Katharina Schmitz To Replace Mark Bee As President Of Doppelmayr USA

After 30 years in the ropeway industry, Mark Bee has announced he will retire on March 31, 2020.  Mark joined Von Roll Tramways in 1989 and moved to Doppelmayr USA after Von Roll was acquired by Doppelmayr in 1996. Mark serves as President of Doppelmayr USA and is a member of the board of directors of all Doppelmayr entities in North America. 

Over his 30-year career, Mark was involved with over 400 new ropeway installations throughout North America, and was instrumental in integrating three companies when Doppelmayr USA, Garaventa/CTEC and Von Roll Tramways merged in 2002.  After his retirement Mark will continue to serve on the board of directors of Doppelmayr’s North American entities.  Mark said “It has been an honor and a privilege to be part of the Doppelmayr organization, and to work in the ski industry. I could not have imagined a better career or a better company to work for.”   

Katharina Schmitz, a native of Austria, moved to the United States in 2005 and has worked in the automotive sector for 3 years and in the aerospace sector for 10 years.  Katharina has degrees in industrial engineering and international business and has spent most of her career in project management functions.  Katharina joined Doppelmayr USA in 2018 as Vice President Project Management. 

Earlier this year she was promoted to Vice President of Operations where she was responsible for production, logistics and construction activities.   Mark said “When we hired Katharina last year, I thought she might be overqualified for the position we were trying to fill, and as it turns out, she was.  She immediately earned the respect of her co-workers with her team-oriented approach to problem solving, and her ability to quickly learn our business.”  Mark added “Over the last three years we’ve made several strategic staff additions to prepare Doppelmayr for the future.  We’ve never had a stronger staff, and I am extremely impressed with the energy, skill and enthusiasm of our employees.  It was time for me to get out of the way and let younger people take over the responsibility to lead Doppelmayr into the future.  I am confident I am leaving the company in extremely capable hands.”

Katharina said “I first contacted Mark in 2017 about possible employment opportunities with Doppelmayr.  As a native Austrian and avid skier, I was well aware of the Doppelmayr name and I was ready for a career change.  When I was offered a position with Doppelmayr, I jumped. Since joining Doppelmayr I have been impressed with the dedication and talent of the employees, and the continuous focus on solving problems for our customers.  I will work very hard to continue to advance the capabilities of our team to make sure we are prepared to provide the best products and services to our many loyal customers who have placed a great deal of trust in our organization.”

When asked what he plans to do on the first day of his retirement, Mark said “I’m a planner, on day one I will plan the activities for day two…” Doppelmayr USA, Inc. is a subsidiary of the Doppelmayr Garaventa Group, a family owned company headquartered in Wolfurt, Austria. 

As quality, technology and world market leader in ropeway engineering, Doppelmayr/Garaventa operates production plants as well as sales and service centers in over 40 countries worldwide. To date, the Group has built more than 15,000 installations for customers in over 95 nations.