one of the major attractions celebrating the new millennium in the British capital. The passenger cabins carried to a height of 135 meters by this gigantic wheel were designed and built by Sigma Composite.

An important date for Londoners in the first few weeks of the year 2000 was the opening of the London Eye, the largest passenger carrying wheel in the world that stands proudly on the south bank of the Thames opposite Big Ben. Built to celebrate the new millennium, the wheel is 135 meters high and weighs 2000 tonnes. It is set to become a major tourist attraction in the city with three million visitors expected to take the half-hour trip every year.

The French contribution to the wheel has been considerable. Sigma Composite and Semer, two Poma companies, were responsible for a major portion of the overall design. "In August 1997, we were asked to submit a full scale model", recalls Jean-François Savard, Managing Director of Sigma Composite,

 

"The model was presented in November that year, but in December the customer decided to award the contract to Mitsubishi". For Jean-François Savard, this was a bitter disappointment; a disappointment that soon turned to surprise when the London Eye company contacted him again in August 1998. "It had become clear that Mitsubishi was not going to meet the deadline, and we were asked if we could take over the design of the cabins". Sigma Composite was only too willing to accept the challenge, while SEMER was chosen to supply all the automatic control systems fitted to the 32 cabins.

Each cabin weighs 10 tonnes and is constructed from steel, glass and composite materials. The cabins are air conditioned and soundproofed, with smoke detectors and two video cameras for passenger safety and security. Twenty-five passengers are carried in each cabin, although the theoretical design capacity is 100!

 

Equivalent to two and a half years normal turnover

They were taken by road from Grenoble to Zeebrugge, then by ferry to Dartford, and finally floated up the Thames on barges to the south bank site. The contract was equivalent to over two years normal turnover for Sigma Composite.

The company is 100 % owned by Poma and is based at Veyrins in the Isere departement where it employs a staff of 47. The company specializes in the manufacture of cabins for gondola lifts and cable cars as well as skilift towhangers and seats for chairlifts. This accounts for 70 % of the business, while the remaining 30 % is taken up by the manufacture of camper vans for Notin, exclusive aluminium furniture for Sauvagnat, industrial vehicle body components for Trouillet, elevator cabins for Otis, street furniture components for Decaux and air conditioning ducting for Siemens.

 

 
"Unlike traditional wheels, the London Eye is supported on a single vertical frame, instead of double", explains Jean-François Savard, "The cabins are always on the outside of the wheel ensuring that the passengers have a perfect view at all times". For Sigma, the London Eye contract represented 8000 hours of design time and 60 000 hours in the factory. The cabins were manufactured in a plant in Grenoble especially leased for the purpose.






  The first double loading system was installed by Funitel Development in 1997 on the 6-seater Cascades chairlift at Val Thorens. Poma negotiated a license to use this technology and installed their first double loading system on the La Moutière detachable grip chairlift at Val Thorens. Encouraged by the success of this system, Poma developed the technology further, culminating in the latest system recently installed on the detachable six-seater chairlift in Breckenridge, Colorado, USA. "We built the La Moutière chairlift in 1997-1998  

without a double loading system", explains Francis CHARAMEL, an engineer in the Poma design center. "The double loading system was installed in time for the 1998 - 1999 season and we increased the capacity from 2800 to 3000 passengers per hour in 1999 - 2000. The Breckenridge chairlift, built by Poma of America, can currently carry 3600 passengers per hour and this will eventually be increased to 4200 passengers per hour, a record for this type of lift".
With a double loading system, passengers have twice as much time in which to board, making for a more relaxing experience and reducing the risk of accidents during loading. The operator also benefits from a smoother passage of the chairs through the stations. There is one notable difference between the Val Thorens and Breckenridge chairlifts.

 
In the French resort, the chairs are driven through the loading area by a chain and tire conveyor system, while the Breckenridge conveyor system uses tires alone. However, the American system incorporates two major innovations in the switch gate.  

The first relates to the conveyor system through the switch gate while the second enables the switch gate to be operated at the same time as a chair is driven through it. This ingenious mechanism was designed by Poma and is covered by a specific patent.




In 1996, POMA and SIGMA Composite launched the Espace 8 cabin, currently in use in the Les Verdons and La Vizelle gondola lifts at Courchevel, the Pas du Lac lift at Méribel-Mottaret, at Soldeu in Andorra and at Muju in Korea. The design of this cabin has recently undergone a complete facelift and the cabin has been re-launched as the Palace 8. The ergonomic design and capacity have been improved by the use of a lightweight alloy frame, and the simple composite cladding results in easier maintenance and increased impact resistance.
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The Palace 8 has already been installed on the Le Varet lift linking the resort of Arc 2000 with the lower station of the Aiguille Rouge cable car and the Crêt de la Brive gondola lift at Valloire. Christian BOUVIER, Sales Director of Poma, describes some of the other major features, "This cabin offers a high degree of passenger comfort with plenty of leg-room and space for feet under the seats. The cabin is very easy to board as the individual seats can be clearly seen and the door opening is very wide with no obstacles. Each cabin is supported by a single Omega T grip."

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The Les Arcs gondola lift can currently carry up to 2160 passengers per hour in 56 cabins. The capacity will eventually be upgraded to 2800 passengers per hour in 72 cabins. The gondola storage area is located in the upper station at an altitude of 2679 meters and is designed for minimal environmental impact. The gondola lift at Valloire has an initial capacity of 1500 passengers per hour in 39 cabins, rising ultimately to 2400 passengers per hour in 62 cabins. The underground motor room is located at the upper station.
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Guisane is one of the most popular ski areas in the southern French Alps, with slopes extending along one complete side of the Guisane valley. Two new detachable grip chairlifts have recently been installed to complement the existing skilifts in the area. The first of these, known as La Casse du B¦uf, was built in Villeneuve in 1998. This four-seater detachable grip chairlift is the longest in Europe rising 875 meters over a total length of 2880 meters. It has a capacity of 2400 passengers per hour and its notable features include a top drive

terminal with an underground motor room and a bottom return tension terminal with a corresponding tension lorry. Monetier les Bains, another village in the Serre-Chevalier resort, has also invested in a new four-seater chairlift known as Le Bachas. This chairlift carried its first passengers at Christmas and is almost as dramatic as its neighbor rising 711 meters in a total length of 2492 meters. It is expected to carry up to 1800 passengers per hour initially rising eventually to 2400.


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This winter, the principal resort in the Aravis ski area opened the new 16-seater Le Fernuy gondola lift linking the slopes at the foot of the Balme range with those of the Aiguille. A particular feature of this lift has been the care taken to minimize the environmental impact. "The stations were designed by Michel Thevenet, a local architect", explains Christian Bouvier, "The lower station and gondola storage area are underground beneath the Balme car park, while the upper station is built of wood and fits into its surroundings perfectly. The route was carefully laid out to minimize the number of towers needed and these were positioned well away from known avalanche paths.

The operating company and the designer worked closely together to achieve this magnificent result". The 16-seater cabin is comfortable and practical. It is supported by a double grip and the composite shell is designed for maximum impact resistance and thermal insulation. Its aerodynamic shape enables it to resist winds of up to 70 km/h. At Le Fernuy, the lower station is situated at an altitude of 1282 meters and the upper station at 2017 meters. The lift covers a total distance of 2257 meters and can initially carry up to 1500 passengers per hour, rising eventually to an ultimate capacity of 2200 passengers per hour.

 

 

 

 

Poma Italia has just come to the end of a very successful year. In 1999, Gianfranco Marten Perolino and his team have completed a number of major new projects. These included the new Chiesa cable car at Valmalenco in the Valtellina valley, completed by Christmas 1998 and opened to passengers in January 1999. With a capacity of 161 passengers per cabin, this is the largest cable car system in Italy. One particular feature of note is the 1100 meter unsupported span between two of the towers.
Poma Italia finished the millennium in style with the opening of the Varèse funicular in June

  

and a transportation system on a dedicated guideway installed at the San Raffaele hospital in Milan that carried its first passengers on the 10th December.
Mid-December also saw the opening of a new eight-seater cable car in Gerola. Operated by ENEL (the Italian national electricity company), the Gerola system is a monocable jigback design with two eight-seater cabins. One of these may be replaced by a hopper for the transportation of equipment. The ropeway is supported by four towers, two of which are 2000 meters apart!

 

Four fixed grip chairlifts

 

In the face of growing competition from other European resorts, a number of Italian ski centers have decided to invest heavily in their skilifts. Four fixed grip chairlifts have been installed this season; one in Corvara, a premier resort in the Superski Dolomiti region, managed by Mr. Costner, one in Sestola in the Emilia region, one in Piancavallo-Pordenone, in eastern Italy, and one at the Col de Joux, the ski resort above Saint Vincent, in the Val d'Aoste. The Col de Joux lift is a two-seater chairlift, while the others are all four-seater lifts.
An excellent year for the Italians! The future is also looking bright, with a new cable car system due to be installed at Varallo (in the Piedmontese Biella province) providing access to a monastery. A four-seater detachable grip chairlift is also planned for the resort of Clavière, the first "Gamme 21" model to be built in Italy. The Varallo cable car will have a total length of 200 meters with a capacity of fifteen passengers per cabin.

 

 

 

 

 

Vail Resorts, owner of four major resorts in Colorado, has ordered eight detachable grip systems from Poma of America

 

Poma of America has succeeded in winning a major contract in the heart of Colorado, the principal ski market in the USA. Vail Resorts, owner of four of the largest resorts in the state - Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Vail has placed an order for eight systems plus a MONTAGNER Télécorde, the first to be built in North America. These lifts are due for completion during the 1999 and 2000 financial years. The two contracts cover the installation of four six-seater detachable grip chairlifts, including the first double loading system in North America, a Telecorde in Breckenridge, a six-seater detachable grip chairlift in Keystone and a ³Deluxe² 12-seater gondola lift in Beaver Creek. While Poma of America is well known in the Breckenridge area, where eight systems have been installed since 1985, the company has scored a notable first in Keystone and Vail.

40 % market share in Colorado

Vail Resorts have owned the resorts of Breckenridge and Keystone since 1996. The four resorts owned by the company represent 40 % of the market in Colorado. Visitor numbers in 1998 ­ 1999 totaled 616 621 skier-days at Beaver Creek, 1 392 242 at Breckenridge, 1 259 431 at Keystone and 1 338 460 at Vail. The six-seater double loading chairlift at Breckenridge was opened on the 11th November 1999. All six seats may be boarded simultaneously. "This is the first double loading system in the world to use tires to convey the chairs around the loading area", claims Paul Rouveyrol, Export Manager for Asia, Africa, Italy and the USA, "This technique reduces maintenance and provides a flexible and efficient loading procedure".
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SLOVENIA : BOVEC updates its gondola lift

 

Home to a number of world ski champions, the former Yugoslav republic of Slovenia has a well-deserved reputation among winter sports enthusiasts. Bovec is one of the most beautiful ski resorts in the country. Located in the extreme north-west of the country, close to the Italian border, Bovec operates a four-seater gondola lift built by Poma in 1972. This lift is now undergoing a complete renovation with financial assistance from the Slovenian government. The lift rises 1790 meters in three sections with a total length of 5800 meters. The operating company ATC Kanin, has selected Poma to carry out the renovation in three stages. The first stage involves a full overhaul of the upper section and the gearboxes on the center section, and was completed in time for Christmas. "Our first task was to improve the loading areas and the control systems", explained Didier Bic, Poma Export Director, "We will then update the stations and the ropeway, and replace the cabins". The project is due to be completed this year, with a second phase being carried out next year. "ATC Kanin is a customer that we find very easy to work with and in whom we have complete confidence", adds Didier Bic, "Our ultimate aim is to link the system with the Italian resort of Sella Nevea". The project has a number of interesting technical features, as Didier Bic points out, "This is the first time we have carried out such a radical renovation of a system, particularly one with this level of complexity".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During last year, the Poma Logistics and Production Department began the roll-out of a new integrated management information system that will eventually be used in all Poma subsidiaries. The new system will bring many advantages for the company and its customers.

Until recently, the information system used within Poma could trace its origins back to the early eighties. "We were using a mixture of different programs linked together by customized interfaces. It had grown up over the years as new programs were added to provide additional functionality", explains Christian Clor, Logistics and Production Director, "Since 1996, we have been looking at ways of updating our system. It was certainly not a question of being forced to change by the millennium bug. We need the latest tools and more functionality if the company as a whole is to benefit fully from the new technologies".

After an exhaustive evaluation of the available solutions, Christian Clor decided on the integrated MK management information package from Computer Associates, the world number two software publisher. "It provides functionality across the board from management, production and distribution through to services and financial control. The financial control functions will be available from the beginning of the year".

This software package has been in use by Sigma since 1998, and is being introduced throughout Poma from last May. In November, it was installed in Sacmi, and it will progressively be rolled out to the other group companies in the Rhone Alps region of France.

The best solution for our requirements

"We have around a hundred users on the Fontaine and Voreppe sites", states James Paradon, Information Systems Manager, "but 150 employees have received training in using the system. We have had a few problems getting used to the new systems and the learning curve has been steeper than we expected. However, we are taking advantage of the quiet period of the year up to April to put the finishing touches to the settings and simplify some of the procedures by adding extra functions". "In the meantime", Christian Clor adds, "the new system is an investment that will be repaid by greater efficiency in the future and an improvement in our internal communications. The difficulties we have experienced up to now have been temporary and will soon be behind us. We will begin to see efficiency savings during the current year". It is clear that Poma¹s customers will also benefit from the new information system. Christian Clor and James Paradon summarize the advantages: "It will enable us to be more responsive to our customers and to provide them with the solutions they need more efficiently. With the new system in place, we can draw on our past experience in order to predict future developments".
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Dean Anderson is the new President de Poma of America. He joined the company during the summer and has now taken over from Tom Richardson following his retirement at the beginning of January 2000. A native of Illinois, Dean Anderson studied at Dartmouth College where he was a member of the university downhill ski team. After graduating, he began his career in Chile as a ski instructor, moving back to the USA to take up a position as Ski Slope Manager in the resort of Snowbird where he was eventually promoted to Vice-President in charge of Development. Following a period in real estate development at Jackson Hole, Dean Anderson founded a company specializing in alternative energy sources traveling widely in the USA and Europe, especially in Germany and Norway. In addition to English, Dean Anderson speaks French, German and Spanish.
Thierry Gayte has been appointed as a Sales Engineer in France covering the Pyrenees and Andorra. Thierry is 31 years old and previously worked for Petavit-Techni-Neige. Dominic Bosio takes up the position of Export Manager for Latin America.

 
  Dominic is 32 years old with an engineering degree from INSA in Toulouse and holds a DESS Certificate in Business Administration. He was previously employed as a Group Leader in AMSE, a subsidiary of the GTM Group.

 

 

 

NEWS

COMAG

From the mountains to the sea ... continued

After their successful work on the Storebælt bridge in Denmark, the Comag team has once again taken off from its base at Bourg-Saint-Maurice; this time in the direction of Nigeria. Their latest target is a open-sea oil production platform where a Comag team will be lending a hand during the dismantling of a Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) installation. The installation belongs to the Monaco-based company Single Buoy Moorings and has been leased since 1986 to the Ashland Oil Company. The platform consists of a former 250 000 tonne oil tanker converted to operate as a floating production and storage facility. The tanker is 330 meters long with a beam of 50 meters and an overall height of 30 meters. It is permanently moored to a flexible triangular arm attached to a fixed platform standing in 40 meters of water. During the operation to free the tanker from the mooring arm, three members of the Comag team faced the challenge of lifting several hundred tonnes while out on the open sea. On completion of this hazardous operation in the summer of 1998, Jean-Claude Gramet, Off-shore Engineering Manager of Single Buoy Moorings remarked, "We have been impressed by the skill and professionalism of your team, and surprised at how well they adapted to the change from mountain peaks to sea level ! ".

 

POMA-OTIS

New contracts in Minneapolis and Huntsville

Poma-Otis hits its stride. The company jointly owned by Otis and Pomagalski has succeeded in winning two important contracts for automatic passenger transport systems in Minneapolis and Huntsville, Alabama.
In 1998, Poma-Otis was awarded a contract by the Minneapolis / Saint Paul airport for the construction of a ³people mover² connecting the terminal building with the outlying car parks. The system is due to carry its first passengers in August 2000. The Mid West airport has now come back to Poma-Otis with a contract for a new ³people mover² with an overall length of 825 meters. The Poma 2000 system will run through the entire length of the Green Concourse terminal building. The Poma 2000 system is based on technology developed at the Voreppe test track, close to the Poma head office.
It will eventually include two trains, each with two 100-seater carriages and will have a capacity of 4000 passengers per hour in each direction. The system is due to open in June 2002.
Also in the USA, Poma-Otis under the leadership of Serge Tarasoff, has also been awarded a contract to design an automatic shuttle system linking two separate buildings in the Huntsville hospital complex. The line will be 477 meters long and will include two trains running on pneumatic tires, each with two 50-seater carriages, providing a total capacity of 1500 passengers per hour. The system is due to enter service in June 2001.

 

AUSTRIA

Gerlos, a showcase for Poma in Austria

1999 has proved to be an excellent year for Poma Austria under the leadership of Roderich Urschler. The high point of the year was the delivery of two six-seater detachable grip chairlifts to the resort of Gerlos in the heart of the Austrian Tyrol. The local lift operator in the ski area, the Skiliftzentrum Gerlos, is now a loyal Poma customer as the two new lifts join two fixed grip chairlifts installed for the 1998-1999 season.
The two six-seater detachable grip chairlifts at Fussalm and Ebenfeld were opened on the 4th and 10th December 1999. The first has a capacity of 2800 passengers per hour and rises 400 meters in a length of 1667 meters. The second can carry 2400 passengers per hour, rising 295 meters in a length of 1370 meters.
Gerlos is the principal resort in the Ski Arena Zillertal, a ski area that includes the resorts of Gerlos, Zell and Koenigsleiten. These latest six-seater detachable grip chairlifts bring the total number installed in Austria to three. The first system, fitted with bubble enclosures, was installed in Serfaus in 1997.
Last year, Poma also delivered two MONTAGNER Télécordes to Innsbruck-Patscherkofel and to Silvretta Nova in the Voralberg.

 


AT YOUR SERVICE ...

SPRINGBOX SKI-TOW

Congratulations to the work group

Poma has completed the new Rognoux detachable grip skilift at Areches-Beaufort, to a design developed by a working group consisting of a number of different operators.
This innovative approach has resulted in the development of a system that fulfills all the requirements of the operators concerned. The group met on-site in January 1999 in order to settle a few outstanding details and ensure that the final design would meet or exceed everyone's expectations.
Encouraged by this successful result, a new working group of local operators met at Valmorel in March 1999 with a brief to develop the specification for a new springbox skilift.
"The group has worked remarkably well, and I would like to thank all the operators who took part", states Christian Bouvier, "As a result of the group¹s efforts we have chosen a hydraulic springbox renowned for its efficiency and reliability.
Poma has now built two springbox ski-tows at Tignes and Valmorel. The company has also developed and patented a new design of upper station with an under-bullwheel release. With the addition of this technology, Poma is now able to offer a complete range of skilifts including fixed grip, detachable grip and springbox models.

 

COURCHEVEL 1850

New Look Gondola Lift at Jardin Alpin

Regular visitors to COURCHEVEL 1850 who decided to see in the year 2000 at this 3 Vallées resort must have been more than a little surprised when they caught sight of the gondola lift at Jardin Alpin. Last autumn, SPTV asked POMA to replace the old cabins, which had been in service since 1979, with the new Espace 6-seater cabin developed by SIGMA. In all, eighty-six new cabins, equipped with external ski and snowboard racks, have been put into service. The hourly capacity of the system has also been increased. It can now carry 1,650 persons/hour compared with its previous capacity of 1,375/hour. These works carry on from those started a year ago when the track mechanisms were modernised. This "make-over" is the result of studies carried out by Courchevel resort managers under the auspices of SPTV General Management. This type of modernisation could be extended to many other installations, in France and abroad as well.

 

CHAIRLIFT

New twin seats for existing chairlifts

There are a large number of two-seater chairlifts in operation in France and in other countries. "Poma is now offering a range of ultra-modern replacement twin seats that operators can fit to existing chairlifts without modification", states Jean Souchal.
Practical, reliable, and comfortable, with a fold-up seat to avoid the build-up of snow, individual padded seats for maximum comfort, side armrests and a footrest that moves clear to allow passengers to escape if necessary, these seats are supplied with a protective cover for use during out-of-season storage. The seats are compatible with existing fixed grips and were tested at Chamrousse and Gréolières in 1998. They have since been ordered by the resorts of La Mongie and Auron, and it is expected that each renovation will involve several tens of lifts.