Managing Snow
Depth Measurement
Finding the best way to take the guesswork
out of snow management
By Pat Rediger
For decades at many ski resorts and ski areas, snow
depth has been recorded and monitored via a yard
stick or some other rudimentary device staked into
the ground prior to the first snowfall of the season. Al-though
this has served as a decent estimate for guests, tech-nologies
have now entered the market that are taking the
guesswork out of snow measurements, leading to improved
business operations and enhanced safety.
Austria-based Sommer Messtechnik is one of the compa-nies
that is a leader in this area. It develops and sells sensors
and environmental monitoring equipment including system
solutions for data recording, data transmission and analysis
of the captured data. Company CEO Christoph Sommer says
snow depth management has an effect on a company’s bot-tom
line since it impacts grooming practices, which can help
a resort stay open as long as possible. Proper snow depth
management is also instrumental in determining the chanc-es
for an avalanche.
“Snow depth is needed to decide when and how slopes can
be groomed,” he said. “Specifically, the ‘when’ is, of course,
an important one. Skiing areas want to open the slopes as
soon as possible to earn money. The second one is safety,
12 September 2020 | snowopsmag.com
/snowopsmag.com
