Alpine intralogistics under the slopes of Sölden

19. Jan 2018

Linde Load Train Factory Train FT510 supplies Bergrestaurant in 2,283 meters with fresh food.

The Giggijoch restaurant, located 2283 metres up in the Ötztal Alps, is waiting to welcome you in from the -12 C surroundings for fresh cake, dumplings and strawberries. A logistical feat which is made possible thanks to a Load Train Factory Train.

During the ski season, around 4000 visitors per day are served with food and drinks at the Giggijoch in Sölden, Austria. But how are around 2000 kilos of fresh food transported up the mountain every day?

We'll let you in on a little secret: Below the slopes, there is a 150 metre-long tunnel which connects the top terminal to the Giggijoch mountain restaurant. In this tunnel, the Factory Train FT510 plays the leading role. Load trains like this one are mainly used in industry, on production and assembly lines.

The main strength of the load train Factory train is its extreme manoeuvrability – which it demonstrates perfectly at the Sölden ski resort. The tunnel presents the load train FT510 with many challenges such as steep 15 percent gradients, several narrow passages, bottlenecks and even an s-shaped curve at one point. And it is a bit of a tight squeeze: the space between the train and the wall is often only the width of your hand.

How can the load train Factory Trainn manoeuvre through the tunnel with two trailers without crashing? Simple: the trailers help to steer! Thanks to neon yellow arrow markings on the walls, the driver knows exactly when to manoeuvre.

The load train Factory Train has been in use since autumn 2016. Manuel Köll, Deputy Operations Manager of the Sölden Mountain Railway, is impressed. “We were looking for a truck which could be adapted to the conditions, and which could carry weight and – above all – tackle the gradient,” he explains. The solution offered by Linde Material Handling was perfect. “The trailers are second to none,” says Köll. “We can load all the goods from the truck into the nacelle and the load train, without the goods carrier needing to be changed.”

Manuel Köll, Deputy Operations Manager of the Sölden Mountain Railway, says that the load train Factory Train is the optimal solution for serving visitors to the mountain, and that he cannot imagine life without it.
The load train Factory Train successfully conquers gradients of up to 15% in the supply tunnel as it heads along its 2283 metre route to the mountain restaurant.
All goods can be unloaded from the truck into the nacelle and the Factory Train load train, without the goods carrier needing to be changed.
Intralogistics at 2283 metres. Up to 4000 visitors are catered for in the Giggijoch mountain restaurant.
Steering trailers help the load Train Factory Train to manoeuvre, even on the tight, s-shaped curves.

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