About the chairlift
- Operating season: winter
- Capacity: 6 people
- Flow rate: 3000 p/h
- Operating speed: 5 m/s
- Travel time: 5 min 56 sec
- Downstream altitude: 2484 metres
- Upstream altitude: 2806 metres
- Vertical drop: 322 metres
- Developed length: 1780 metres
- Horizontal length: 1744 metres
- Maximum slope: 53%
- Average slope: 19%
ArcelorMittal wire rope helps Val d'Isère prepare for the next ski season
After more than 20 years of service on the Glacier chairlift in Val d'Isère, France, the ArcelorMittal wire rope has been replaced and 100% recycled. The new wire rope, at 32 tonnes and 3.8 km long, was produced by ArcelorMittal WireSolutions’ Bourg-en-Bresse site. After its reopening, the Glacier chairlift will be able to transport 3000 people per hour at a speed of 5 m/s and at an altitude of over 2800 m.
Carrying visitors up to 2800 m
Val d’Isère is a village nestled in the mountains of Savoy, near the Italian border. It is famous for its ski resort, which offers 300 km of marked runs and attracts around 1 million visitors per year, making it a great holiday destination during Christmas season and in the summer.
The Glacier chairlift was built in 2001, so after 21 years of service, the wire rope needed to be replaced.
3.8 km of high-quality compact core ropes
ArcelorMittal WireSolutions worked with the customer to provide the replacement wire rope. Our mill in Bourg-en-Bresse, France produced and supplied 6-strand ropes (with a diameter of 46 mm) offering superior strength, stretch resistance, and resistance to bending fatigue. Its compacted strands surround a central solid plastic core and ensure outstanding levels of resistance against crushing and abrasion. This solution is specifically designed for chairlifts, funitels, gondolas, and tramways.
In total, ArcelorMittal WireSolutions provided 3.8 km of ropes to customer STVI (Société de Téléphérique de Val d’Isère) through TEC Cables Bourg. STVI chose our product thanks to its quality, reliability, and especially its very performant compacted core with a very low level of elongation in comparison with other solutions on the market. The level of stretch of our compact core ropes is extremely low at maximum 0.15% (0.15 for 100) after 1500 hours of running.
The Glacier chairlift will be in service again for the 2022-2023 ski season.
Click HERE to watch the news story - in French - made by Radio/TV Val d'Isère on the wire rope replacement operation carried out by TEC Cables Bourg.
Text:
ArcelorMittal Europe Communications
Images:
Radio/TV Val d’Isère
Shutterstock/Gail Johnson
