Today, 5 September, Konecranes had the honor of welcoming the President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen to its factory in Dalian, China. During the visit President Halonen acquainted herself with the facility and learned about Konecranes' products and operations in China. The visit was arranged in connection with the President's trip to the World Economic Forum in Dalian.

Konecranes has exported equipment to China since the 1970s. After establishing Chinese sales offices in the 1980s and 1990s, Konecranes opened its first Chinese factory in Shanghai in 2002. The plant was expanded in 2005. The factory in Dalian for harbor crane assembly and production was inaugurated in 2004. Konecranes' fourth Chinese plant started production in Lingang in April 2007. Konecranes' headquarters for North East Asia, including China, are in Shanghai. Konecranes employs 570 persons in China and has a nationwide network of sales and service branches in China. The operations also include three joint venture companies for industrial crane manufacturing. This is by far the most extensive network in China of all western crane companies, and Konecranes has succeeded in increasing its share of the rapidly growing Chinese crane market.

The operations in Dalian employ some 50 Konecranes workers for the manufacture of components for rubber tired gantry (RTG) cranes and rail-mounted gantry (RMG) cranes used for lifting and stacking containers in ports and intermodal terminals.

Konecranes President and CEO Pekka Lundmark, who is part of the business delegation traveling with the President, hosted the visit together with Harry Ollila, Region President, Northeast Asia, Michael Ho, Managing Director, Konecranes China, and Simo Rainio, Production Manager. Members of the press and high-level executives in the President's business delegation also took part in the event.