Zermatt's IDE All Weather Snowmaker in Full Swing

By Raúl Revuelta

Zermatt is playing its trump card – the Snowmaker – so that skiers and snowboarders can take to good pistes in the early days of winter as well. The snow machine produces snow regardless of temperature, even above freezing point. And so a good snow base can be laid in early autumn to ensure perfect pistes in winter.

Zermatt Bergbahnen was the first ski resort to order a new kind of artificial snow system: theIDE’s All Weather Snowmaker. Later Pitztal Gletscherbahnen was the second Company to order, following Zermatt’s footsteps, the snowmaker. IDE Technologies is a world leader and pioneer in water desalination, wastewater concentrators and purifiers. The snowmaking technology comes from the mining industry where it is used to cool the goldmines.

CEO Zermatt Bergbahnen Christen Baumann explains how it works: "To put it simply it works like a freezer. The temperature of the surrounding air is irrelevant. In a closed container with a diameter of 3.2m and a height of 10m, water is exposed to a vacuum without any additives. A small portion vaporizes, the remaining water freezes to snow, which is afterwards expelled at a rate of about 40 cubic metres every hour. The snow produced has the consistency of a wet spring snow".

The technology is based on a principle of physics whereby water placed in a vacuum will immediately partly evaporate – without having to reach boiling point. However, the energy needed for evaporation must come from somewhere. In this case, the evaporating water extracts this energy from the remaining water, which is appreciably cooled and thus crystalizes. This crystalized water is thus snow, similar to spring snow, and is used for piste preparation. A transport spiral shoots the snow out to the waiting snowcats. These then distribute the snow in early autumn, as for example between the Theodul Glacier and the summit station of Trockener Steg.

The Snowmaker is used for around 14 days in early autumn for about two to three weeks. Then it is in operation around the clock. The machine is also used systematically in winter and spring, depending on weather and snow conditions.

Kurt Guntli from the Zermatt Bergbahnen AG is the project manager for the huge machine. "Thanks to the Snowmaker we can guarantee the route from the Theodul Glacier to Trockenen Steg from as early as the beginning of October".

The first Snowmaker successfully operated at Zermatt last week

By Raúl Revuelta

Zermatt Bergbahnen was the first ski resort to order a new kind of artificial snow system: the IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker. Later Pitztal Gletscherbahnen was the second Company to order, following Zermatt’s footsteps, the snowmaker. IDE Technologies is a world leader and pioneer in water desalination, wastewater concentrators and purifiers. The snowmaking technology comes from the mining industry where it is used to cool the goldmines. Both ski resorts have launched a new era in snowmaking by choosing the IDE All Weather Snowmaker from Israel to deliver large amounts of snow at all ambient temperatures.

The first Snowmaker was assembled and testing in Israel during July 2008. The Snowmakers were shipped from Israel to Slovenia, loaded on a truck convoy and transported to the base stations of the ski resorts. The crews worked hard to transport the heavy equipment up to the mountains. The first unit was lifted to the installation site in Zermatt by cables. The installation was completed in mid November and the Snowmaker was successfully operated last week.

Since the installation site has already been covered by heavy snow for the last few weeks, Zermatt ski resort will commence snowmaking with the new Snowmaker during spring 2009.
The installation of the snowmaker in Pitztal will be completed next month. 

IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker for Zermatt tested

By Raúl Revuelta

The new snow machine will be put into operation next month to offset the bad snow conditions of the late autumn in the glacier piste. The snow is being used to make a path between the bottom of its high altitude glacier and the cable car station from where skiers and boarders can get back up the slopes to access the year round ski area. In years gone by the glacier did reach this lift station anyway, but over the past two decades it has melted away and in late autumn, around the beginning of October, the glacier piste ends 500m before the lift station.

Zermatt Bergbahnen was the first ski resort to order a new kind of artificial snow system: the IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker. Later Pitztal Gletscherbahnen was the second Company to order, following Zermatt’s footsteps, the snowmaker. IDE Technologies is a world leader and pioneer in water desalination, wastewater concentrators and purifiers. The snowmaking technology comes from the mining industry where it is used to cool the goldmines.

CEO Zermatt Bergbahnen Christen Baumann explains how it works: "To put it simply it works like a freezer. The temperature of the surrounding air is irrelevant. In a closed container with a diameter of 3.2m and a height of 10m, water is exposed to a vacuum without any additives. A small portion vaporizes, the remaining water freezes to snow, which is afterwards expelled at a rate of about 40 cubic metres every hour. The snow produced has the consistency of a wet spring snow". IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker is a unique, environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient solution. The energy it requires for a year is the equivalent to that of one household.

The new snow machine, which is produced in Israel, had a delivery period of one year and costs around CHF 2 million (EUR 1.19 million).

IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker for Zermatt

by Raúl Revuelta

The financial viability of the ski resorts depends to a great extent on favourable snow conditions and the snow-reliability of its ski areas. Nowadays ski operators adopt technological measures to reduce the risks from a snow deficient winter.

Snowmaking is the most widespread strategy to extend the operating season and to secure and guarantee the revenues of the ski resorts. Zermatt Bergbahnen is the first ski resort to order a new kind of artificial snow system: the IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker.

IDE Technologies is a world leader and pioneer in water desalination, wastewater concentrators and purifiers. The snowmaking technology comes from the mining industry where it is used to cool the goldmines.

CEO Zermatt Bergbahnen Christen Baumann explains how it works: “To put it simply it works like a freezer. The temperature of the surrounding air is irrelevant. In a closed container with a diameter of 3.2m and a height of 10m, water is exposed to a vacuum without any additives. A small portion vaporizes, the remaining water freezes to snow, which is afterwards expelled at a rate of about 40 cubic metres every hour. The snow produced has the consistency of a wet spring snow”. IDE’s All Weather Snowmaker is a unique, environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient solution. The energy it requires for a year is the equivalent to that of one household.

The new snow machine, which is produced in Israel, has a delivery period of one year and costs around CHF 2 million (EUR 1.19 million). It will be put into operation at the end of September 2008 to offset the bad snow conditions of the late autumn in the glacier piste. As Daniel Loggen, Director of Zermatt Tourism, says “We want to offer our guests perfect skiing enjoyment – so the innovation has come at just the right time”.