A favorable business environment continued in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The new equipment market was strong, especially in Central, Northern and Eastern Europe and the Middle East. In Southern Europe, the market remained fairly stable despite the weakening of the residential market.
KONE experienced its most rapid growth in the Middle East and Russia, due to increased interest in its advanced high-rise solutions and destination control systems. In Russia, KONE strengthened its position in St. Petersburg and Moscow, and continued its expansion to other major cities.
The demand for high-rise and standard solutions was also strong in the Middle East where strong market development, especially in Qatar, UAE and Saudi Arabia, contributed to rapid growth in KONE’s orders received. In Dubai, the markets remained at a high and stable level.
The modernization market continued to grow, driven by tighter safety regulations and the need for upgraded equipment. An increasing number of European countries have started to comply with the European Safety Norms for Existing Lifts (SNEL). The global modernization market accounts for more than EUR 5 billion, two-thirds of which is generated in Europe where the market is growing at around 10 percent per year.
Due to the innovative KONE ReGenerate™ modernization package and the counterweightless KONE MaxiSpace™ elevator solution, KONE progressed well in the modernization market.
The maintenance market remained very competitive. KONE’s service operations continued to improve due to initiatives started in conjunction with the development programs. Among these initiatives was the modular-based maintenance concept.
High demand for high-rise solutions
In 2007, KONE won several significant projects, especially in the United Kingdom, Russia and the Middle East.
In the United Kingdom, KONE received a number of significant orders in London. One of the orders concerned the supply of all elevators for a new office building in the Canary Wharf financial district. In addition, KONE won two impressive orders in the City of London – the ‘One New Change’ multi-purpose development and the Leadenhall Building, which will be the tallest building in the area after its completion in 2010.
In Russia, KONE achieved significant success in Moscow. KONE was awarded further new high-rise building orders for the new international business center in Moscow. Both the Capital City twin-tower project and the Imperia Tower development will be equipped with KONE destination control systems. In addition, KONE received an order to supply elevators for the White Square Office Centre in Moscow.
In Abu Dhabi, UAE, KONE agreed on the delivery of the Middle East’s first double-deck elevators combined with destination control systems for a five-tower multi-purpose center named Capital Plaza. In addition, KONE was awarded a contract for the Etihad Towers development. KONE also won several major orders in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, among them was the world’s largest mosque, the Holy Harram, located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
In Germany, KONE was awarded an order to supply elevators and escalators for Opernturm, a multi-purpose high-rise building in Frankfurt .
In the Marine Business, KONE received two significant cruise ship orders from Aker Yards. One of the orders was for Royal Caribbean International’s Genesis 2 luxury passenger cruise ship, which followed KONE’s previous order in 2006 for the Genesis 1 cruise ship. The other major order concerned two new passenger cruise ships for Norwegian Cruise Line.
First KONE InnoTrack™ autowalks in place
In April, KONE installed the first six KONE InnoTrack™ autowalks at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.