IoT for Smart Ski Hills

Parametric and TEKTELIC Partner to Provide an IoT Solution to Collect Valuable Ski Resort Utilization Analytics

The emergence of IoT technologies is making it easier for businesses to track and monitor the presence and movement of their customers and clients in real-time. This information can then be leveraged to visualize and analyze patterns and trends in their client’s behaviors which can, in turn, be utilized to provide a better consumer experience.

The ski-tourism industry is taking advantage of the Smart City trend, by deploying solutions to track and monitor skier behaviors and patterns while they are on the slopes. This information is then utilized to provide customers with a better, safer skiing experience, and gives ski resorts the ability to increase operational efficiencies, reduce unneeded costs, analyze the effectiveness of marketing and promotional campaigns, and better plan future infrastructure projects.

Smart Ski Solution

Swiss-based company Parametric is driving innovation in the Smart Ski Resort space by providing a radar-based counting system that is deployed on ski resorts to collect valuable information about the spatial distribution of skiers. This solution tackles the privacy concerns commonly associated with these types of applications by eliminating cameras and using radar-based counting only.

Parametric deploys rugged radar people counters strategically across their customer’s ski resorts to continuously capture data about skier patterns and behaviors. These counters are designed for deployment in all weather conditions from sunshine to blizzards, and everything in between. Included in Parametric’s portfolio are solar power devices that come with industry-leading solar power banks which heat up the cells prior to charging. This accommodates operability in temperatures down to -30°C, an ideal benefit for the Smart Ski Resort market.  The robust counters transmit the collected data into the network wirelessly over LoRaWAN®. Parametric’s clients leverage the information being collected for various purposes including:

• Monitor and analyze hill utilization trends and patterns throughout the season
• Benchmark and analyze utilization during special events.
• Verify and analyze the effectiveness of promotional and marketing strategies
• Provide an enhanced experience for skiers
• Take a proactive approach in strategically scheduling ski hill staff

TEKTELIC supports this initiative by providing the scalable and reliable KONA Micro Gateway to receive the data being transmitted by Parametric’s counters. The KONA Micro was selected by Parametric due to its long-range coverage capabilities as IoT gateways are strategically deployed indoors in nearby maintenance and worker sheds, and are still capable of providing coverage to all areas of the ski hill. The KONA Micro gateway also provides reliable “Always On” connectivity thanks to its integrated battery backup, keeping Parametric and its clientS’ minds at ease that data will continue to be collected even in the event of a power outage. The KONA Micro gateway is designed to help customers achieve the lowest Total Cost of Ownership with Carrier Grade performance and unprecedented scalability.

Reference Project – Stubaier-Glestcher

Parametric and TEKTELIC have successfully collaborated to deploy the LoRaWAN® network skier counter solution at the Stubaier-Gletscher (Stubai Glacier) ski resort in Austria. The data being collected by the End-to-End skier counter solution is utilized by the resort to make smart operational decisions and is displayed publicly on their grounds to provide customers with enhanced visibility into live ski hill conditions and closures, ski run occupancy, and crowds. This high level of customer service is valued by the Stubai Glacier customers and keeps the skiers coming back again and again!

To learn more about Parametric IoT solutions please visit the website.

To learn more about TEKTELIC’s complete End-to-End IoT solutions, please contact info@tektelic.com