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Corporate siteKONE Corporation, press release, May 11,
2020
KONE, a global leader in the elevator and escalator industry, has
introduced a range of people flow solutions to help make buildings
and cities safer and healthier places to live, work and commute.
The solutions are built on KONE's deep expertise and knowledge of
people flow, which is vital when addressing the challenges of
adapting to a new way of life in the face of the current
pandemic.
As facilities gradually begin to open, people's health and
well-being is a major concern, considering physical distancing
measures as well as the need for people to be able to move around
in shared spaces. The KONE People Flow Planning and
Consulting service has been tailored to better support
planning a safe return to offices and other buildings, in light of
these kinds of measures. By using data, simulation tools, and
expertise from KONE's interior architects and data scientists,
customers can quickly see how to reduce crowding and bottlenecks
and enable people to move around safely. In addition, other new
solutions improve air quality in elevators, help disinfect
escalator handrails and reduce the need to touch
surfaces.
The experience of using
residential buildings and public premises such as metro stations,
shopping malls or offices is changing. For KONE customers, a key
benefit of the health and well-being focused solutions is that
improvements can be introduced easily, in an era when hygiene and
physical distancing are vitally important.
"The COVID-19 pandemic is transforming the way people move and
interact in cities and buildings. All buildings now have different
people flow challenges, from door to destination. As a pioneer in
people flow, we want to help our customers with a holistic approach
to health, well-being and safety as restrictions on both the
movement of people and businesses begin to ease in different
countries," says Hugues Delval, EVP, Service Business, KONE.
"We play a vital role in keeping society running during these
unprecedented times. Elevators, escalators and the related
maintenance are crucial in enabling people to carry out essential
activities. Solutions like KONE 24/7 Connected Services can be a
great support in business continuity, especially in today's
environment, so that our customers' operations can be restarted
quickly, equipment can be managed in real time and premises can be
made safer for people to move around," added Delval.
Several existing KONE products and services are more relevant than
ever today.
KONE 24/7 Connected Services brings increased
safety, transparency, and intelligence to elevator and escalator
maintenance, at a time when usage is critical, even when physical
distancing measures are in place. The service enables faults to be
predicted before they happen, and equipment status can be monitored
around the clock. KONE DX Class elevators include
anti-microbial surfaces for elevator car walls and handrails to
protect against indirect contamination. With KONE DX Class
elevators, built-in connectivity means new digital services can be
introduced quickly and features can be upgraded in order to adapt
to new needs.
The new KONE health and well-being solutions being introduced
are:
- KONE Elevator AirPurifier to improve air quality in the elevator car by destroying most potential pollutants, like bacteria, viruses, dust and odors. It uses Photocatalytic Oxidation (PCO) technology developed by NASA for removing contaminants from spacecraft cabins.
- KONE Handrail Sanitizer uses ultraviolet light to gradually disinfect escalator handrails. Continuous chemical-free cleaning happens inside the escalator, with no risk for passengers. Exposure to ultra-violet radiation helps remove and inhibit the reproduction of micro-organisms such as bacteria or viruses.
- KONE Elevator Call lets people call an elevator from anywhere nearby using an app on their smartphone. It works together with the KONE Flow app as well as selected social messaging apps on different mobile operating systems, completely removing the need to touch elevator buttons and screens.
The health and well-being solutions will be
launched globally now. Local introduction in different countries
will depend on the availability of features, solutions, and
services in each area. New solutions will be continuously
introduced to different areas.
For more information about these solutions, please visit our website. Related images and videos are
available at KONE's Material Bank.
For further information, please
contact:
Hanna Rutanen, director, External Communications, KONE
Corporation, +358 41 5071361, media@kone.com
Read more
Previous press releases are available at https://www.kone.com/en/news-and-insights/releases/
including:
November 29, 2019: KONE DX Class elevators take the industry into a
new era - the world's first elevator series with built-in digital
connectivity as standard
March 1, 2018: KONE introduces new digital platform and renews
its products and services portfolio to better meet the
opportunities of a connected world
September 25, 2017: KONE introduces new people flow solution, KONE
Residential Flow, for intelligent and connected residential
developments
February 8, 2017: KONE revolutionizes elevator maintenance with new
customizable KONE Care(TM) service offering and 24/7 Connected
Services
About KONE
At KONE, our mission is to improve the flow of urban life. As a
global leader in the elevator and escalator industry, KONE provides
elevators, escalators and automatic building doors, as well as
solutions for maintenance and modernization to add value to
buildings throughout their life cycle. Through more effective
People Flow®, we make people's journeys safe, convenient and
reliable, in taller, smarter buildings. In 2019, KONE had annual
sales of EUR 10 billion, and at the end of the year approximately
60,000 employees. KONE class B shares are listed on the Nasdaq
Helsinki Ltd. in Finland.
www.kone.com
The services, products or solutions described here as KONE
health and well-being solutions promote health and well-being.
However, the solutions do not ensure that no new diseases or
infections will occur at premises where they are being used. KONE
cannot be held liable for any infections or diseases occurring at
such facilities or the resulting medical
consequences.