Anyone who has spent much time on ski slopes around the world will surely have seen more than a few of them: the ‘Pistenbully’ snowcats made by the Kässbohrer company. Half of all the snowcats in service around the world are made by the all-terrain vehicle manufacturers from Laupheim, between Ulm and Ravensburg.

The big snowfalls of last winter made the pulses race at the Kässbohrer company. Lots of snow means that their ‘Pistenbully’ snowcats are needed round the clock to keep the slopes in shape for the daily invasion of skiers and snowboarders. And it’s not just for the downhill fans: it’s just as important to keep the trails smooth and clear for the cross-country skiers, so that people don’t go off trail and get lost. In the 2004/05 fiscal year, Kässbohrer made a healthy profit of over ten million Euro on a turnover of more than 164 million Euro.

But snowcats are only needed in the winter, so about ten years ago the bosses at Kässbohrer decided to create a vehicle that would give them sales all-year-round. They came up with the perfect complement to the snowcat - the ‘BeachTech’: a tracked vehicle for ‘grooming’ beaches. Beaches need to be kept clean and the sand often needs to be raked and smoothed. The BeachTech 3000 model can process up to 30,000 square meters of beach per hour. The success of Kässbohrer’s BeachTechs means that the company is close to becoming world market leaders in this sector. But the BeachTechs are not only employed keeping the world’s holidaymakers and sun-worshippers happy. In 2002, they also did their bit for the environment: lots of them were brought in to help with the clean-up operation after a tanker ran aground off the Spanish coast.

Kässbohrer has obviously benefited from the enormous tourism boom of recent years and from the pressure on the leisure industry to ‘put on its best face’ for those seeking relaxation and enjoyment. This has meant that more and more attention is being paid to customer service. In Finland, the Pistenbullys are used as ‘taxis’ to ferry skiers to the restaurants. In the Gala skiing area not far from Tokyo, they have entirely replaced the usual ski lifts, leaving the slopes completely clear of obstructions. With powerful engines rated at up to 400 horsepower, the ‘Bullys’ ferry customers around the mountains with ease.

It all started in 1969 in Ulm – but actually with buses. Even then, the Karl Kässbohrer vehicle manufacturing company – Germany’s biggest producer of tour buses and trailers for trucks – was setting the standards for the rest of the world. The international breakthrough for the newly founded third division of the company came with the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo. After that, there was no looking back. Today there are around 15,000 Pistenbullys in operation in more than 50 countries worldwide – 80 of them at the ten research stations in the Antarctic.

Contact:

Kässbohrer Geländefahrzeug AG
Kässbohrerstr. 11
88471 Laupheim      

Telefon: +49 (7392) 9000
http://www.beach-tech.com/de.html