Intamin and Giovanola and B&M

[coloradocoasterguy]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

[Noobitizer]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

 

Giovanola was a the main track fabricator and subcontractor for those guys for a long time before going under. At the last stages of this companies life they built 3 rides, anaconda , Titan and Goliath. Case closed.

[coloradocoasterguy]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

 

Giovanola was a the main track fabricator and subcontractor for those guys for a long time before going under. At the last stages of this companies life they built 3 rides, anaconda , Titan and Goliath. Case closed.

Okay, so that explains why Giovanola track looks like B&M. They were already making the track so that's what they used. But that doesn't explain why the track design didn't stay with Intamin.

[simaticable]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

 

Giovanola was a the main track fabricator and subcontractor for those guys for a long time before going under. At the last stages of this companies life they built 3 rides, anaconda , Titan and Goliath. Case closed.

Okay, so that explains why Giovanola track looks like B&M. They were already making the track so that's what they used. But that doesn't explain why the track design didn't stay with Intamin.

It was because Intamin never owned the track design. The people behind B&M worked for Giovanola actually, so they kept the track design not Intamin. Intamin only got the track design when they built their stand ups and Flashback, but that was when Giovanola was the subcontractor.

[coloradocoasterguy]

/\ Intamin claims B&M got their start there.

[simaticable]

Edit: never mind

[Jcoaster]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

 

Giovanola was a the main track fabricator and subcontractor for those guys for a long time before going under. At the last stages of this companies life they built 3 rides, anaconda , Titan and Goliath. Case closed.

 

Anaconda looks awesome, I really would love to take a spin on that thing.

[Ed Farmer]

Anaconda looks awesome, I really would love to take a spin on that thing.

It looks like they were able to take Batman The Ride and make it more intense. It's right at the top of my coaster bucket list.

[LiftThrill]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

[coloradocoasterguy]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

Granted I haven't been in years but I like Goliath, my only gripe is the MCBR and it's to short.

[PhantomPoster32]

Dang I clicked the link expecting a joke where the next line was

 

"...walked into a bar and..."

[LiftThrill]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

Granted I haven't been in years but I like Goliath, my only gripe is the MCBR and it's to short.

Maybe Goliath is better than Titan. Titan is legitimately my least favorite coaster. Can't stand the thing.

[coasterbill]

No. Goliath is 235 feet full of who gives a f**k?

[LiftThrill]

No. Goliath is 235 feet full of who gives a f**k?

 

Now imagine that, but with another helix.

[Henry M]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

I have been on one Giovanola and it was great. I loved it and it was super fun. It was Shockwave at Drayton Manor.

[LiftThrill]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

I have been on one Giovanola and it was great. I loved it and it was super fun. It was Shockwave at Drayton Manor.

That's actually an Intamin.

[Jcoaster]

Anaconda looks awesome, I really would love to take a spin on that thing.

It looks like they were able to take Batman The Ride and make it more intense. It's right at the top of my coaster bucket list.

 

My thoughts exactly.

[Henry M]

Hopefully it's better than the other Giovanolas because those are garbage imo

I have been on one Giovanola and it was great. I loved it and it was super fun. It was Shockwave at Drayton Manor.

That's actually an Intamin.

Actually they are Giovanolas. I agree it is confusing, but they count as 'old school' Gio's.

[DirkFunk]

The track design of older Intamin coasters like Flashback (Z-Force) and Shockwave and as well as that of the three coasters Giovanola built all look like modern B&M track. I know the "B" and "M" behind B&M used to work for Intamin but how were they able to take that track design with them? And how the heck did Giovanola get a hold of it?

 

Intamin's primary purpose in the industry (historically) is that of a broker. They had sales staff active in the US who could sell for European firms for whom it would have been cost prohibitive to sell stuff outside the immediate geographical area. They did it for lots of companies - Schwarzkopf, Von Roll, Willy Bühler - and that was still a part of their business model years later. As such, they didn't necessarily own any of these technologies, and when those companies would split or go off on their own to sell them, that was that.

[coasterbill]

Okay. I'm going to go off topic but you said "Von Roll" and to the surprise of absolutely nobody it spiked my interest.

 

I actually never knew this but it explains a few things I had been wondering about. One of which is why Space Spiral at Cedar Point was built by Willy Bühler Space Towers and Von Roll (the former was purchased by Von Roll later on) and looks identical down to the walkways that surround it to Spirale at La Ronde but I often see that ride credited to Intamin.

 

What I'm wondering though is why did they need Intamin to broker their rides for them after they (I'm assuming) sold it directly to Cedar Point? Did that have something to do with the Willy Bühler Space Towers merger?

[DirkFunk]

Okay. I'm going to go off topic but you said "Von Roll" and to the surprise of absolutely nobody it spiked my interest.

 

I actually never knew this but it explains a few things I had been wondering about. One of which is why Space Spiral at Cedar Point was built by Willy Bühler Space Towers and Von Roll (the former was purchased by Von Roll later on) and looks identical down to the walkways that surround it to Spirale at La Ronde but I often see that ride credited to Intamin.

 

What I'm wondering though is why did they need Intamin to broker their rides for them after they (I'm assuming) sold it directly to Cedar Point? Did that have something to do with the Willy Bühler Space Towers merger?

 

They probably did buy it from Intamin. In this case, someone probably made note that it wasn't actually an Intamin built ride (hell, practically nothing in this era was) and who actually built it and it got recorded. But all those Intamin towers? Yeah. They were all built by Willy Bühler Space Towers/Von Roll.

[coloradocoasterguy]

Nor quoting anybody in particular here but is this why most of the Intamin, Mack, Gerstlauer, and Zierer coasters built in the last decade or so all have such similar looking track styles? Someone else is building the track for these companies?

[DirkFunk]

Nor quoting anybody in particular here but is this why most of the Intamin, Mack, Gerstlauer, and Zierer coasters built in the last decade or so all have such similar looking track styles? Someone else is building the track for these companies?

 

Intamin's steel coaster track and vehicles are made by Stakotra, a Slovakian company. My understanding (which may be missing some elements) is that they acquired a portion of Intamin quite some time ago and thus have operated as Intamin's sole supplier for those fields. Zierer, Gerstlauer, Huss (prior to the bankruptcy) and Maurer Sohne also have rides fabricated by Stakotra, though not necessarily exclusively as I understand it. Intermountain Lift in Utah does the fabrication for Premier and a few of the other US firms.

 

Think of it like this from now on: If you go to a big condo development, do you think the developer designs the building? Nah, he pays architects for that. Does he construct the building? Nah, he pays a construction company for that. The developer doesn't source the materials himself, they don't build the appliances inside the condos, they probably don't pay to have custom handles and switches and stuff and instead someone goes through catalogs and on searches to find materials. Theme park rides are no different at any - and I mean ANY - park. Even the almighty Disney had to outsource the actual design and fabrication of all their rides, mostly to Arrow (though most "disney historians" give Arrow zero credit), and they still do even now.

[coloradocoasterguy]

Nor quoting anybody in particular here but is this why most of the Intamin, Mack, Gerstlauer, and Zierer coasters built in the last decade or so all have such similar looking track styles? Someone else is building the track for these companies?

 

Intamin's steel coaster track and vehicles are made by Stakotra, a Slovakian company. My understanding (which may be missing some elements) is that they acquired a portion of Intamin quite some time ago and thus have operated as Intamin's sole supplier for those fields. Zierer, Gerstlauer, Huss (prior to the bankruptcy) and Maurer Sohne also have rides fabricated by Stakotra, though not necessarily exclusively as I understand it. Intermountain Lift in Utah does the fabrication for Premier and a few of the other US firms.

 

Think of it like this from now on: If you go to a big condo development, do you think the developer designs the building? Nah, he pays architects for that. Does he construct the building? Nah, he pays a construction company for that. The developer doesn't source the materials himself, they don't build the appliances inside the condos, they probably don't pay to have custom handles and switches and stuff and instead someone goes through catalogs and on searches to find materials. Theme park rides are no different at any - and I mean ANY - park. Even the almighty Disney had to outsource the actual design and fabrication of all their rides, mostly to Arrow (though most "disney historians" give Arrow zero credit), and they still do even now.

Disney's new coasters are all Vekoma.

 

But I get that most companies don't actually build their own rides. I mean RMC built all of Silverwood's coasters without designing any of them (Aftershock and Corkscrew just had to be reassembled). That's probably why Tremors and Timber Terror are still so good despite being designed by crappy ass CCI. It's also where RMC cut their teeth on wooden coasters.

 

B&M is just different then because they actually invented that track whereas Intamin just uses the track developed by Stakora which the other companies also use.

[coasterbill]

Nor quoting anybody in particular here but is this why most of the Intamin, Mack, Gerstlauer, and Zierer coasters built in the last decade or so all have such similar looking track styles? Someone else is building the track for these companies?

 

Intamin's steel coaster track and vehicles are made by Stakotra, a Slovakian company. My understanding (which may be missing some elements) is that they acquired a portion of Intamin quite some time ago and thus have operated as Intamin's sole supplier for those fields. Zierer, Gerstlauer, Huss (prior to the bankruptcy) and Maurer Sohne also have rides fabricated by Stakotra, though not necessarily exclusively as I understand it. Intermountain Lift in Utah does the fabrication for Premier and a few of the other US firms.

 

Think of it like this from now on: If you go to a big condo development, do you think the developer designs the building? Nah, he pays architects for that. Does he construct the building? Nah, he pays a construction company for that. The developer doesn't source the materials himself, they don't build the appliances inside the condos, they probably don't pay to have custom handles and switches and stuff and instead someone goes through catalogs and on searches to find materials. Theme park rides are no different at any - and I mean ANY - park. Even the almighty Disney had to outsource the actual design and fabrication of all their rides, mostly to Arrow (though most "disney historians" give Arrow zero credit), and they still do even now.

Disney's new coasters are all Vekoma.

 

We're all aware of this. He's referring to Disney's early years. Ed Morgan and Karl Bacon from Arrow had their hands in tons of Disney's most iconic attractions. They were interviewed at one point by Robert Reynolds and it was published in a book called Roller Coasters, Flumes and Flying Saucers. You know I'm not one to dork out too much but I highly recommend giving it a read.