South Korea, with more than 50 million inhabitants, is a powerhouse of Asia’s economy. POMA and South Korea’s story began almost 40 years ago, when the first ropeways were installed to accompany the development of the ski resorts. The first POMA surface lift was installed in Yongpyong, not only the first but also the largest ski resort in South Korea, created in 1975. Since then, more than 60 POMA lifts have been set up in the Korean ski areas.
This market is now relatively stable, after the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, which contributed significantly to the structuring of the mountain landscape. Later, the market reached a turning point in tourism with projects popping up along the Yellow Sea, the Sea of Japan to the east and the Korea Strait in the south, which surrounds 90% of the country. The many cities and metropolises compete with imagination to attract tourists to these beautiful, very rugged coasts, scattered with many islands and popular beaches.

The tourist project inaugurated on 6 September connects the city of Mokpo to the island of Gohado. The link is more than 3 km long and passes through the famous Yudalsan Sculpture Park, where you will find Gatbawi Rock, a site popular with Koreans and international tourists alike. The trip, aboard one of the 55 glass gondolas, is accessible to people with reduced mobility to offer all travellers an unrestricted view of the city, the archipelago and the ocean at an unprecedented and impressive height of almost 150 m at its highest peak, from the highest cement tower ever made in the world.

Another record held by the Mokpo gondola lift: its gondolas fly over the ocean for 1.2 km, making it the longest rope span between two towers in the world for a single-rope device!

The middle station has an angle of 68°. It allows the gondola lift, once the stretch of water has been crossed, to reach the city of Mokpo by flying over Dalseong Park, the 12 monumental sculptures of Yudalsan, the sanctuaries and the numerous hiking paths on this mountain, while preserving this unique site.

Jean Pomagalski, born in 1905 in Poland, arrived in France with his family at the age of two. Fleeing Polish repression, Jean Pomagalski’s family found refuge in the Grenoble region, where his father quickly found a job in industry, which was booming during this period.
Jean Pomagalski adapted perfectly to his life in France, so much so that he chose French nationality. He was an exemplary student at “Vox”, the Vaucanson vocational school in Grenoble, in the “Building” section.

The first company, the first ropeway transport systems

In the 1920s, he created his own masonry company, “Entreprise Générale de Travaux Jean Pomagalski” and carried out the structural works for buildings in Isère.
An inventor at heart, he created his first ropeway in 1927 on one of his construction sites. Long before transporting skiers to the top of the slopes, this first aerial conveyor was used to transport materials more easily to the site of a hard-to-reach chalet in Saint-Hilaire-du-Touvet (France).

The creation of POMA

Passionate about skiing, Jean Pomagalski designed a new way of operating a “ski lift”.
In February 1934, after several years of research and testing, the first surface lift with a tow rod was installed in Alpe d’Huez (France), on the slopes of Eclose. It didn't look anything at all like today’s surface lifts! It was made using telegraph poles, an old truck deck and a used Ford engine. A system that looked wobbly but which nevertheless worked, marking an important milestone in the world of ropeways.

Jean Pomagalski worked to make the tow rods detachable so that they could be stored in the station and made available on request. In 1944, after several years and several stages of improvement, the engineer developed the bushing fastener, based on the principle of an elongated ring locked in line by lever effect. He then filed the patent “Improvements to traction or ropeway systems using endless cable”. This efficient system became popular and is still used today on most surface lifts with detachable tow rods.
Following the success of his invention, Pomagalski refocused the activity of his public works company on the assembly and marketing of his fixed and detachable surface lifts.
Faced with growing demand, on 11 December 1947, he created the public limited company Pomagalski, named after himself (which would become POMA in 2014).

The first chairlifts

In 1955, he embarked on the creation of a new, rather unusual system: a single-seat chairlift that could take skiers to the top of the Vioz slope, on the Planpraz plateau in Chamonix (France). Until the late 1970s, this system was the only way to access the Altitude 2000 restaurant from the Planpraz cable car station.
With the help of the army, two test chairlifts were installed in Les Arcs (in Savoie) before Pomagalski delivered his first two-seater chairlifts for the general public in Chamonix in 1960 at the Bossons Glacier.

The first gondola lift

Driven by innovation, he installed the first gondola lift in Val d’Isère (France) six years later, in collaboration with SIGMA Plastics, a manufacturer of polyester cabins (now a subsidiary of the Group). This first version of the gondola lift opened by hand. 50 years later, the Daille became the first gondola lift to be fitted with Symphony cabins in France during its renovation. It was not until a year later, in 1967, that POMA unveiled its first automatic gondola lifts in Les Menuires, in Savoie (France).

Pomagalski did not stop with the conquest of the French peaks. His first inventions quickly generated interest around the world, and many other countries began to order ropeway transport systems.
In the 1960s, Pomagalski SA was the leading supplier of surface lifts and chairlifts in Europe and generated 82% of its turnover through exports: United States, Canada, Middle East, North Africa, but also New Zealand, Australia and South America were turning to POMA inventions.

His business was only at the start of its rise to prominence when Jean Pomagalski passed away on 8 July 8 1969 at Grenoble hospital, in a room with, at his request, a view of the Bastille de Grenoble and its aerial ropeway. A few years later, in 1976, the ropeway was renovated by POMA.

Jean Pomagalski left the reins of his company to Gaston Cathiard, an athlete and mountain lover, just like him. As the new face of POMA, the latter continued its development by following the same vision as its founder: an innovative company that works for the benefit of users and remains resolutely international. In 1977, POMA became the world leader in ropeway transport with 80 gondola lifts, 300 chairlifts and 3,500 surface lifts installed in 39 countries. In 1980, he was succeeded by his son Jean-Pierre Cathiard.

Gérald Maillot, president of CINOR, laid the foundation stone in the presence of the mayor of Saint-Denis, Gilbert Annette, and the president of the Region, Didier Robert.

With a length of 2.68 kilometers, the gondola lift will link the Chaudron district, located east of downtown Saint-Denis, to the neighborhood of Bois de Nèfles north of the city via the Moufia district. A 14-minute trip with 3 intermediate stations.
The 46 cabins with 10 seats will ensure a capacity of 1,200 people per hour and per direction. Perfectly integrated into the existing public transport network, the gondola lift will be in intermodality with the future Guided Regional Transportation Network (RRTG) project and with the Integrated Modern Transport Network (RITMO) project supported by the City.

Developed in perfect consultation with the local population and elected officials, the ropeway received a strong support during public consultations. 84.9% of those surveyed said the project was useful and 74.9% said they would use the cable car to work and play.

The project will be completed by 2021. The budget of the operation amounts to 54 million euros, including 11 million euros spent on operation and maintenance for 5 years.

In Saint-Denis of Reunion already a second line is under study, to accompany the construction of a tramway and thus complete the public transport offer of the city. The President of CINOR also speaks of a global network of 5 lines for the city of Saint-Denis.

It is strategically positioned on Bluewaters (Meraas' sophisticated island destination in Dubai, United Arab Emirates) at 500 meters (1,600 ft) off “The Beach”, the laid-back beachfront destination by Meraas, located opposite JBR and near Dubai Marina which includes entertainment and retail zones. The Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCI) subcontract work scope incorporates the provision of 48 high tech capsules for Ain Dubai. Project management, engineering and procurement work has already commenced.

For many years POMA has been chosen to provide capsules for observation wheel projects, such as the London Eye in London or the High Roller in Las Vegas, delivering engineering expertise and strong project execution.

This latest award further demonstrates the ability of the company to innovate and design the right engineering solutions that ensures a safe, effective and cost-efficient project delivery. The world's tallest observation wheel will peak at 250 meters (doubling London Eye’s height) and will offer a tremendous panoramic view on the Dubai landscapes.