Metro line contract let; potential for new installations in Shanghai.

KONE Wins 239-Escalator Order for Wuxi Metro Line 3

KONE is the latest OEM to win significant work providing the 28.5-km-long Wuxi Metro Line 3 with vertical-transportation equipment. Following a previous order to supply Wuxi Metro Line 2, this order consists of 99 TransitMasterTM and 140 heavy-duty escalators. Designed to meet the special requirements of Chinese metro projects, the escalators have a maximum transport capacity of 7,300 people per hour. Trial operations are expected to start in mid 2020. The main developer is Wuxi Metro Group Co. Ltd., and the architect is Guangzhou Metro Design & Research Institute Co. Ltd.

Shanghai Residential Buildings Getting Elevators

An effort underway in Shanghai to install elevators in older residential buildings is gaining momentum, with more and more residents — particularly seniors — banding together to get the projects done, SHINE reported. If a minimum of 90% of the residents are in favor of an elevator, and the application is approved by 15 government agencies (down from 46 prior to 2016), the tenants can embark on the project, with residents of higher apartments paying more of the roughly US$102,489 cost. The city government covers 40% after the elevator has been installed. The source illustrated the trend by describing 12 households, many including retired aerospace scientists, in a seven-story building on Yuyuan Road installing an elevator. Across the city, approximately 20 such elevators have gone into operation, and more than 50 applications are being evaluated.

Marine Innovations Completes Guatemala Jungle Tram

Frazee, Minnesota-based Marine Innovations, Inc. completed a commercial tram for the La Lancha boutique hotel in the Petén District of Guatemala. The tram carries guests 430 ft. through the rainforest between the hotel and its dock. Christine Gaudenzi of The Family Coppola Hideaways, of which La Lancha is a part, said:

“[The owner] envisioned adding to the adventure of the arrival experience here, keeping the mystery of this intimate place tucked into the hillside on the lake. The Marine Innovations tram is the perfect vehicle for that experience.”