[WRE UPDATE | PROJECT]
The ArcelorMittal cable, weighing 90 tons and requiring a trailer with 13 axles, arrives in Vail, Colorado.
Photo courtesy of Vail Resorts
In addition to providing enhanced aesthetics and user-friendly touches—including full-length tinted windows and a specially designed ski and snowboard rack attached to the cabins’ exterior— project designers aspired to achieve improved energy effi ciency in the new gondola system. A project of this size and scope called for a cable strong enough to withstand extreme weather conditions at 8,500 feet. ArcelorMittal, a Luxembourg-based leading steel manufacturer that operates in 60 countries worldwide, won the bid to produce the nearly 20,000-foot haul rope that threads through the heart of the project. T e company’s manufacturing processes, quality of components, and proven reputation were key considerations in the bid-selection process. Technically named 6x36WSR, the wire features a compacted-
strand, low-stretch, solid-plastic core design with a minimum breaking load of 550,782 pound-force. “ArcelorMittal has sold cables in North America for 20 years with an outstanding reputation among our customers for quality,” said Marco Desmarais, Sales Manager, ArcelorMittal Long Carbon North America. “Our steel cables are known for off ering the lowest stretch in the industry and best return on investment. We have also proved year after year that we can deliver huge ropes on time, anywhere in North America.”
In the case of the special gondola cable for Vail Mountain,
ArcelorMittal succeeded once again—both in providing a top-quality product and in upholding its delivery promises.
Destination: Vail Mountain After six months of construction, the 90-ton cable was ready to support the Vail ski lift’s circuitous journey—but, fi rst, the rope had to embark on a rather arduous transatlantic trip of its own. Its pilgrimage began in Lyon, France, at ArcelorMittal’s wire rope manufacturing plant, where it was wrapped around a massive spool measuring 12 feet in diameter and 10 feet in width. After traveling by special convoy to Belgium, it was loaded onto a Fednav vessel headed for Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. At its fi rst North American connection, the cable was transferred to rail car for the next leg of the journey, to Gypsum, Colorado, located 40 miles from Vail. When the train rolled into the station, Clyde Wiessner, Lift
Maintenance Director for Vail Mountain, stood on the platform, eagerly awaiting the cable’s arrival. He watched closely as the all- important delivery transitioned onto a 13-axle trailer, the fi nal mode of transportation. As project coordinator, Wiessner had been planning diligently to
ensure the spool’s smooth passage to its fi nal destination. Among the preparations: he worked with an engineer to shore up a bridge that
WIRE ROPE EXCHANGE JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 73
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