Mont Tremblant Ski Resort

In the Laurentian Mountains of Québec, Doppelmayr Canada relied on a local galvanizer to ensure long-term protection for the steel components powering the ski lift systems at Mont Tremblant, one of North America’s top ski resorts.

The project included high-speed detachable chairlifts, gondolas such as the Télécabine Express, and the Cabriolet pedestrian gondola that links the resort’s bustling base village to the slopes. Each installation required galvanized tower posts, hangers and terminals be designed to endure an alpine environment where heavy snowfall, prolonged moisture, and freeze-thaw cycles are a constant challenge. These conditions create an aggressive corrosive atmosphere, and galvanizing provides a protective zinc coating that metallurgically bonds to the steel, forming a barrier capable of withstanding decades of exposure without degradation.

The scale of the lifts presented significant galvanizing challenges. Tall tower sections and broad structural frames demanded precise handling to ensure uniform zinc coverage on both external and internal surfaces. Many components and closed shapes needed precise venting and draining to guarantee full coating penetration. With thousands of skiers relying on these lifts each day, structural reliability and safety tolerances were uncompromising, and the galvanizing process delivered the quality assurance needed for a project of this magnitude.

By choosing galvanizing over paint, Mont Tremblant and Doppelmayr ensured that the lifts will retain their integrity for decades with minimal maintenance. Paint systems in such a climate can begin to fail within a decade, leading to costly spot repairs, recoating, and unscheduled downtime that disrupts resort operations. Galvanizing, by contrast, can deliver 70 years or more of service life in similar alpine environments, drastically reducing life-cycle costs and extending replacement intervals. In addition to its durability, galvanizing provides an environmentally responsible solution—eliminating the need for repeated recoating, reducing material waste, and delivering fully recyclable steel assemblies at end of life.

Today, Mont Tremblant’s iconic gondolas and chairlifts not only transport tens of thousands of skiers per hour but also stand as a testament to the value of galvanizing in the most demanding conditions.