Leitner Ropeways is a business that manufactures and distributes products and equipment for ropeways, snow groomers, urban transportation systems, and wind energy in Italy and internationally. The company was founded in 1888 and was recognized in 2003 to be owned by the Leitner Group, later the HTI Group. The company also provides spare parts, repairs and testing.
Products
![Kabienenbahn_Typ_GD10_in_Berlin_Berlin_Messe_Süd](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Kabienenbahn_Typ_GD10_in_Berlin_Berlin_Messe_S%C3%BCd.jpg)
Leitner Ropeways manufactures various types of ropeways, such as
fixed-grip and
detachable chairlifts;
monocable,
bicable, and
tricable gondola lift
The tricable gondola lift, also known as the 3S gondola lift, is a cable car system that was developed by the Swiss company Von Roll transport systems in Thun to unite the benefits of a gondola lift with those of a reversible cable car system ...
s;
telemix
A hybrid lift is a type of ski lift that combines the elements of a chairlift and a gondola lift. First introduced by Poma, who refers to them as Telemix, they have since been built by most lift manufacturers who refer to them by a variety of ...
;
surface lifts;
aerial tramway
An aerial tramway, sky tram, cable car, ropeway, aerial tram, telepherique, or seilbahn is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion. With this form of lift, the grip ...
s;
funicular
A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...
s; and inclined elevators.
History
In 1888, Gabriel Leitner established the business, specializing in farm machinery, ropeways for material transportation, waterwheels and sawmills. In 1925, the company grew from a workshop employing 10 employees to a factory to produce agricultural machinery. In 1947, the company build its first chairlift in Corvara, Italy. In 1970, agricultural machinery production ceased and was replaced by snow groomer engineering. In 1980 a production plant was built. In 1983, the company developed a detachable grip for
chairlifts
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. They ...
and
gondola lift
A gondola lift is a means of cable transport and type of aerial lift which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel wire rope that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate supp ...
s. In 1985, the first detachable gondola lifts were made in Brunico and
Valtournenche
Valtournenche (local Valdôtain: ) is a town and '' comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy, above the sea level. It is named after and covers most of the ''Valtournenche'', a valley on the left side of the Dora Baltea, from ...
, Italy. The first 4-seater chair was made in
Obereggen Obereggen is a mountain village in South Tyrol, northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Latemar and known as a ski resort. Obereggen is part of the ''frazione'' St. Nikolaus/Eggen of the ''comune'' (municipality) of Deutschnofen
Deutschn ...
, Italy. In 1999, the company acquired the ropeway division of
Waagner Biro.
In 2003, a company-wide reorganization resulted in the Leitner Group being formed. In the same year, the Leitwind wind turbine was released. In 2008 the MiniMetro was first built in Perugia, Italy.
In 2009, Leitner produced the company's first
tricable gondola lift
The tricable gondola lift, also known as the 3S gondola lift, is a cable car system that was developed by the Swiss company Von Roll transport systems in Thun to unite the benefits of a gondola lift with those of a reversible cable car system ...
.
Agudio
Originally founded in 1861, Agudio was later acquired by Leitner Ropeways. In 2015, Agudio was integrated into Leitner Ropeways, however, the brand was retained.
Sites
The company has five sites. The Sterzing site located in Sterzing/Vipiteno, Italy, serves as the
headquarters
Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...
of Leitner AG / SpA. The Sterzing-Unterackern site is also located in Sterzing/Vipiteno, Italy. Leitner GmbH is located at the site in
Telfs
Telfs is a market town in the district of Innsbruck-Land in the Austrian state of Tyrol, west of Innsbruck. It is the third largest municipality in Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical regio ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. Leitner France SAS is located at the site in
Montmélian
Montmélian () is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Montmélian station has rail connections to Grenoble, Modane, Bourg-Saint-Maurice and Chambéry.
Geography Climate
Montmélian ha ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. Leitech s.r.o. is located at the Stará Ľubovňa site in
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the ten ...
,
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
.
References
{{Authority control
Companies of Italy
Aerial lift manufacturers
Manufacturing companies established in 1888
Italian brands
Manufacturing companies based in South Tyrol
1888 establishments in Austria-Hungary
Wind turbine manufacturers
Renewable energy technology companies
Wind power in Italy