Sanctions and a shortage of elevators: what lies in store for the elevator industry in the Russian Federation
Elevator production in the Russian Federation has decreased by 41% after the departure of Western companies.
The experts earlier estimated that up to 140 thousand elevators will have to be replaced in the Russian Federation by 2025.
The American company OTIS announced that it would not enter into new contracts with Russian customers from March 14, 2022, the Finnish KONE stopped supplying and signing new contracts, the German TK Elevator said that it supported the sanctions and suspended new business activities in Russia.
"It will not be easy to replace the equipment of the companies that left," many media wrote about it, including Kommersant, Rambler; the TV company NTV - and many others - broadcast a report on this topic.
The situation with the components is also complicated.
"The share of foreign components in our elevators is about 30%, says Kharlamov (Petr Kharlamov is the general director of the "Russian Elevator Association"). First and foremost, it is the winches - the traction element that drives the car... About 30% of imported components are used in the production of elevators by local companies."
According to the estimates by the marketing experts, only in Moscow the need for such products is more than 50 thousand pieces (newspaper "41", issue № 23 of July 15, 2022, page 5).
"Elevators are socially significant objects that cannot be stopped even for a relatively short time. But, unfortunately, at the moment there is no clear information from our manufacturers of elevators and components on how they are doing - coping or not, looking for any ways to solve the problems that have arisen?" - noted the expert of the National Elevator Union, Director of the Department for the Elevator Service Company Alexey Zatochkin.
According to the "Russian Elevator Association", at the moment the share of imported components in the Russian production of elevators is about 30%. These are mainly winches that lift the elevator car. Russian manufacturers often buy them in Italy, as well as in Korea, China and Turkey.
So is there a way out of this situation, or will the Russians have to go up in multi-storey buildings on foot?
The Russian engineering company "Sovelmash" offers the market an effective engineering solution - domestic gearless elevator winches with increased efficiency. The design of this winch has been developed and already presented to a wide audience at the International Military and Technology Forum "Army-2022" among other developments by the company.
According to the Chief Project Engineer Dmitriy A. Duyunov, the solution offered by "Sovelmash" has significant advantages over its Western counterparts and can successfully replace them:
• enhanced weight and dimensions;
• high energy efficiency, reliability;
• improved torque characteristics.
The gearless elevator winch designed by "Sovelmash" has 8 modifications and can be used in passenger, cargo-passenger, freight, hospital elevators and other lifting devices operated in buildings and facilities.
Its motor design is based on the technical solutions previously used and elaborated in the induction hub motor created by applying the "Slavyanka" combined winding technology. The motor is modernized, it also utilizes the original inhouse rotor production technology, and was manufactured by the "Sovelmash" specialists in three months.
In addition to the gearless elevator winch, the company's specialists have developed traction and general-purpose industrial electric motors of the highest energy efficiency classes, a universal built-in drive for power tools and household appliances and many more by applying the "Slavyanka" combined winding technology. All of the company's developments can be found by following the link or on the YouTube channel.
Along with development, "Sovelmash" specializes in the production of energy-efficient electric machines with enhanced characteristics, including the creation of customized process equipment and production facilities.
Looking at the elevator industry as a whole, today in Russia there is a high demand for elevator winches as a critical import product, and the departure of Western companies from the Russian market is a time of opportunity for domestic manufacturers.
A selection of some articles on the topic can be found here:
1. The elevator is going down
2. "Many don't have a spare parts reserve." What will happen to the repair of elevators in Moscow after the departure of foreign companies
3. Elevator manufacturing in Russia: what is happening in the industry after the departure of foreign companies
4. "Ъ": Elevator production in the Russian Federation has decreased by 41% after the departure of Western companies
5. The expert outlined the prospects for the Russian elevator industry after the departure of Otis
6. Will Samara be left without elevators? The elevator market is about to change
7. What will happen to elevators in multi-storey buildings? Imported winches need to be replaced