Chinese customers buy about 80,000 units of the double-speed (MD) hoist and 40,000 units of the single-speed (CD) device every year. Last year, Kito sold 18,000 of these hoists, ranging from 500kg to 100t capacity.

The hoist sells so well because it has been approved by the Beijing Materials Handling Institute. Local factories have received copies of the measured drawings. Most of the hoists sold are carbon copies, says Yun Wang, Demag China sales and marketing manager.

Kito’s 80% owned Chinese subsidiary Jiangyin Kito has made the hoist since 1994. Although Kito cannot change the design, which must match the specification exactly, it claims it has improved its model through better quality control, modification of the helical gears, and adjusted braking resistance.