POMA Group

ETAC

The Algerian ropeway transportation company – ETAC.

A pioneer in urban ropeway transportation, Algeria opened its first urban ropeway in 1956 in Algiers. Since 2009, the Algerian state has put the development of modern transport infrastructures on its roadmap, in particular ropeway transportation.

In 2014, POMA, the Algiers Metro Company and the Algiers Urban and Suburban Transport Company sealed their long and solid partnership by creating a Joint Venture: ETAC.

Urban ropeway transportation is an integral part of the Algerian landscape: the country has the largest number of urban gondola lifts and ropeways in the world! This overhead transport solution is particularly suited to the highly uneven topography and the dense urbanisation of Algerian cities to help citizens get around more easily. ETAC is responsible for the entire Algerian territory, feasibility studies, the production of new ropeway transportation equipment, and the operation and maintenance of existing installations.

ETAC

operator of the Algerian ropeway network

Urban ropeway transportation network operation

ETAC's mission is to ensure the operation and maintenance of the entire network of urban ropeway transportation systems in Algeria. Due to the size of its network and the number of urban gondola lifts and ropeways, ETAC is the world's leading urban ropeway transportation operator, acknowledged as a key player in the development of services for the mobility of locals.

Network maintenance

With the main objective being “the safety of employees and users”, ETAC is responsible for preventive and curative maintenance of Algerian gondola lift and ropeway equipment. Supervision, checks, technical support, digital operation reports and logs, etc., all these tools are mastered in-house and allow incredibly smooth operation and maintenance of the ropeway equipment. ETAC's teams are experts in all ropeway technologies, from the oldest systems that opened in 1956 to the most recent.

The POMA group's operational training core

Since its creation, ETAC has placed the development of human capital at the centre of its priorities, with the transfer of skills as a fundamental lever. ETAC has already trained over 600 people at its training centre in the operation and maintenance of ropeway transportation systems. This is the equivalent of over 12,000 hours of training, using the most innovative specialised interactive learning material on the market: UPILOT®.

With such highly prized skills, ETAC's expertise in operation and maintenance is exported beyond the Algerian borders.

Feasibility studies and creating new installations

Ropeway transportation is particularly well suited to the topography of Algerian cities. To meet the demand, ETAC is responsible for the feasibility studies and the creation of new installations across the country. A team dedicated to major projects and made up of civil engineers and architects, etc. has been set up to complete these projects, from the statement of requirements stage to final acceptance of the installation.

2014

Creation

+ than 700

Employees

ISO 9001

in 2019

13

ropeways in 7 cities

+ than 20 million

passengers since its creation

1200 km

separate the two furthest points in the network

With more than 20 million passengers and 13 installations in 7 Algerian cities, ETAC is now the operator with the largest number of urban ropeway transportation installations in the world.

Our main commitment: safety, availability and quality of service for passengers. To achieve this goal, more than 700 employees work in line with company values every day and they have been applying and adapting our ISO 9001-certified quality processes since 2019.

ETAC is a company that has experienced strong growth since its inception. In the short term, several new installations will be added to ETAC’s network to meet the growing demand for sustainable mobility among Algerian citizens.

Finally, the ETAC Joint Venture maintains close ties with POMA (projects, training, services, etc.), and this closeness will allow us to rise to the challenges ahead.

Managing Director

Mohamed GUENNAZ

I arrived in Algeria in February 2016 to take charge of the operation for all the ropeway equipment in Algeria, operated by ETAC.

To date, we manage installations in 7 provinces of the country. These installations are located in the major cities of the north coast of the country and have significantly different operational profiles.

In Algiers or Tizi-Ouzou, urban operation implies 13 hours of activity on average, for traffic totalling around 15,000 passengers per day for the gondola lift in Tizi-Ouzou, for example. In Tlemcen, urban use during the week gives way to mainly tourist use during holidays and at weekends. This mixed use leads to large variations in how long periods of activity last. Another configuration is found in Blida, where a gondola lift for tourists must be able to cope with erratic peaks in passenger traffic.

The diversity of these operating profiles requires an agile organisation. In particular, we have set up a standard structure that we then adapt in terms of technical and human resources. We reach a staff ratio of 1 to 4 depending on the site, with one third of the staff dedicated exclusively to the safety of users and property.

The rates of service are very good and we capitalise on our experience in the field as part of a continuous improvement approach with discussion between sites. It is also clear that the youth and dynamism in our teams make ETAC a wonderful company that is moving forwards every day!

Director of Operations

Jean Pierre VICHIER GUERRE

Innovations

for skills tranfer

The first 3D simulator cabin

POMA designed a gondola lift 3D simulator that has been installed in the ETAC training centre. Trainees acquire skills more quickly and serenely. Several scenarios are available to trainees who can learn how to control the equipment, test operations under normal operating conditions, learn how to diagnose a failure and resolve it, and even manage operations in degraded situations (complicated weather, external incidents, etc.). This practical application of theoretical knowledge allows trainees to make mistakes without endangering people or property.

A training centre like no other

ETAC owns a training centre to develop the skills of its personnel. By promoting digital training tools and multimedia material such as LMS (Learning Management System), a learning platform for completing a training course and publishing content online, and the process trainer, which uses guided and automatic videos for familiarisation with procedures through active and dynamic learning

With ETAC, POMA becomes the operator of

the world’s 1st urban ropeway transportation network

The creation of ETAC was an important step in the development of the POMA group. A leader in the design and construction of ropeway transportation systems, POMA expands its field of expertise and develops new services from new professions dedicated to the operation and maintenance of ropeways in urban areas.

Iconic Project

Bab el Oued

In Algiers, the urban gondola lift linking the Bab el Oued district to Zghara, via the middle station of Village Céleste, not only makes it easier for the 6.7 million inhabitants of the capital to get around, but also helps to bring the hilltop village of Zghara out of isolation.

operator of the Algerian ropeway network