Intamin
Intamin Worldwide is a designing and manufacturing company in Wollerau, Switzerland. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The U.S. division of the company is located in Glen Burnie, Maryland, and is headed by Gary Palmer, MD and Arnold Bernsteiner. The Intamin brand name is an abbreviation for: INTernational AMusement INstallations. The company distributes approximately 5-7 roller coasters from their workshops in Switzerland and Glen Burnie each year.
Intamin is a major player in the amusement park attractions industry, supplying some 22 different styles of rides to a variety of parks. Their first roller coaster installation was The Great American Revolution, a roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 1976. Since then they have installed a total of 70 coasters in several countries around the globe. They designed and built the first "river rapids ride" known as "Thunder River" based on the idea supplied by Bill Crandall, a past General Manager at the now defunct AstroWorld. Intamin also marketed the first Freefall (developed by Giovanola) experience and the first Drop Tower.
Products and technologies
Intamin is well known for being innovative and creative with their rides. They were some of the first to create a magnetic propulsion system (Linear induction motors/Linear Synchronous Motors) and remain one of only a handful of manufacturers continuing to use such technology on roller coasters. Intamin also created the first hydraulic launch system (also known as the "Accelerator" or "Rocket Coaster"), which is now being used to catapult roller coaster trains from 0 to speeds upwards of 128 mph (193 km/h) in a few seconds before climbing up immense heights. Furius Baco at PortAventura was their latest achievement and is Europe's fastest coaster, launching riders from 0-135 km/h (83.9 mph) in 3.5 seconds.
Intamin is also known for their massive "Mega" (Intamin's term for a hypercoaster; often considered over 200 ft/61 m) and "Giga" (over 300 ft/91 m) coasters. They have also created the "Strata Coaster" (Any coaster over 400 ft / 122 m tall). There are currently only two Strata Coasters in existence (Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point and Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure), both manufactured by Intamin. Top Thrill Dragster uses lapbars as the choice of restraint, allowing the rider more comfort and freedom of the upper body throughout the ride than Kingda Ka's over-the-shoulder restraint system. Mega/Giga Coasters currently occupy the top 2 spots of the Golden Ticket Awards with Millennium Force (Giga) and Superman: Ride of Steel (Mega). Also drawing much praise is the company's recent foray into the wooden roller coaster business with their "Plug and Play" models, such as Balder at Liseberg, Colossos at Heide Park, and El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure which opened spring 2006. Unlike other traditional wood coasters, these rides use prefabricated track sections made of a high-strength wooden laminate that can be secured on-site when the superstructure is completed. This design enables the coaster to reach speeds and navigate course elements smoothly, not unlike a steel roller coaster, while retaining the look and some of the traditional feel of common wooden coasters.
Another recent roller coaster development by Intamin is the Ball Coaster, a type of Spinning roller coaster. It has individual cars, each with 8 seats, arranged in two pods coming off the sides of the car, each with 2 seats facing forwards and two facing backwards. This car is either lifted to the highest point by a conventional chain lift, or propelled around the course at a constant speed by a Linear Motor system.
Intamin is also responsible for a large number of other thrill rides. They have designed some of the largest Ferris wheels in the world, along with various types of observation towers, and currently hold the record for the world's tallest and fastest freefall ride (The Giant Drop) at Dreamworld, Australia. They also supply motion simulator technology which can be seen in many installations around the world. Intamin is also credited with the invention of the river rapids ride, though the idea was given to Intamin by Bill Crandall, a past General Manager of AstroWorld.
The company is known for being the original home to the famous (within the coaster world) Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M). The two engineers worked for Giovanola who in turn were frequently contracted by Intamin for their early stand-up roller coasters (Giovanola eventually started producing roller coasters independently). B&M broke away from Giovanola to form their own company which now supplies roller coasters as well. Similarities between the two companies are often obvious, such as the style of track used by B&M, which was used in a number of early Giovanola installations which were contracted by Intamin.
Outside the amusement realm, Intamin supplies monorail transportation systems which are used in both public transport networks and at tourist attractions across the world.
Safety Incidents
 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (June 2009) |
Intamin has been in the news for a number of safety-related accidents or incidents.
- In 1984, three passengers riding The Edge at Marriott's Great America were injured and hospitalized. The boys were soon after released. The ride had experienced a software malfunction that caused the ride to fall backwards down the wrong shaft.[citation needed]
- In May 1999, a 365 lb (165 kg) guest was unable to close his lap bar properly on the newly opened Superman Ride of Steel roller coaster at Six Flags Darien Lake and fell out of the train.
- In 1999, a 12-year-old boy fell to his death on the Drop Zone Stunt Tower at Paramount's Great America. An investigation was inconclusive and no charges were filed, but following the accident modifications were made to add redundancy to ride restraints of not just Drop Zone, but all of the Intamin Drop Towers around the world. [citation needed]
- In 2001 a 40-year-old woman fell from Perilous Plunge at Knotts Berry Farm. She was too large to be correctly restrained by the T-Bar, and rose out of it on the -1G 76 degree drop.
- In 2004 two incidents involving the Intamin lap bar system occurred within months of each other. The first was on Hydro, an Intamin near-vertical river plunge at Oakwood Leisure Park (Narberth, Pembrokeshire) in which a 16-year-old fell approximately 100 ft (30 m) to her death. The peculiar incident is very similar to an earlier accident on another near-vertical plunge ride, Perilous Plunge. Hydro remained closed for the rest of the park's 2004 season before reopening in 2005 with modifications that have seen the lap bar restraints replaced with "Over-the-Shoulder" restraints.
- The second incident of 2004 was on one of Intamin's mega coasters, Superman: Ride of Steel at Six Flags New England in Massachusetts. The ride, again with lap bar restraints, was dispatched with a sufferer of cerebral palsy in the front seat. According to an investigation[1], the ride operators were primarily to blame for not ensuring the man was properly secured. Intamin was also partially blamed because the ride's safety system allowed the train to be dispatched without all the restraints properly secured. Some blame was also attributed to the victim for not notifying the operators of his condition.
Intamin is now supplying rides with the more restricting OTSR (over-the-shoulder restraints) as well as the traditional lap bars for added safety.
- In June 2007, a 13-year-old girl had both of her feet severed at the ankles on Superman: Tower of Power at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. A ride malfunction caused a cable to snap and a cord to wrap around the girl's feet, amputating both of them. She was brought to the hospital in critical condition [1] and the park was later fined $1,000 for not properly maintaining the ride.
- In September 2009, a cable snapped during the launch on Xcelerator at Knott's Berry Farm. A 12-year-old boy and his father were sitting in the front seats and were injured by flying debris and the snapped cable.
Notable roller coasters
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| Year | Accomplishment | Roller Coaster | Park | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | First wooden roller coaster built by Intamin | American Eagle (roller coaster) | Six Flags Great America | *At the time it was the fastest, highest and longest roller coaster in the world. It still is the fastest, highest and longest racing roller coaster. |
| 1982 | First Double Roller Coaster built by Intamin | Vertigorama (roller coaster) | Parque de la Ciudad | The fastest, highest and longest steel racing roller coaster in the world at the time, although it never operated. |
| 1985 | First (and only) Spacediver coaster | Flashback (roller coaster) (Originally Z-Force) | Six Flags Magic Mountain and Six Flags Great America and Six Flags Over Georgia | *Opened in '85 at Great America as Z-Force, was relocated to Over Georgia in '88, then was again relocated to Magic Mountain and opened there as Flashback in '92. It was demolished and scrapped in mid-December 2007 after sitting idle at the park since 2003, but removed in 2007. |
| 1997 | First roller coaster to go above 300 ft (90 m). | Tower of Terror | Dreamworld |
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| 1997 | First roller coaster with a structure to reach beyond 400 ft (120 m). | Superman The Escape | Six Flags Magic Mountain |
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| 1997 | First roller coaster(s) to go 100 mph (160 km/h)* | Tower of Terror & Superman The Escape | Dreamworld and Six Flags Magic Mountain |
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| 1998 | First LIM launched inverted roller coaster | Volcano: The Blast Coaster | Kings Dominion |
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| 1998 | First impulse roller coaster | Linear Gale | LaQua | |
| 1998 | First roller coaster to do 8 inversions | Monte Makaya | Terra Encantada | |
| 2000 | First Giga Coaster (over 300 ft) | Millennium Force | Cedar Point |
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| 2000 | First roller coaster to drop 300 ft (90 m). | Millennium Force | Cedar Point |
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| 2000 | First LIM Twisted impulse roller coaster | Steel Venom | Geauga Lake |
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| 2001 | First roller coaster to utilize a LIM launch hill | California Screamin' | Disney's California Adventure |
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| 2002 | First roller coaster to do 10 inversions | Colossus | Thorpe Park |
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| 2002 | First Hydraulic Catapult launch coaster | Xcelerator | Knott's Berry Farm | * Accelerates from 0 - 82 miles per hour, covering 157-feet of launch track in just 2.3 seconds. |
| 2003 | First Strata coaster (over 400 ft) | Top Thrill Dragster | Cedar Point |
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| 2003 | First Intamin water coaster branded "AquaTrax" | Atlantic Adventure | Lotte World |
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| 2004 | First accelerator coaster to feature inversions. | Storm Runner | Hersheypark |
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| 2005 | Current record holder for the tallest roller coaster, due to Ring Racer breaking speed record. | Kingda Ka | Six Flags Great Adventure |
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| 2007 | First Terra Coaster, with Dual LSM launch (launch hill and flat launch) with a 95-degree drop and a terrain hugging layout | Maverick | Cedar Point | |
| 2008 | At 97 degrees, steepest drop out of all Intamin coasters. | Fahrenheit | Hersheypark |
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| 2008 | Current record holder for the steepest wooden coaster in the world, also the highest, fastest, longest roller coaster in South Korea. | T Express | Everland |
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Existing Intamin Roller Coasters
| This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. |
| Name | Model | Park/Country | Year Opened | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantis Adventure | Aqua Trax | Lotte World, South Korea | 2003 | |
| Avalancha | Looping Coaster (Monte Makaya) | Xetulul, Guatemala | 2002 | |
| Avatar Airbender | Half Pipe Coaster (20m) | Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America), United States | 2008 | |
| Balder | Wooden Coaster (Pre-Fab) | Liseberg, Sweden | 2003 | |
| Bobbaan | Bobsled roller coaster | Efteling, The Netherlands | 1985 | |
| California Screamin' | Looping Coaster (Custom) | Disney's California Adventure, United States | 2001 | |
| Cobra | Stand-Up Coaster | La Ronde, Canada | 1995 | |
| Colossos | Wooden Coaster (Pre-Fab) | Heide Park, Germany | 2001 | |
| Colossus | Looping Coaster (Colossus) | Thorpe Park, Great Britain | 2002 | |
| Desert Race | Accelerator Coaster | Heide Park, Germany | 2007 | |
| Disaster Transport | Indoor Bobsled | Cedar Point, United States | 1985 | |
| El Toro | Wooden Coaster (Pre-Fab) | Six Flags Great Adventure, United States | 2006 | |
| Expedition GeForce | Mega Coaster | Holiday Park, Germany | 2001 | |
| Fahrenheit | Vertical Lift Coaster | Hersheypark, United States | 2008 | |
| Flight of the Phoenix | looping coaster (Monte Makaya) | China | 2006 | |
| Furius Baco | Accelerator Coaster | PortAventura, Spain | 2007 | |
| Goliath | Mega Coaster | Walibi World, Netherlands | 2002 | |
| Half Pipe | Half Pipe Coaster (20m) | Don Quijote, Japan | (SBNO) | |
| Half Pipe | Half Pipe Coaster (30m) | Särkänniemi, Finland | 2003 | |
| Half Pipe | Half Pipe Coaster (30m) | Six Flags Elitch Gardens, United States | 2004 | |
| Hydro | River Plunge | Oakwood Theme Park Wales, UK | 2002 | |
| Surf Rider | Water Half Pipe Coaster (30m) | Wet 'n' Wild Water World, Australia | 2007 | |
| Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril | Looping Coaster (Custom) | Disneyland Resort Paris, France | 1993 | |
| Insane | Ball Coaster | Gröna Lund, Sweden | 2009 | |
| Intimidator 305 | Giga Coaster | Kings Dominion, United States | 2010 | |
| iSpeed | LSM Launched Coaster | Mirabilandia, Italy | 2009 | |
| Jet Rescue | Sit Down - Hydraulic | Sea World, Australia | 2008 | |
| Jr. Gemini | Steel Kiddie | Cedar Point, United States | 1979 | |
| Kanonen | Accelerator Coaster | Liseberg, Sweden | 2005 | |
| Kawasemi | Mega-lite Coaster | Tobu Zoo, Japan | 2008 | |
| Kingda Ka | Accelerator Coaster | Six Flags Great Adventure, United States | 2005 | |
| Kirnu | Ball Coaster | Linnanmäki, Finland | 2007 | |
| Millennium Force | Giga Coaster | Cedar Point, United States | 2000 | |
| Mick Doohan's Motocoaster | Accelerator Coaster | Dreamworld, Australia | 2007 | |
| Monte Makaya | Looping Coaster (Monte Makaya) | Terra Encantada, Brazil | 1998 | |
| Maverick | LSM Launched Coaster | Cedar Point, United States | 2007 | |
| Pegasus | Wooden Coaster | Efteling, The Netherlands | 1991 | |
| Piraten | Hyper Coaster | Djurs Sommerland, Denmark | 2008 | |
| Possessed | Impulse Coaster | Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom, United States | 2008 | |
| Raging Spirits | Looping Coaster (Custom) | Tokyo DisneySea, Japan | 2005 | |
| Ride of Steel | Mega Coaster | Darien Lake, United States | 2007 | |
| Rita - Queen of Speed | Accelerator Coaster | Alton Towers, Great Britain | 2005 | |
| Shockwave | Stand-Up Coaster | Drayton Manor, Great Britain | 1994 | |
| Skycar | Accelerator Coaster | Mysterious Island, China | 2005 | |
| Speed Monster | Accelerator Coaster | Tusenfryd, Norway | 2006 | |
| Stealth | Accelerator Coaster | Thorpe Park, Great Britain | 2006 | |
| Storm Runner | Accelerator Coaster | Hersheypark, United States | 2004 | |
| Superman Escape | Accelerator Coaster | Warner Bros. Movie World, Australia | 2005 | |
| Superman - Ride of Steel | Mega Coaster | Various Parks, United States | 1999 | |
| Supersonic Odyssey | Looping Coaster (Custom) | Cosmo's World, Malaysia | 2003 | |
| T Express | Wooden Coaster (Pre-Fab) | Everland, South Korea | 2008 | |
| Tenth Ring Roller Coaster | Looping Coaster (Colossus) | Guangzhou, China | 2006 | |
| The Claw | Gyro Swing | Dreamworld, Australia | 2004 | |
| Thirteen | Unknown | Alton Towers, United Kingdom | 2010 | |
| Thunder Dolphin | Mega Coaster | Tokyo Dome City, Japan | 2003 | |
| Top Thrill Dragster | Accelerator Coaster | Cedar Point, United States | 2003 | |
| Tornado | Inverted Coaster | Särkänniemi, Finland | 2001 | |
| Tornado | Inverted Coaster | Parque de Atracciones de Madrid, Spain | 1999 | |
| Tower of Terror | Reverse Freefall Coaster | Dreamworld, Australia | 1997 | |
| V2: Vertical Velocity | Impulse Coaster | Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, United States | 2001 | |
| Vertical Velocity | Impulse Coaster | Six Flags Great America, United States | 2001 | |
| Vertigorama | Double Rollercoaster | Parque de la Ciudad, Argentina | 1982 SBNO | |
| Vurang | Twist and Turn Coaster | Hopi Hari, Brazil | 1999 | |
| Wicked Twister | Impulse Coaster | Cedar Point, United States | 2002 | |
| Xcelerator | Accelerator Coaster | Knott's Berry Farm, United States | 2002 | |
| Zaturn | Accelerator Coaster | Space World, Japan | 2006 |
References
See also
External links
