Kitzbühel's slope managers sit in the office in Siezenheim

MICHAEL MINICHBERGER, Salzburg News

WALS SIEZENHEIM. Too much artificial snow produced costs cable car companies a lot of money. The KitzSki region (Kitzbühel, Kirchberg, Mittersill) alone has spent 24 million euros on machine snow over the past ten years, which it would not have needed, says entrepreneur Robert Sölkner. The number comes from a current scientific work.

Sölkner is not a cable car operator, but an expert in geodata. He employs eleven people in his company PowerGIS. He has been involved with ski resorts for many years. The self-developed GPS snow depth measurement is mounted on numerous snow cats from Ischgl to Schladming. The device helps to better assess the need for artificial snow, but for real optimization it needs much more, says Sölkner.

Accordingly, his new business model goes one step further. Since the beginning of the current winter season, he has offered cable car companies slope management – ​​with the aim of optimal snowmaking and also becoming more efficient in other places. The prospect: up to 30 percent savings in piste costs, which account for around a quarter of the total expenses of a cable car company.

But do seasoned lifters really let data experts from the industrial park in Wals-Siezenheim tell them how to work? "Of course, some are skeptical, but we don't act on instinct, but on the basis of data, and we can underpin everything we do," emphasizes Sölkner. "We try to get the local people on board and train them in this direction."

Kitzbühel and Gastein are the first customers to rely on "Arena Piste Management". Franz Schafflinger, CEO of Gasteiner Bergbahnen, sees the cooperation as positive. "We have a lot of data, but it's of no use to us if it isn't professionally evaluated and used." Sölkner's colleague Max Mündler opens the underlying computer program on his laptop. All slopes of the Gasteiner Bergbahnen are marked on the satellite image, the current snow depths can be found with a mouse click. The program recognizes which snow cannon is producing how much snow and when, and issues an alarm when lower limits are reached or too much snow is being made. Millions of data points are used, says Mündler, including past snow measurements, statistical weather data and cable car specifications. The most important sections of a ski area would be calculated more generously than others. So-called snow eaters are also identified by GPS. If there is a hole in the terrain, the program can calculate how much it will cost to fill it in with snow each winter. "Maybe it makes sense to adjust the terrain in summer," says Mündler.

With the data-based system, you currently have a unique position on the market, says Sölkner. He wants to grow quickly and also has his sights set on ski resorts abroad. In addition to the potential for savings, there is also the environmental aspect. "In Kitzbühel, thanks to our improvements, they even decided not to build a new reservoir," says Mündler.

In terms of sustainability, the industry is generally required, says Salzburg's cable car spokesman Erich Egger. The Schmitten ski area in Zell am See, which he manages, is considered a pioneer. "Of course, the big ones find it easier, but the small ski areas should also move," says Egger. The ecological footprint is not yet relevant for bookings, but that will change in the coming years.

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