ww engineers | surveyors | planners Proud to be supporting Ruapehu Alpine Lifts Cheal − Meeting the challenges From concept to successful delivery of Ruapehu Alpine Lifts’ (RAL) ambitious Sky Waka, Cheal’s Surveying team delivered professional expertise and a collaborative working style that is a perfect showcase of their craft. Located on Mount Ruapehu’s Whakapapa Ski ield, the Sky Waka project replaced two small lifts with a state of the art 10-seater gondola built by Italian company Leitner. RAL’s vision was to build the longest gondola lift in the country that led to the beautifully appointed chalet 2000metres above sea level, providing year-round enjoyment. Cheal’s relationship with RAL commenced in the ‘90s but work on this project began in 2010 when they were engaged to identify potential alignments to replace the existing lifts, using 3Dmodeling and other surveying techniques. Eleven di erent scenarios were identi ied and stress tested before a preferred option was settled on and work commenced with Leitner, who were responsible for building the gondola and towers. “We worked collaboratively with RAL and Leitner to obtain the necessary planning consents with the Ruapehu Regional Council, get works approval from the Department of Conservation, and liaise with local iwi and hapu who have a stakeholder interest in the mountain,” says Cheal’s Survey TeamManager Matt Ryder. A signi icant piece of work, Cheal prepared consent applications, attended hearings, and created 3Dmodels and renders to provide a visual presentation of the gondola’s impact on the landscape. Once consent was obtained, Cheal was engaged by Leitner to provide all surveying setout services. “That work started the day after the ski- ield closed in October 2018, digging through ive metres of snow so that we could put stakes in the ground.” The project presented signi icant logistical challenges in terms of access for both surveying equipment and heavy construction materials, with access limited to the existing chairlift, a helicopter or walking. “Over the 1.8 kilometres of the lift you rise just over 400metres in vertical elevation,” explains Matt. “Every month of the year apart from February we had snow. One morning we got up there and the wind chill was -20 degrees. We had ice and snow to deal with. The sheer ruggedness of the conditions tested our endurance and the ability to ensure we could undertake the appropriate survey work. We took the technical data and converted that for practical use by the construction team.” The project was completed in May of 2019, just in time for the ski season. Matt re lects that Cheal’s involvement with the project over a ten-year period provided it with a valuable broad overview, enabling Cheal to be a proactive and collaborative project participant. “One of the mantras on site was ‘one team one dream’ and we were a cog in that team. We were able to be across all team members from the people at the top to those swinging the hammers.” Founded in Taupo eighty years ago by land surveyor Laurie Cheal, the business remains a locally owned, multi-disciplinary consultancy company, o ering expertise across the ields of Civil, Structural and Geotechnical Engineering, Surveying, Resource Management Planning and Terrestrial and Metrology Grade Laser Scanning. With o ices in Rotorua, Taupo, Hamilton, Napier, Taumarunui and Ohakune, the company services the entire Central North Island.
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