Elevator market in India sets to elevate

“Otis has been increasingly focusing on offering complete and reliable solutions looking at the rapid increase in diversity and growth in Indian realty market,”  says Sebi Joseph, Managing Director, Otis Elevator Company (India) Ltd.
 Otis is one of the leading manufacturers and service providers when it comes to elevators and escalators. The company has recently expanded its factory in Bengaluru and added a new test tower which stands tall at a height of 51.2 meters and can test six elevators at a time. It has also launched the new “Gen2 Infinity” product line. In a conversation with ACE Update, Sebi Joseph explains how these expansions will help strengthen their position in the market.
Demand for elevatorIndia will be having 68 cities with populations of about 1 million by 2030 according to McKinsey report. Cities in India are estimated to be home to around 340 million people, or 30 per cent of the population. By 2030, it is expected that cities will house about 590 million people or 40 per cent of the population. As the need for housing grows with increase urbanisation, the markets will continue to grow. Upcoming cities and development in economy hold a lot of potential for infrastructure growth and therefore is a major driver for elevator segment in India.
Currently, the Indian elevator and escalator industry is estimated to be around 42,000 units and expected to grow about 75,000 units in the next couple of years. Today, China’s industry stands at 400,000 units; therefore, the runway for growth of the Indian segment is long. India’s elevator market is the second largest after China.
Gen2 Infinity Recently, Otis has introduced the Gen2 Infinity. This is a high speed (1.75 metres per second) elevator that is built on Otis’ flagship technology platform “Gen2”. A passenger elevator, the Gen2 Infinity will cater to mid-rise residential buildings, which are fast becoming a common feature across Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities in the country.
Sectors to focusIndia has been witnessing tremendous growth in residential complexes. The boost in Indian construction sector and urbanisation has created a huge demand for elevators. Otis has been increasingly focusing on offering complete and reliable solutions looking at the rapid increase in diversity and growth in Indian realty market. Although 75 per cent of the demand is from the residential projects, Otis India also partners on projects from the infrastructure and commercial sectors. Otis India has a project team which caters exclusively to the infrastructure segment. The team has specialised projects skills and works closely with customer specifications and requirements. The team offers end-to-end project management for metro, railways and airport projects.
The aim is to provide high-quality installation and ensure excellent maintenance throughout the lifespan of the project. In 2013, Otis won the largest elevators and escalators contract for Hyderabad Metro Rail project to supply and install 670 elevators and escalators for the project. During the same year, Otis India was awarded the escalator contract for the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to supply and install 222 escalators (520NPE-L model) for Phase III of the Delhi Metro project.
ExpectationsA vertical development in the residential and commercial building sector has been gathering momentum across several cities in India. While factors such as rapid urbanisation, access to liveable space and escalating land costs are the key drivers of the high-rise trend, a key enabling factor is the revision and relaxation of the building norms by some of the state governments. The country has also moved up the value chain in terms of greater sophistication in the elevator features, such as energy-efficient elevators, advanced safety mechanisms and improved aesthetics. There is a good opportunity for green elevators, and this is evident from the growing real estate space in green category.
The industry has also expanded, with the entrance of many new offerings. Faster speed elevators are now a norm and technologies supporting the environment are now gaining relevance. The industry has also given birth to a new breed of professionals — the vertical transportation consultant who often liaise between developers and manufacturers, ensuring the best solution and fulfilling the best interests of the customers.
Booming real estate sector, housing shortage, increase in population and foreign direct investment in construction industry are some of the reasons which boost elevator demand. This combined with government investment will translate into growth for elevator industry in India.

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