HTI Opens New Production Center In Utah
From cable cars in winter operation to new urban mobility solutions: the South Tyrolean HTI Group is expanding its activities in North America with the opening of a new production center in Utah
After just ten months of construction, the HTI Group has now opened its new and largest production center in North America in the state of Utah. A 12,000 square meter plant was built on a total area of 20 hectares, which, in addition to modernizing and increasing production capacity, also sets new standards in terms of sustainability. The investment of 30 million dollars is also a strong signal to the growing overseas market. "With the new location, we are responding proactively to the growing demands of the winter business and new trends in urban traffic," says Daren Cole, CEO of Leitner Poma of America .
With the new plant, the HTI Group is doubling the capacity of its production centers and thus consolidating its business in North America, which already accounts for 30 percent (over 400 million euros) of the group's turnover. In addition to the historic headquarters in Grand Junction, Colorado, with production areas and offices covering over 9,000 square meters, Leitner Poma of America (LPOA) - a company of the HTI Group specializing in the cable car sector - will now produce on an additional 20 hectares in Tooele, Utah. The 12,000 square meter campus of the latest and most sustainable generation makes it possible to meet the growing demands of the US and Canadian market in the winter sports and urban cable car segment. While the company can look back on a record season overseas for alpine cable cars for the second year in a row, the company is also making a strong statement in urban transport systems with the combined cable car-bus system ConnX, recently presented at the World Congress of Cable Cars in Vancouver.
After just ten months of construction, the EUR 30 million plant is now ready for its 120 employees. The new center will serve as the headquarters and sole production base for Skytrac, a subsidiary specializing in the manufacture of fixed-grip cable cars . The site will also house part of the production of cable car components, which is currently carried out at Leitner Poma of America 's headquarters in Colorado. In addition, the Tooele plant will also serve as a sales and service center for Prinoth (snow groomers and tracked utility vehicles) and for the snowmaking system manufacturer Demaclenko . Prinoth already has a strong presence in North America with its production halls in Granby, Canada, where snow groomers and tracked utility vehicles are manufactured. The headquarters of Jarraff - a company specializing in the production of telescopic machines for the maintenance of trees and plants along roads and railway lines - in Minnesota is also part of the HTI Group's North American production network.
"We are proud to celebrate the opening of our largest production facility in the United States after almost a year of construction," said Daren Cole, President and CEO of Leitner Poma of America. "With the birth of this new location and thanks to the high speed of construction, we now have a state-of-the-art production facility in the USA and can therefore act professionally, quickly and reliably in view of the rapid growth of the tourism industry and the great interest of cities in researching new alternative forms of sustainable transport." Thanks to the support of the Economic Development Agency, the expansion in Utah was implemented efficiently and thus also met the increased trend towards local production due to changing political conditions. "The new production hall and office building also represent a significant investment for the North American market, our industry and our competent team," said Cole.
Modern campus structure with possibility of expansion
The new campus in Tooele, just over 50 kilometers from Utah's capital Salt Lake City, is now LPOA's largest headquarters in the United States and also offers the possibility of further expansion of capacities in the future. This location is also favored by its close proximity to the University of Utah and Tooele Technical College - two institutions with which the first important collaborations have already been initiated.
Focus on comprehensive sustainability – 100 percent green energy from wind power
The production hall was designed and built with great attention to ecological sustainability. In addition to the upcoming installation of solar panels, a powerful wind turbine from the HTI company Leitwind with a total output of 250 kilowatts will soon be erected next to the building. The wind turbine helps reduce the carbon footprint and enables climate-friendly energy generation - in the future, the 50-meter-high system will cover up to 100 percent of the energy needs of the new production facility.
The comparatively small dimensions and the quiet DirectDrive generator make the Leitwind system an ideal solution for companies and communities that want to become energy self-sufficient in a clean and economical way. Tooele's wind turbine could also be a symbol of the future prospects of the new production site: If market demand for wind turbines in North America continues to develop as expected, turbines could soon also be produced at the Utah plant.
However, HTI's development in the United States is also progressing steadily beyond these potentials: LPOA is also considering expanding its historic 9,000 square meter headquarters in Grand Junction, Colorado, where it recently acquired two hectares of land next to the production unit.
