How To Read An Amusement Ride Specification Sheet

Capacity Is Not Throughput

A ride published at 24 persons carries 24 people per cycle. Throughput is capacity divided by cycle time plus loading time. A 16-seat carousel turning 3.5 laps per minute loads and unloads far more often than a 32-person Ferris wheel. If you are sizing a queue, ask for cycle time as well as capacity.

Footprint Is Not The Same As Required Space

Published dimensions such as 8m diameter or 14m x 10m are the machine. The space you need is that plus the swept envelope of anything that moves outwards, plus the queue, plus the operator position, plus the fence line. The Trailer Flying UFO makes this explicit by publishing a floor space requirement of 22m x 11m x 7m high alongside its 27m track length.

Power Tells You What Supply You Need

Catalogue figures run from 500W at 220V on a small carousel to 40kW at 380V on the Energy Storm. Single-phase and three-phase are not interchangeable. Confirm the supply at every pitch or venue where the ride will run, not just the first one.

Height Is A Consent Issue As Well As A Clearance Issue

The Christmas Tree ride is published at 14m high. Indoors, height is a ceiling question. Outdoors in a town centre it can be a planning or a wayleave question. Check it before ordering rather than after delivery.

Material Tells You How It Will Age

FRP over steel is the standard on the mechanical rides. Galvanised tube with powder coating is the standard on the trailer and track ranges, and galvanised tube with PE panels on the trailer playgrounds. These are outdoor finishes; they still need maintaining, but they are the right starting point for equipment left standing in weather.

Where A Figure Is Missing Ask For It In Writing

Not every catalogue entry publishes every field. Where a spec sheet on this site shows a value as to be confirmed, it means the source site does not state it. Get it in writing before the order rather than accepting a verbal figure.