Organisational Change in KCI Konecranes

New structure to focus on Business Areas  
 
In its recent meeting, the Board of Directors resolved to change the reporting structure of the Group.  
 
From today's structure, where direct managerial responsibility is organised along geographical areas (Regions), the new organisation will follow the Groups' three Business Areas: Maintenance Services, Standard Lifting Equipment and Special Cranes.  
 
Business Area executives, Arto Juosila (Standard Lifting Equipment), Tom Sothard (Maintenance Services), Antti Vanhatalo (Special Cranes/ Industrial Cranes) and Mikko Uhari (Special Cranes/ Harbour and Shipyard Cranes) assume direct operational control.  
 
Branded Products (headed by Pekka Heikkonen) is reported within Standard Lifting Equipment.  
 
Regional Executives, Charles E. Vanarsdall (Americas), Harry Ollila (Europe) and Rainer Aalto (Asia-Pacific) will represent the Group CEO in each Region with responsibility for Regional Management, Group Strategy, Business Development and other matters involving Group Senior Management.  
 
The new organisation will be put into place before the end of this year.  
 
KCI Konecranes is the world's leading supplier of heavy-duty cranes for process industries and a global supplier of special harbour cranes for bulk materials and containers and a leading provider of shipyard cranes. KCI Konecranes is also the industrialised world's leading provider of maintenance services for EOT cranes and one of the leading standard EOT crane and component builders. In 1999 Group sales totalled EUR 591.5 million with over 4.000 employees in 34 countries throughout the world.  
 
For further information, please contact:  
Stig Gustavson, President & CEO  
KCI Konecranes International Plc, tel +358-20 427 2000