S&S – Sansei Technologies
| S&S – Worldwide | |
|---|---|
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| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Predecessor | Arrow Development Arrow HUSS Arrow Dynamics S&S Sports Inc. S&S Power |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Founder | Stan Checketts |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Amusement rides, roller coasters |
| Parent | Sansei Technologies |
| Website | s-s |
S&S Worldwide (formerly S&S Sports Power, S&S Original Amusements, S&S Power, and S&S – Sansei Technologies) is an American company known for its pneumatically powered amusement rides and roller coaster designing.
History
[edit]Establishment
[edit]Stan Checketts with his wife Sandy (Stan & Sandy) founded S&S Sports Power, Inc in 1994 in Logan, Utah. This was a side project from their main business, Sports Tower, Inc., which had been founded in the late 1980s. Sports Tower had manufactured bungee jumping and trampoline equipment. S&S Sports Power was founded to manufacture air-powered drop towers, which became the main stay of the company.[1] S&S Sports was sold in 1996.[citation needed]
In 2002, S&S began looking for opportunities to expand their business, citing acquisitions as the best method to do so.[2] Following the bankruptcy filing of wooden roller coaster manufacturer Custom Coasters International (CCI), S&S hired founder Denise Dinn-Larrick and several other former CCI employees to start a new wooden coaster division for the company.[2] The division was shut down two years later after manufacturing only four wooden coasters.[3]
In October 2002, S&S founded S&S Arrow, a limited liability company which purchased the assets of the bankrupt Arrow Dynamics.[4]
In 2006, S&S Power opened Celebration Centre, a Family Entertainment Center featuring a number of S&S rides and prototypes. The facility was later sold and is currently no longer operating.[5]
Company ownership
[edit]On August 25, 2006, S&S Power, Inc. announced that Stan Checketts and Gene Mulvihill, both original founding partners of S&S, had formed a group to purchase a controlling interest of S&S. The negotiations took several months. CEO Checketts was to direct the company based on the same principles upon which it was founded: "...to provide the amusement industry with thrilling, high-quality rides the entire family can enjoy." Checketts also announced that the business operations of S&S would remain under the direction of Rich Allen, who would continue in his role as chief operating officer.[citation needed]
In February 2009, Larsen MacColl Partners acquired a significant equity interest in S&S, including all shares previously owned by Checketts. The Koffman family and affiliated shareholders were to maintain their ownership interest. Checketts ended his consulting relationship with the company in order to pursue business interests with Soaring Eagle Zipline Inc., of Logan Utah.[6] More than a decade later, Stan Checketts, aged 80, died on January 2, 2022, at his home in Providence, Utah.[7]
In November 2012, S&S Worldwide Inc., entered into a binding agreement with Sansei Technologies Co., Ltd., of Osaka, Japan, whereby Sansei acquired 77.3% interest in S&S.[8][9] Signage at the 2012 and 2013 IAAPA Attractions Expos promoted the new company as S&S – Sansei Technologies, with Sansei becoming its sole owner by late 2014.[10] On March 30, 2018, it was announced that Sansei Technologies had also acquired amusement ride manufacturer Vekoma.[11]
Portfolio
[edit]
Pneumatically powered attractions quickly became the company's trademark offering. The Space Shot was introduced in 1995, using compressed air cylinders to accelerate riders up the tower at high speed. Prototypes were sold to Reino Aventura and D&D Amusements before the model was refined and sold in mass supply.[12] Subsequent ride models — the Turbo Drop tower and Screamin' Swing – were respectively introduced in 1996 and 2004.[13]
he company moved to utilize their pneumatic technology on roller coaster launches with the Thrust Air 2000, which used refrigerated, compressed air to achieve a high-acceleration launch. A pair opened in 2001 in the form of Hypersonic XLC at Kings Dominion and Do-Dodonpa at Fuji-Q Highland, the latter of which achieved a world-best coaster acceleration of 172 km/h (107 mph) at the time. Hypersonic XLC was be retired and put up for sale in 2007, while Do-Dodonpa was partially rebuilt in 2017 before closing in 2021.[14] A newer pneumatic launch coaster model was rolled out at the end of the decade.[15] The first was Ring Racer at the Nürburgring race track, which operated for four days in 2013 before being declared economically unviable.[16]
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Outside of their pneumatic products, S&S continued to introduce new designs. In 2008 the company introduced El Loco, a coaster design capable of packing an extreme layout into a compact footprint. Beginning with Steel Hawg at Indiana Beach, a new El Loco was built almost annually until 2014, with each ride seemingly modified to include a steeper drop than the one before it.[17] At that time, S&S introduced the 4-D Free Spin, a smaller and vertically stacked version of previous 4th Dimension coasters.[18] The first installation — Batman: The Ride at Six Flags Fiesta Texas — made its debut in 2015 and generated high demand for the model, with production capabilities fully booked several years in advance.[13][19]
Some roller coasters produced by S&S have faced issues leading to delays or later modifications. Merlin's Mayhem, a family suspended coaster, was built in 2017 at Dutch Wonderland but ultimately wasn't ready until 2018 due to construction delays.[20] GaleForce, a compact launched coaster at Playland's Castaway Cove, was unable to open in 2016 as intended due to misaligned track pieces not allowing the car to line up with the launch stators.[21] Although GaleForce opened in 2017 following adjustments, all of the track was replaced the following winter at the expense of S&S.[22] In 2019, S&S built Steel Curtain at Kennywood, a 220-foot (67Â m) tall looping coaster. Throughout its lifetime the coaster has operated sporadically due to structural problems. Steel Curtain was eventually closed for the 2023 season as the park sought to address these issues.[23] In addition to this, China's 2019 tariffs on ride parts and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a slowdown of sales for S&S.[24]
S&S introduced the Axis Coaster concept in 2019, where riders are seated on an elevated swivel that can swing riders above or below the track, regardless of its banking.[25] This hence allows for layouts and track elements not feasible on more conventional attractions. A prototype was set up at S&S' testing facility in Utah and three were eventually purchased by Saudi Entertainment Ventures, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Opening in 2025/26, each will have a separate design and be located at Transformers entertainment centers in Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah.[26]
Types of amusement rides
[edit]Roller coasters
[edit]| Model | First produced | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 4th Dimension | 2006 | Variation of a wing coaster in which seats are able to rotate along the pitch axis at 360 degrees. The track is laid out like a traditional sit-down roller coaster with additional rails to control seat rotation.[27] |
| 4-D Free Spin | 2015 | Variation of a wing coaster in which seats are able to rotate along the pitch axis at 360 degrees. The track does not veer off or bank in any way, as opposed to S&S' other 4th Dimension model.[28] |
| Air Launch Coaster | 2010 | Name given to a variety of roller coasters utilizing compressed air launch systems. |
| Axis Coaster | 2019 (prototype) | Steel roller coaster utilising unique trains which rotate freely (although regulated by magnets) through a layout with multiple inversions. This coaster model currently only exists at S&S' testing facility in Utah. |
| El Loco | 2008 | Slower-paced roller coaster containing a beyond-vertical drop and thin rails.[29] |
| Family Inverted Coaster | 2018 | An inverted roller coaster with seating below the rails. |
| Free Fly | 2009 | Inverted roller coaster with track inversions that are made obsolete due to a revolving carriage.[30] |
| RailRyder | 2023 | A new single rail roller coaster offering, first presented to prospective clients at the IAAPA Orlando Expo.[31] |
| Screaming Squirrel | 2005 (discontinued) | Variation of the wild mouse roller coaster where there is no defined primary drop, consisting of several "hairpins" and saxophone inversions.[32] |
| Steeplechase | 2017 | A family roller coaster with various vehicle theme options; revival of an Arrow coaster of the same name. |
| Thrust Air 2000 | 2001 (discontinued) | Extreme launched roller coaster using refrigerated, compressed air. |
| Wooden Coaster | 2003 (discontinued) | Standard wooden roller coaster with several variations in track layout.[33] |
Towers
[edit]- Space Shot[34]
- Turbo Drop[34]
- Double Shot[35]
- Combo Tower Ride[34]
- Multi-Tower (two to four Turbo Drop, Space Shot, and/or Combo Tower rides in a single complex)
- Rotating Tower[34]
- Spin Shot[34]
- Sky Sling[36] (no longer available)
- Choose Your Thrill Tower (One tower is small, another is medium-sized, and last tower is the tallest.)
- Sonic Boom (prototype)
Flat rides
[edit]- Sky Swatter[37] (no longer available)
- Screamin' Swing[38]
- Frog Hopper[39]
- Jungle Swing[40]
- Monkey Madness[41]
List of roller coasters
[edit]As of 2023, S&S – Sansei Technologies has built 42 roller coasters around the world.[42]
| Name | Model | Park | Country | Opened | Status | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypersonic XLC | Thrust Air 2000 | Kings Dominion |  United States | 2001 | Removed | [43] |
| Do-Dodonpa Formerly Dodonpa | Thrust Air 2000 | Fuji-Q Highland |  Japan | 2001 | Removed | [44] |
| Timberhawk: Ride of Prey | Wooden Coaster | Wild Waves Theme & Water Park | United States | 2003 | Operating | [45] |
| Falken | Wooden Coaster | FÃ¥rup Sommerland |  Denmark | 2004 | Operating | [46] |
| Avalanche | Wooden Coaster | Timber Falls Adventure Park | United States | 2004 | Removed | [47] |
| Hell Cat Formerly J2 Formerly Tsunami | Wooden Coaster | Clementon Park | United States | 2004 | Closed | [48] |
| Powder Keg: A Blast into the Wilderness Formerly BuzzSaw Falls | Air Launch Coaster | Silver Dollar City | United States | 2005 | Operating | [49] |
| Sequoia Magic Loop Formerly Sequoia Adventure | Screaming Squirrel | Gardaland |  Italy | 2005 | Removed | [50] |
| Man-O-War Formerly Screamin Squirrel | Screaming Squirrel | Mysterious Island |  China | 2006 | Operating | [51] |
| Eejanaika | 4th Dimension | Fuji-Q Highland | Japan | 2006 | Operating | [52] |
| Afterburner | Screaming Squirrel | Wonder Island |  Russia | 2007 | Removed | [53] |
| Steel Hawg | El Loco | Indiana Beach | United States | 2008 | Operating | [54] |
| Tranan | Free Fly | Skara Sommarland |  Sweden | 2009 | Operating | [55] |
| Mumbo Jumbo | El Loco | Flamingo Land |  United Kingdom | 2009 | Operating | [56] |
| Extreme Rusher | Air Launch Coaster | Happy Valley Beijing | China | 2011 | Closed | [57] |
| Timber Drop | El Loco | Fraispertuis City |  France | 2011 | Operating | [58] |
| Green Lantern Coaster | El Loco | Warner Bros. Movie World |  Australia | 2011 | Operating |