Konecranes' operating income more than doubled for fiscal 2006 and business grew for all segments and geographic regions.

Konecranes' operating income was EUR105.5 million (USD138.7 million) in 2006 compared to EUR49.3 million (USD64.8 million) in 2005.

Net sales for the year jumped 52.7 per cent from EUR970.8 million (USD1,276.4 million) in 2005 to EUR1,482.5 million (USD1,949.2 million). Sales in all Konecranes' business segments, service, standard lifting and heavy lifting, grew. Sales in standard lifting grew the most, at 81.7 per cent.

Sales in MMH Holdings Inc amounted to EUR104 million (USD136.7 million) in the seven-month period it was included in the group figures. Konecranes acquired MMH Holdings Inc for USD64.6 million (USD84.9 million) in June 2006 (Forkliftaction.com News #265).

Service sales grew 26.1 per cent compared to 2005 but decreased in proportion to total sales due to strong new equipment sales.

There was a "somewhat higher" turnover in service personnel because of a tight labour market in some geographical regions. This increased difficulty in recruiting skilled labour and limited growth in the service segment.

Orders growth was strongest in Germany and the US. Emerging markets China and Russia "continued to grow at a good pace", a company statement said.

Konecranes received strong demand for its container handling equipment from India, Bangladesh, Brazil, South Korea and new areas in China, Turkey and parts of Africa.

Last year Konecranes dropped KCI from its name, introduced a new logo and adopted "Lifting businesses" as a global tagline (Forkliftaction.com News #276).