Disruption to skifield unavoidable

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 5, Issue 31, 19 January 1988, Page 2

Disruption to skifield unavoidable

The Bulletin has been unable to substantiate rumours that Turoa's decision over the repair of the Giant Chairlift gearbox was made with an insurance payout the prime concern. The gearbox in the drive station of the chairlift failed early in the 1987 ski season causing major disruption to Turoa's operations and inconvenience to thousands of upper field skiers who had to ride the new quad chairlift and then walk to the Jumbo for access. New Zealand Ski Fields Managing Director M r Tony Wright said it was impossible to repair the gearbox during the ski season because of its size and weight. He said as it weighs more than five tonnes the gearbox would have had to be handled by crane. No helicopters are available in New Zealand to lift such a weight, he said. There was also no possibility of assembling the unit on the mountain side, said Mr Wright. "We couldn't even assemble it in our workshop, it has to be repaired and assembled

in special workshop conditions, the nearest available being in Wellington." Turoa had decided to modify the lift's drive station and install a new type of gearbox developed in Europe especially for Doppelmayer, the manufacturer of the Giant Chairlift. The unit is called a planetary gearbox and is about the size of a 44 gallon drum. While the weight is still considerable it is assembled in separate components which can be flown into the lift by helicopter separately. The gearbox has been produced and left Europe for New Zealand on 28 December, said Mr Wright. The modification project is expected to cost $250,000 and involves fitting a new bullwheel. Mr Wright said damage has also been discovered in the Parklane Chairlift gearbox, though its repair will be simpler as the drive station of the chair is at the road eiid. He said the company had lost confidence in the Kissling gearboxes. They should run for 20 years but had lasted just nine. Mr Wright said the company was currently negotiating with their insurers over the gearbox failure.