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January 2012: wire rope production for the London Cable Car
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Production of the wire rope for the new river crossing cable car between the Royal Docks and the Greenwich peninsula. It's a FATZER wire rope, type Stabilo 8x36 Warrington Seale compacted with a full plastic core from polyethylene rod, 50mm diameter. The filling consists of the FATZER innovation TRUlub® SR11.
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September 2011: rope test cableway goes into service
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This year, the wire rope company FATZER AG Drahtseilwerk is celebrating its 175th anniversary. But the employees at the Romanshorn plant do not have time to sit back and relax, because of pending extensive renovations as well as the start-up of the company’s own test ropeway.
The ropeway market is constantly striving for more powerful and quieter rope-driven systems. These requirements can only be met with consistent further and new developments with respect to both the cable cars and the ropes. Because a new or significantly upgraded product may not be used without prior practice runs and direct field tests should be avoided due to the potential safety and financial risks, the conduct of tests using a real life universal test rig is mandatory. To realise this target, the world’s leading manufacturer of wire ropes, the Company FATZER AG Drahtseilwerk of Romanshorn, decided to build its own test rig, demonstrating once again the company’s technological superiority.
6- and 8-stranded as well as Performa ropes with diameters of up to 60 millimetres can be tested at a maximum travelling speed of 18 m/s on a distance of 110 metres. As a result, FATZER’s new construction site is now home of the fastest cable car in the world. The total length of the continuous loop is 232 metres and it can be loaded with a maximum tension force of 120 tons.
The system has been designed for tests in continuous operation. The effects of speed, brake force, tension of the rope, disk and rope diameter on the durability and wear of the ropes can be analysed under realistic conditions. Video |
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October 2009: New "FATZER Production Plant 2"
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After a 12 months construction period FATZER's new production plant #2 in Romanshorn's industrial area is near completion. The installation of a new tandem planetary closing machine for the production of FLC- (Full Locked Coil)-ropes is nearly completed and first test-runs will start in a short while. The new machine is able to produce ropes up to a diameter of 125 mm and a maximum weight per piece of 150 metric tons. After test-runs are completed the machine will go in operational service and an existing similar machine will be dismantled, overhauled, modernized and expanded and re-installed next to the new machine in production plant #2. As a result the production capacity for INTEGRA FLC ropes with or without embedded data- or energy-lines will be more than doubled. The official opening ceremony of this new production plant is foreseen in spring 2010, after the start-up of the revised, second planetary closing machine.
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July 2009: Enlighted farm spots
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FATZER has developped low diameter (<40 mm) FLC trackropes for so called compact tramways. These ropes can be equipped with power conductors (threephase current up to 7 kW) (left picture), signal conductors (right picture) or even with a mix of electro conductors and fiber optics. Such power lines can supply energy for more than just to enlighten the top terminal. One application of these compact ropeways is to link small mountainous farmer spots (so called Almen or Alpen). And so it even will allow to share some of the energy with the farmers to become independant of the noisy and stinky power generators.
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June 2009: A palm was left only (Picture © by Fridolin Walcher)
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FATZER has produced for a material ropeway eight 90 mm track ropes with a weight of 120 mtons each to be supplied to a jobsite in the center part of Switzerland. The ropes have been transported using a special low-bed trailer. The entire convoy of a length of 42 m (138 ft) had a weight of 195 mtons and a width of 3.8 m (12.5 ft). Between two homes on its way just a palm on either side was left as the picture proves. But now another challenge is waiting. All the ropes have to be pulled to the upper end of section 1 and four of them even keep going further through a 3 km (9'500 ft) long tunnel and will then be pulled up to the end of section 2. A total difference in altitude of 1'650 m (5'400 ft). With a metric weight of 50 kgs (33.7 lbs/ft) an absolute unwieldy but dangerous act as well.
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April 2009: In-house training
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Last month the plant was shut-down when for one full day in-house training was going on. The aim was to educate all our plant staff to a standardized and up-to-date level of knowledge. Not only subject specific knowledge was imparted but instructions on the new barcode production control systems or training on latest gauge units were given. Training sites within the plant were visited by small groups of employees and finally the day was closed having all together a good dinner.
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January 2009: Ropes for New York
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Fatzer was awarded the order for four track ropes and two haulage ropes for the new Roosevelt Island Tramway, to be built by POMAgalski this year. The track ropes will be equipped with integrated fiber optic lines for data transfer (INTEGRA DATA track rope). The tram takes passengers from midtown Manhattan to Roosevelt Island and is not just a public transportation system for the island residents but also a popular tourist attraction.
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December 2008: Production of 90 mm Ropes
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Manufacturing of the 90 mm track ropes for heavy load ropeway of the new power plant Linth Limmern (Switzerland) is almost completed. Six track ropes are already loaded and transported to a temporary storage facility. Fatzer delivers eight INTEGRA track ropes with a minimum breaking load of 918 tons and a weight of 48 kilograms per meter as well as four COMPACTA haul and counter ropes. The total weight of all ropes is 885 tons.
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November 2008: Rope Maintenance Sandia Peak
| In November Fatzer performed comprehensive rope maintenance work at Sandia Peak Tramway (Albuquerque, USA) in cooperation with Franz Spichtig, a splicer from Rigging Specialties (Banff, Canada). The track ropes were cleaned with a special Fatzer cleaning device. All ropes of the reversible ropeway were inspected and relubricated. Damaged wires were repaired. Thanks to successful performance at Sandia Peak, further ropeway operators in North America have already decided to make use of Fatzer rope services. |
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October 2008: 50 years of Rope Care
| In October, Fatzer splicer Walter Zuest celebrated his 50 year's jubilee with the company. In 1958 he started his apprenticeship in rigging and splicing and remained loyal to the company until today. Walter worked at countless installation sites in the Alpes, performed splicing of ropes and many other services such as rope maintenance and repairs. He will continue to carry out rope services for Fatzer - we say Thank you Walter! |
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August 2008: VTK Meeting Locarno
| This year the Association of Swiss Ropeway Management (VTK) held its annual meeting in Locarno. Besides interesting discussions, the participants could inform themselves in the nearby exhibition. On the Fatzer booth information about ropes was given and sample of ropes were presented, including a track rope with 90 mm in diameter. Fatzer will deliver 17 km of track ropes with 90 mm in diameter and almost 50 kg per meter weight for the material ropeway project Linth-Limmern. |
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July 2008: Special Transport at Corvatsch
| In the upcoming winter season a new reversible ropeway will be opened at the Corvatsch mountain in the Swiss region Engadin/St. Moritz. In order to guarantee an efficient and unlimited data transfer to the top station, the operator ordered INTEGRA DATA track ropes from Fatzer. In July the four heavy track ropes were successfully transported to the station Murtel at 2700 m (8860 ft) above sealevel. |
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June 2008: Rope Seminar in Korea
| Within the scope of a meeting organized by the Korean Transportation Safety Authority, a professional training of ropeway operators was carried out in Yong Pyong (South Korea). Our Asia project manager presented basic principles of rope technology and also provided practical information about the inspection and maintenance of ropes. Fatzer AG offers comprehensive services worldwide, including rope specific training and seminars. |
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May 2008: Largest Order for Fatzer
| In May, Fatzer was awarded the largest order in its history. The contract includes the fabrication and supply of 885 tons of wire ropes for the material ropeway Linth-Limmern, including 17 km of full locked INTEGRA track ropes of 90 mm in diameter. The Swiss utility Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG, expands its capacities by a subterraneous pump storage power plant, in order to satisfy the increasing needs in peak load energy. For the realization of the project, Garaventa builds two sections of a 40 ton heavy duty reversible ropeway for transporting people, machines and material to the construction sites. |
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April 2008: Ropes for Record Ropeway
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The spectacular tricable ropeway "PEAK 2 PEAK" will be put into operation in the Canadian skiresort Whistler by the end of the year. The gondola will link Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains in a length of 4.4 km with an unsupported span of over 3 km. Fatzer received the order for delivery of track and haulage ropes. Beginning of April 460 tons of rope were loaded on a barge at the Rhine harbour in Basel, Switzerland. After several weeks of cruising through the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, the ropes will cover the final distance by train and heavy load truck.
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March 2008: Handling of Winch Ropes
| At the end of last year Fatzer performed numerous winch rope clinics in cooperation with Kässbohrer Geländefahrzeug AG (PistenBully). As the demand for Fatzer knowledge in winch ropes of grooming machines is further increasing, training clinics are carried out at customer sites. The practical part includes proper handling and inspection of winch ropes and in addition, comprehensive information about technical data and rope maintenance is provided. |
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March 2008: Splicing at Highest Altitude
| A Fatzer STABILO haul rope was recently spliced at an exceptionally high altitude at the Dagu Glacier gondola, in Sichuan province in western China. In spite of freezing temperatures and thin air the Fatzer splicer and the Chinese workers performed a perfect connection of the rope. The gondola whisks tourists from 3800 m to 4800 m above sea level and provides them unique insights into a spectacular high mountain range around Dagu Glacier. |
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February 2008: 20 km Rope for India
| Fatzer has again received an order for delivery of track ropes and a 20 km long haulage rope to the material ropeway Manikgarh Cement in India. The ropeway transports 5500 tons limestone per day from the mines to the raw mills. The raw lime material is crushed in the mills to acceptable sizes and further processed to cement. Manikgarh Cement produces about 1.5 Million tons cement per year. |
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January 2008: Rope Test Machine
| In research and development of wire ropes Fatzer sets a high value on rope testing under realistic conditions. Before introducing new rope constructions and rope components on the market, the ropes are intensely tested on a purpose-built test machine. The specific stresses of a ropeway can be simulated individually and the climatic conditions can be adapted to reality. The cycles of 30 days continuous testing reflect about 30 years of operation on a ropeway. |
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December 2007: Heavy Rope for Spain
| With a total weigth of over 60 tons Fatzer delivered the heaviest haulage rope for a passenger ropeway in Spain to the Sierra Nevada. The STABILO rope will transport people from Pradollano to the heart of the Sierra Nevada ski area with the new detachable gondola Borreguiles. The new gondola is equipped with cabines for 10 people and replaces an old ropeway installed in 1986. It will be put into operation the upcoming season. The Sierra Nevada ski resort is the most southern European ski area. |
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November 2007: Rope Inspection at Skating Rink
| Fatzer increasingly offers rope services for rope structures; for example at a shading construction of a skating rink in Davos (CH). The steel structures on both sides of the rink are connected by ropes and equipped with shading cloths. Due to replacement of the cloths, the actual condition of the construction had to be checked. Fatzer performed a visual inspection of the ropes. |
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November 2007: INTEGRA DATA for Poland
| The new reversible ropeway Kasprowy Wierch in the Polish High Tatra will be put into operation using INTEGRA DATA ropes. Fatzer delivered over 18 km track ropes with 45 mm diameter for both sections of the Garaventa jig-back. By means of optical fibers, which are integrated in the track ropes, an efficient transfer of digital information to the mountain station is guaranteed. In November the installation work of the technical interfaces were performed. |
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November 2007: Moscow Ski & Board Salon
| The biggest winter sport exhibition in Eastern Europe, the Moscow Ski & Board Salon, has attracted about 40,000 visitors. From November 1-3 over 300 exhibitors presented their products and services for winter sports and ski resort equipment as well as for tourism. Benefiting from the boom of ski resort construction in Russia and East Asia, Fatzer participated in the exhibition and provided valuable information about innovative rope technology. |
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October 2007: Rope Cleaning in Hongkong
| The Fatzer service team has demonstrated its expert knowledge concerning the maintenance of track ropes again. This time on the bicable ropeway Ngong Ping in Hongkong, where comprehensive rope service was conducted under difficult conditions. The track ropes were cleaned by use of a self-developed rope cleaning machine. In addition, visuell rope inspection as well as intensive lubrication was part of the Fatzer service package. |
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September 2007: Rope Splicing Pizol
| Accompanied by a TV broadcaster team Fatzer performed a spectacular splice at the new ropeway to the Pizol, the gondola Matells-Pardiel (CH). For this demanding gondola system a Fatzer STABILO rope with almost 7 km length and a diameter of 54 mm was manufactured and spliced at a length of 75 m. The splice team had to work hard as the rope weights over 11 kg per meter. In the upcoming season the rope will reliably transport skiers and boarders from Bad Ragaz to the ski area at the Pizol. |
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August 2007: Customer Training in Germany
| On August 10, an individual practical oriented training took place at the town of Künzelsau near Stuttgart. The motivated participants, mostly operating officers from surrounding ropeway installations, gained a profound insight into the basics of rope technique, rope maintenance, visual inspection and repair. Fatzer was able to cover the needs of professional training for responsible persons according to EN standard. |
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July 2007: Information Event VDS
| At the information event of the German Association of Ropeways hosted on July 19 in Feldberg-Altglashütten Fatzer presented product information about ropes and rope services. In addition to the interesting talks about inspection and maintenance of ropes and ropeway installations the participants were invited to a tour at the new detachable chairlift "Rothaus-Bahn" - which is equipped with a diameter-stable Fatzer STABILO rope. |
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June 2007: Fatzer Rope Seminar
| Again one of the popular Fatzer rope seminars took place at the beautiful waterside of Lake Constance near Romanshorn. The seminar is part of an extensive training program, where the knowledge and experiences of the Fatzer team are passed on to customers and interested ropeway operators. The participants enjoyed a successful seminar mixture - presentations about rope technology and maintenance, practical exercises and a factory tour. |
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June 2007: Heavy Rope Load Zillertal
| Mid-June in Romanshorn, Switzerland: A truck with a heavy load of 70 tons of rope pulled out at the Fatzer production plant. The diameter-stable STABILO rope will soon provide a good service at the Funitel "Gletscherbus" in the Austrian Zillertal. The journey of the transporter to Hintertux and further to the station of the ropeway is a challenging mission due to the enormous weight and dimension of the rope reel. The rope is delivered within the agreed time. |
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April 2007: Interalpin Review
| This years Interalpin took place from April 18-20 at the Exhibition Centre Innsbruck, Austria. 17.200 visitors from all over the world - 1.200 more than at the last Interalpin - came to see the products and services of 500 exhibiting companies from the alpine technology market. Fatzer presented its newest rope products, including the INTEGRA DATA rope with integrated fibre-optics and the low-noise, vibration-reduced rope PERFORMA - which comes into operation at the new Hungerburgbahn in Innsbruck. |
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