Caterpillar 247B2 Multi Terrain Loader skis in Dubai
In a country where the outside temperature easily climbs up to 45 degrees Celsius and rarely falls below 20, one of the last things you would expect to see is a ski resort. However, this is what you find in Dubai, UAE, where an incredible 22,500 square meters - equivalent to 3 football fields - are covered with real snow all year round. The indoor resort, also featuring the world's first indoor black slope, is called Ski Dubai.
Altogether 5 runs of varying difficulty are prepared for up to 1,500 skiers a day. The longest run has a vertical drop more than 85 meters and is over 400 meters long. In order to keep the slopes in top shape, durable and safe equipment is a key requirement. This is why Ski Dubai purchased a Caterpillar 247B2 multi terrain loader.
Due to working on steep slopes and slippery conditions, the main concerns of Ski Dubai were machine climbing capabilities, and machine controllability and safety when driving down the slopes. This is why Sky Dubai was sensitive to the 247B2 unique-in-the-industry standard suspension, which uses two independent torsional axles. This significantly increases the ground contact of the track providing a tremendous increase in traction. As a result, the machine can easily work on a 3:1 slope (18.4 degrees).
Also from the operator comfort and safety standpoint the Caterpillar 247B2 was an obvious choice; when driving down the slopes, the operator needs to be able to brace himself with his feet. With machines equipped with foot pedal controls this is not possible. The Cat® 247B2 features simple-to-operate joystick controls that leave the floor completely clutter free. With the intuitive pilot controls, the operator can safely keep the full control of his machine all the time. This drastically increases comfort and safety.
"We chose the Caterpillar machine for a few reasons, first and foremost for its superior traction on the snow allowing us to access all areas, the outstanding safety features and the ease of use. We are very pleased with the machine so far as it makes the job of removing dirty snow a lot quicker and easier for us", says James Pritchard, Senior Patroller (Groomers) from Ski Dubai.
Finally, for maximising the machine uptime, the 247B2 features an open undercarriage quick and easy to maintain on-site, a steel rear idler and a dual face seals metal which provide the best durability and reliability. This is important, as Ski Dubai needs the machine running 7 days a week, with an average of 1500 hours a year. Indeed, the Caterpillar 247B2 multi terrain loader is at work every night from 3 to 4 hours in order to prepare the area for the next day. With the temperature in Ski Dubai between -1 and -2 degrees Celsius, it's certainly one of the few machines working year-round below zero in this country of hot, sandy deserts.