Kone India, a part of the Finnish escalator and elevator company Kone, has launched a new range of elevators, U MonoSpace and U MiniSpace, for the growing mid-range market.

Kone, which has a manufacturing facility near Chennai, is in the process of setting up a second plant at Sriperumbudur. It is likely to be commissioned by the second quarter of 2019, Amit Gossain, Managing Director of Kone Elevator India, said.

“Our new products have 26 cars with visuals inspired by Navaratna, the nine gems. These designs are unique and help us differentiate in the market place and enhance the customer experience. Since the demand for aesthetics is gaining importance, the new collection is set to create a lasting user experience,” he said.

“India is the second largest elevator and escalator market in the world and accounts for about 50,000 units sales per annum, where Kone India has a 20 per cent market share. While we expect to see the market grow by about 6-7 per cent this year, Kone is poised to see a double-digit growth rate,” he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of new elevators in Hyderabad, Amit Gossain told BusinessLine that last year was tough for the elevators and escalator business in the country as it had to bear with the impact of the demonetisation, GST transition and RERA.

“This resulted in a flat business and the industry managed to get through the phase riding on orders which were under execution. However, we see the real estate, which accounts for nearly 70 per cent of the total demand in the country, to order for more as new projects get executed,” he said.

Globally, Kone has tied up with IBM Watson to offer IoT (Internet of Things) connected elevators. “We expect to launch these IoT solutions too in India within a year,” he said.

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