Vekoma Rides Manufacturing is an

amusement ride Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This could be due to ...

manufacturer. Vekoma is a

syllabic abbreviation An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening, contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened form of a word, usually ended with a trailing per ...

of Veld Koning Machinefabriek (Veld Koning Machine Factory) which was established in 1926 by Hendrik op het Veld.

History

The company originally manufactured farm equipment and later made steel constructions for the

coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

industry in the 1950s. As business shifted from farming equipment to steel construction, Veld Koning Machinefabriek was shortened to Vekoma. After the closure of Dutch mines in 1965, Vekoma manufactured steel pipes for the petrochemical industry. In the 1970s Vekoma was contracted by U.S. amusement ride manufacturer

Arrow Development Arrow Development was an amusement park ride and roller coaster design and manufacturing company, incorporated in California on November 16, 1945, and based in Mountain View, California, Mountain View. It was founded by Angus "Andy" Anderson, Ka ...

to build the steel structure for its roller coasters in Europe. As demand increased, Arrow instructed Vekoma in track building techniques and eventually licensed its coaster-building technology. In 1979 Vekoma entered the market on its own, opening three coasters in Europe under the name Vekoma Rides Manufacturing BV. On 23 August 2001, Vekoma filed for bankruptcy. In 2006, Vekoma formed an alliance with U.S.-based manufacturer

Chance Morgan Chance Morgan Coasters, Inc. is a roller coaster and amusement ride manufacturer. It was formed on June 14, 2001 when Michael Chance, grandson of Chance Rides founder Richard H. Chance, acquired the assets of roller coaster builder D. H. Morgan ...

Chance Rides Chance Rides is an American roller coaster and amusement ride manufacturer. Originally founded in 1961, the current company was formed on May 16, 2002, when the former Chance Industries Inc. emerged from bankruptcy. The main office and manufa ...

represented Vekoma in North America and

manufactured the steel track for select projects. During this agreement, Chance built four Vekoma-designed family coasters. In 2008, Vekoma Rides Manufacturing acquired the Wheels of Excellence range of

Ferris wheel A Ferris wheel (also called a big wheel, giant wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondola ...

s from Ronald Bussink. Under the agreement, Bussink continued to supply wheels 100 meters and taller. Smaller wheels in the 40- to 80-meter range transitioned to a new manufacturing division of Vekoma, Dutch Wheels BV. On 17 October 2012, Chance Rides and Vekoma discontinued the agreement to produce rides together for the North American market. However, shortly after terminating that agreement, Chance Rides was given an exclusive license from Dutch Wheels BV to manufacture and sell R60 wheels in the North American market under a new affiliate, Chance American Wheels. On 30 March 2018, Vekoma was acquired by

Sansei Technologies Sansei Technologies, Inc. (formerly Sansei Yusoki Co., Ltd.) is a Japanese manufacturing firm based in Osaka, Japan. The company specialises in the manufacturing of amusement rides, Stagecraft, stage equipment, and elevators. History Sansei Yuso ...

, the parent company of American ride manufacturer S&S Sansei. The conditions stipulated that Vekoma's business model remain unchanged after the acquisition. Vekoma continues to manufacture and market rides as a separate entity.

Roller coasters

, there are over 387

roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...

s around the world from Vekoma, some of which are either under construction or have been removed.

Models

Other Vekoma coaster models include Wild Mouse, Hyper Space Warp, Firestorm, Swinging Turns,

Enigma Enigma may refer to: *Riddle, someone or something that is mysterious or puzzling Biology *ENIGMA, a class of gene in the LIM domain Computing and technology * Enigma (company), a New York–based data-technology startup *Enigma machine, a famil ...

Illusion An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people. Illusions may ...

Family Boomerang Boomerang is a model of roller coaster manufactured and designed by Vekoma, a Dutch manufacturer. The roller coaster model name is from the hunting implement based on the traditions of the Indigenous Australians. , there are 55 Boomerangs op ...

, Tilt Coaster, Energy Storm and

Powered Coaster A powered roller coaster is a railed amusement ride similar to a standard roller coaster. Unlike a true roller coaster, the train is powered through the entire course, rather than being allowed to coast after an initial lift or launch. This allow ...

s. In 2013, Vekoma signed a deal with

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

-based

Rocky Mountain Construction Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) is a roller coaster manufacturing and construction company based in Hayden, Idaho, United States. It is best known for its I-Box track and Topper Track for wooden roller coasters. Founded by Fred Grubb and Suan ...

. The agreement allows Vekoma to sell Rocky Mountain Construction's roller coasters outside the North American market. Vekoma is also the constructor of Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT in Walt Disney World, designing innovative new "omni-coaster" cars with the capability for controlled turns and spins.

Other attractions

Ferris wheels

The Dutch Wheels product range includes the R40, R50, and R60 models, each available in three different types.

Notable installations

Madhouse

A madhouse is a flat ride that gives the impression that the rider is upside-down, when in reality the room they are in rotates around them.

Gallery

Image:Mind Eraser (Sidewinder).JPG,

Suspended Looping Coaster The Suspended Looping Coaster (or SLC) is a model of steel roller coaster, steel inverted roller coaster, inverted roller coaster built by Dutch manufacturer Vekoma. There are at least 39 different installations across the world. The minimum ride ...

, a popular Vekoma design Image:Vekomaboomerang.jpg,

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool typically constructed with airfoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight, designed to return to the thrower. The origin of the word is from Australian Aborigin ...

, another of Vekoma's most popular ride models Image:Invertigo_(Kings_Island).jpg,

Invertigo Invertigo were an Australian four-piece pop rock group active in the early 2000s. They originally formed as Vertigo in 1996, by the three Leigh brothers: Jerry (born 10 May 1961) on guitar, James (born 1 December 1967) on keyboards and Vince (b ...

, a variation on the Boomerang design Image:Six Flags Magic Mountain Deja Vu.jpg,

Giant Inverted Boomerang A Giant Inverted Boomerang is a type of steel roller coaster, steel shuttle roller coaster manufactured by the Dutch firm Vekoma. The ride is a larger, Inverted roller coaster, inverted version of Vekoma's popular Boomerang (roller coaster), Boo ...

, a more extreme version of Invertigo Image:SFKK-Roller Skater.jpg, Vekoma Roller Skater, a small family coaster design Image:Thundercoaster.jpg, Wooden Coaster, One of Vekoma's wooden coasters (Thundercoaster

Tusenfryd Tusenfryd (lit. "Thousand Joys", also Bellis perennis, Common Daisy) is an amusement park at Vinterbro, Norway. The park is located 20 kilometers south of Oslo. Two of the longest motorway corridors in Norway, European route E6, E6 and European ...

) Image:Velocitytrain.jpg,

Motorbike roller coaster A motorbike roller coaster or motorcycle roller coaster is a type of steel roller coaster designed with motorcycle type cars. Booster Bike at Toverland was the world's first motorbike roller coaster. Vekoma was the first company to design such ...

, a specially designed coaster with seats that are like motorbikes Image:PKI-Rugrat's Runaway Reptar.jpg,

Suspended Family Coaster A Suspended Family Coaster is a steel inverted roller coaster built by Vekoma designed for families with no inversions. Just like all inverted roller coasters the train runs under the track with the seats directly attached to the wheel carriage ...

References

External links

* * {{Amusement rides Roller coaster manufacturers Multinational companies headquartered in the Netherlands Design companies established in 1926 Manufacturing companies established in 1926 1926 establishments in the Netherlands Amusement ride manufacturers Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2001 Roerdalen