Zeppelin provides tropical maintenance

Theme park Tropical Islands - home to Germany’s highest water slide - is renting a hybrid boom from Zeppelin Rental for a year to carry out regular maintenance.

Since the theme part is based in a former airship hangar, maintaining the building requires a great deal of effort. Parts of the structure, such as bolts or clamps, as well as lamps and radiators, must be replaced regularly, while the roof and special ETFE membrane on the southern end need to be cleaned. About 100 people at Tropical Islands are employed in this field, including industrial climbers. After all, with a hall measuring 107m in height, a great many tasks are no longer possible using conventional powered access equipment, according to Zeppelin Rental.

For working at lower heights, Tropical Islands has rented a 28 m working height Niftylift HR28HY telescopic boom from

Zeppelin Rental’s location in Schenkendorf. The main advantage of this boom is its hybrid drive, says Zeppelin, which enables emission-free battery operation of the platform inside the theme park. If it is to be used outdoors, the operator selects the diesel engine as the drive type, which can rely on support from the electric motor at times of particularly high demand. This results in fuel savings, meaning that even outdoor work can be carried out easily and in an environmentally friendly manner.

The theme park needs this rental technology for a range of tasks, including the maintenance and repair of streetlamps in parking areas, arborist work, for cleaning the inside and outside of windows and facades or for renovating the hangar. The work involved is varied and performed by several departments, such as building services, cleaning, building management or project development.

The reasoning behind Tropical Islands’ decision to rent rather than purchase powered access technology can be summarised in just two words: planning and flexibility. For example, as maintenance is already included in the rental price, the company does not have to worry about any surprises leading to unforeseen costs. In addition, rental is the best solution if the requirements are difficult to determine. If, for example, a larger platform is needed when the rental period ends, switching to a device with a greater working height is quick and easy.

Tropical Islands is located approximately 60km south of Berlin. A new outdoor area spanning 35000 square meters will be opening soon, with two pools and the longest whitewater river in Germany.