Bringing Team Service to Chicopee Ski & Summer Resort

For more than 90 years, Chicopee Ski & Summer Resort has been delighting residents and visitors across southern Ontario and beyond. Located outside Kitchener, Ont., Chicopee has something for everyone at any skill level, whether that is alpine skiing, snowboarding or winter tubing.

Chicopee features a 200-foot (61 meters) vertical drop and 14 runs, serviced by six lifts, including two carpet lifts, two double and two triple chairs. Its extensive lighting system illuminates the trails and snow sport enthusiasts can enjoy their skiing both day and night.

In 2023, Chicopee began the process of improving their patrons’ experience on the slopes and contacted Samuele Piana, president of fortynine/51 – the official North American distributor of Liski racing and safety products – to discuss replacing and upgrading its existing and aging carpet lifts, as well as adding a third.

To achieve this, Chicopee partnered with Team Service Carpet, an Italy-based company that designs and manufactures advanced moving carpets, chairlift belts, water conveyor belts, universal canopies and other custom-designed ski resort solutions. Piana also serves as its North America distributor.

The Team Service difference

Team Service was selected for a number of reasons, starting with the company’s commitment to quality and service. “Team Service sets itself apart in two ways: the mechanical construction of the carpet and the electronic package that comes with the premium model, which is what we installed at Chicopee and is the most commonly installed model here in North America,” said Piana.

Controlled by touchscreen, the TS-Premium model is the most complete of the Team Service range, featuring extremely advanced and innovative technology, and is available in three widths (650, 810 and 1,200 millimeters) with an adjustable speed from 0.2 to 0.7 meters per second up to 1.2 meters per second as an option.

Every component that makes up an easy-to-install Team Service product is chosen from carefully selected materials that are subjected to rigorous quality controls, ensuring exceptional durability and superior performance – even in the most demanding conditions.

The galvanized steel frame used on Team Service carpet lifts are engineered to ensure maximum resistance to weather conditions and long-lasting durability, even in challenging environments, and the PVC side covers offer a practical and effective solution to keep the area beneath the belt clean. This also prevents the accumulation of dirt and snow and contributes to efficient and prolonged system operation. In addition, the three-layer rubber belt that makes up the conveyance system – and is characterized by a honeycomb-pattern surface – promises optimal grip in a variety of conditions.

From the initial concept to implementation, Team Service is also there to support their clients at every stage of the project. What’s more, the company is always on-hand and ready to respond quickly to their customers’ needs, guaranteeing a fast and efficient response to minimize downtime and keep operations running smoothly.

The project scope

The project at Chicopee began in summer 2024, with Piana going down to Chicopee to meet with the resort, as well as Leitner-Poma, whose lifts are used by the resort, to lay out the plans for the new carpet lifts.

“Chicopee is completely redesigning and upgrading their area from the ground up, and the three new carpets they are installing are only part of their total plans to make their side of the mountain work as well as possible,” said Piana. “Team Service visited Chicopee in August 2024 to consult on the dirt work, with the actual installation of the first two carpets happening from November [2024] to January 2025.”

Team Service sets itself apart in two ways: the mechanical construction of the carpet and the electronic package that comes with the premium model, which is what we installed at Chicopee and is the most commonly installed model here in North America.

Samuele Piana, Team Service Carpet

For the project, Piana has also worked alongside Ryan Neptune, president and co-owner of Team Planet, an Idaho-based company that designs, constructs and supplies all equipment for their partner company, Gateway Parks, as well as major snowboarding venues and terrain parks around the world.

“The Planet crew are extremely knowledgeable about installing and running Team Service carpets, and [Neptune] even uses several of our carpets at his own resorts and ski parks,” said Piana. “The volume of experience Planet brought to the project, as well as the quality of the Team Service product, have ensured that the installation process – although labor intensive during the winter months – was very successful.”

The new carpet lifts

The new 250- and 450-foot TS-Premium carpet lifts enable visitors to the resort – especially those with younger skiers in tow – to ascend the beginner slopes side-by-side under a fully enclosed canopy, complete with top and bottom doors and LED lighting along the way.

“The new carpets help Chicopee to improve their operations in a major way because the new carpets are much wider than what they had before, which means that there is much more room for passengers and it’s more comfortable for the people using them,” said Piana.

“This also means that Chicopee can effectively double its capacity on the hill because people can stand next to each other. So, instead of moving 1,800 people per hour, they can now handle up to 3,600. Plus, it’s a beautiful installation – especially at night with the colorful LED lighting under the cover.”

More to come

With two carpet lifts installed and one to go, the work is not quite finished at Chicopee for Team Service. The company will be installing the additional 575-foot TS-Premium carpet later this spring, just in time for the upcoming 2025/26 ski season.

“From Team Service to the Planet team to Chicopee and Leitner-Poma of Canada, everyone worked together well and were really happy with outcome of last year’s installation – everything is running perfect and the skiers who are using them seem really excited with the new carpets,” said Piana. “I am looking forward to working with everyone again on the next phase of the project.”