Intamin: what a funny word. It is actually a compound made using the words “International Amusement Installations.” It is doubtful that many outside of the amusement industry know that Intamin is one of the foremost ride manufacturers in the world, but this success did not happen overnight. Intamin began as a Swiss flat ride company in 1967. They spent their early years producing observation towers, flume rides, Ferris wheels, and drop towers. Most notably, Intamin produced the first Free Fall ride, installed at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 1982. This was just the beginning of a decades-long, record-breaking history. While flat rides can be impressive and innovative, Intamin truly shines when it comes to their roller coasters.

Intamin built their first roller coaster, originally known as Junior Gemini, at Cedar Point in 1979. Throughout this historical overview, Cedar Point will be revisited many times. By 1994, Intamin already had their sights set on breaking records. This year brought the world’s first inverted roller coaster, the first roller coaster over 100 mph, and the first coaster with ten inversions. The next major milestone came in 2002 with Cedar Point’s top thrill dragster. This incredible coaster was the tallest and fastest upon opening, reaching a height of 420 feet and a speed of 120 mph. In fact, these records have only been broken by Intamin themselves with Kingda Ka (456 ft, 128 mph) in 2005, and Formula Rossa (149.1 mph) in 2010. In addition to their standing records, the company invented the concepts of the mega and giga coasters. They also developed the technology that revolutionized the launch roller coaster.

Intamin introduced the now-famous magnetic propulsion and braking systems as well as the hydraulic launch. The invention of the magnetic launch came from a desire to move at incredible speed without having to build a massive lift hill and rendering that space useless. For example, a speed of 100 mph using traditional lift hills would require a drop height of 350 ft. Not all parks have the land required to build a hill that big, and many do not want to utilize that land for one specific project. So, how do we propel a train down a track very quickly without a huge hill? First, there was the linear induction motor (LIM), which could push a train to 55 mph in four seconds using powerful electromagnetic attraction. This was fine for a while, but fans expressed a desire to go faster. Thanks to Intamin’s research, the linear synchonous model (LSM) was created. Instead of just pushing the car, the synchonous system programs the magnetic plates to attract the train before it passes over, and then switch to repulsion once the train has passed, applyingdouble the force and resulting in a greater sustainable speed. This same method utilized in reverse to create a smooth and efficient magnetic braking system. When the limits of LSM were reached, Intamin had another answer for coaster fanatics: the hydraulic launch system. This system utilizes a catch car and hydraulic tanks to create a catapult-like system in which the train is pulled down the track as the compressed fluid power is used to wind the string of the catch car at an extremely rapid rate. This system was used in Formula Rossa at Ferrari World, a ride which achieves a speed of 149 mph in 4.5 seconds. A perk of the hydraulic launch system over LIM or LSM is that it reaches a lower peak power.

So as for the future, Intamin is going to continue pushing the limit as to what the entertainment world can offer in terms of thrills. In 2011, a new competitor, Rocky Mountain Construction, emerged to keep challenging Intamin and inspire them to reach new heights. In 2021, a new ride coming to Walibi Belgium will break a record in a new category: airtime. Intamin will be taking all the best of their own elements and creating one spectacular ride with 15 airtime moments. It will be an additon to Intamin’s mega coaster family. Additionally, a new ride built for Parc Asterix in France will have four separate launches: the most of any ride on earth. It will also feature a more than vertical 101 degree drop. This is not a record breaker, but it is still quite impressive . Without a doubt, Intamin has a bright and adventurous future ahead of them, and many more thrills await with every project.