On April 15, 2004 it is ten years since KCI Konecranes became an independent company. KCI Konecranes celebrates its 10th anniversary with a Jubilee seminar on April 15, 2004 in Hyvinkää, Finland. Guest speakers:
- The Future of Finnish Engineering
Mr. Martti Mäenpää, Director General, Technology Industries of Finland
- Global Trends in the Harbour and Logistics Industry
Mr. Joe Bryant,Vice President, South Carolina State Port Authority
- Latest Developments in the Pulp and Paper Industry
Mr. Magnus Diesen, Executive Vice President, Stora Enso
- The Steel Industry in China
Ms. Li Feng Hua, Senior Executive Manager, Shanghai Baosteel International
The Seminar will end with a Jubilee dinner in the crane factory in Hyvinkää.
The history of KCI Konecranes dates back to 1933, when KONE Oy decided to diversify its electrical motor business and started to manufacture hoisting appliances. From the outset, Maintenance Services was an important activity and the service offering was opened to all cranes regardless of original manufacturer. Maintenance Services has fuelled growth in new crane sales and has been a major source of information for the Group’s product development both in service and cranes.
The heavy demands of war reparation deliveries to the Soviet Union after the Second World War improved KONE cranes technology and expanded facilities. Internationalisation started in 1973 with the acquisition of Norway’s Wisbech-Refsum. Thereafter, some 40 companies have joined the Group. The desire to enlarge the company’s service base gradually became an important criterion for acquisitions.
The worldwide recession in the early 1990s spurred a restructuring of KONE’s Industrial crane operations, with a combination of new production methods and outsourcing.
In 1993 KONE Oy decided to consolidate its activity into its largest division – KONE Elevators and dispose of all its other operations including cranes. The new KCI Konecranes and KONE Oy reached an agreement on March 4, 1994. Six weeks later on April 15, 1994 KCI Konecranes became an independent company, through a buyout led by Mr Stig Gustavson, President & CEO, top management and private equity investment firm Industri Kapital of Sweden. Two years later KCI Konecranes became a publicly quoted company in March 1996 as its shares started trading at the Helsinki Stock Exchange.
Today, 70 years after the sale of the first KONE crane, KCI Konecranes is one of the world leaders in its business. Our operations include a complete range of lifting appliances, from lightweight chain hoists with a lifting capacity of a few hundred kilograms to heavy-duty industrial cranes lifting up to 1,000 tons and high performance harbour and shipyard cranes. Maintenance Services has become our largest business area accounting for half of Group Sales. We work through our own personnel, agents and partners in more than 40 countries all over the world. We have global suppliers and assembly plants of our own on all three continents – in Asia, America and Europe. We have flexible capacity and excellent cost competitiveness. All our vendors and plants follow the same strict quality standards and process procedures. The result is a highly competitive crane company. KCI Konecranes is well-positioned to drive the consolidation in its industry and grow both organically and through acquisitions. A thoroughly modern product portfolio and the genuine growth business of crane maintenance paint a very interesting picture of the Group’s future.
We are proud of our past and we look forward to our future. Here’s to a new decade of successful operations!
In celebration of its 10th anniversary KCI Konecranes has released a special history issue of the Konecranes World Magazine. Should you want to travel back in time with us to 1910, ask for a copy of the history issue at a Konecranes office or order one from Group Communications at: www.konecranes.com.
Further information can be obtained from
Franciska Janzon, IR-Manager, Group Communications and Investor Relations
Tel. +358-20 427 2043 or [email protected]
KCI Konecranes, headquartered in Hyvinkää, Finland is a world leading Engineering Group specialising in advanced overhead lifting solutions and maintenance services. KCI Konecranes is the world's leading supplier of heavy-duty cranes for process industries. KCI Konecranes is a global supplier of special harbour cranes for bulk materials and containers and a leading provider of shipyard cranes. In 2003, Group sales totalled EUR 665 million with 4350 employees in 34 countries all over the world.
