Recently, the newly commissioned elevators at Jingdi Apartments in Xinqi Subdistrict, Beilun District, reached their second month of operation. After experiencing them firsthand, residents have spoken highly of their new "partners".

This year, the retrofit & modernization of aging residential elevators was included within the scope of funding supported by the central government's ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, making such projects eligible for "government subsidies".

All of the elevators installed in this retrofit & modernization project at Jingdi Apartments were supplied by "ZOIRSAN Elevator", a local Ningbo elevator brand. Benefiting from the combined support of "government subsidies + price concessions" offered by the local manufacturer, residents were able to enjoy safe and comfortable new elevators without paying anything out of pocket.

Following the commissioning of new elevators at Jingdi Apartments in mid-August, Xingye City Jiayuan in Beilun shortly beforehand, Yingshuihao in Fenghua on September 15, and Paishe Tixiang in Beilun on September 25, a total of four residential communities have now completed elevator retrofit & modernization projects and put their new elevators into operation. With these projects now completed, ZOIRSAN Elevator, a Ningbo-based brand backed by 43 years of experience in the elevator industry, originally renowned for a different segment of the business, is gaining increasing recognition among Ningbo residents.

ZOIRSAN Elevator Smart Factory

"Made in Ningbo" Elevators Break Through the "Ultra-Narrow Hoistway Adaptation & Fast Turnaround Delivery"

In 1983, at the beginning of China's reform and opening-up, the Ningbo Administration for Industry and Commerce issued Ningbo's No. 0001 Individual Business License to the newly established Ningbo Lilong Machinery & Electric Co., Ltd.

From this historic beginning, Ningbo Lilong Machinery & Electric Co., Ltd. embarked on the R&D and manufacture of stainless-steel escalator steps and elevator components, becoming a long-term Tier 1 supplier to numerous internationally renowned elevator manufacturers. In 2017, the company expanded into the manufacture and sale of domestically developed complete elevator systems and established its own proprietary elevator brand. It has since grown into Ningbo Lilong Enterprise Group Co., Ltd. ("Lilong Group"), employing more than 1,000 people and operating a 300-mu (≈20 ha) plant site.

The proprietary complete elevator brand built by Lilong Group through 43 years of industry expertise and proven experience is "ZOIRSAN Elevator".

In 2013, Lilong Group partnered with the predecessor of Sagami Elec Co., Ltd. to establish an elevator R&D center in Nagoya, Japan, a city renowned for its elevator industry and whose product philosophy better aligns with Chinese consumers' expectations for safety, ride comfort, and aesthetics than many European and American alternatives. At the time, China's real estate market was booming, and the elevator industry was enjoying "rapid growth with abundant market opportunities". However, market research revealed that most elevator manufacturers were concentrating on the passenger elevator market, while the residential elevator segment for single-family homes remained largely underserved."

In addition, many of the leading residential elevator brands at the time generally suffered from poor hoistway space utilization, limited aesthetic design, and an inability to provide personalized customization." Chen Yongtuo, General Manager of ZOIRSAN Elevator (Ningbo) Co., Ltd., recalled that Lilong Group therefore made the strategic decision to enter the residential elevator market first. By integrating advanced technologies introduced from Japan with localized development, the company significantly enhanced the aesthetics, ride comfort, and, most importantly, the hoistway space utilization of its residential elevators. "This means that, with the same hoistway dimensions, we can provide a larger and more spacious elevator car than conventional designs. Conversely, with the same car size, our elevators require less usable interior floor area for the hoistway. In addition, we can provide highly flexible customized solutions—even for projects with extremely limited installation space."

Since completing the localized development of its first residential elevator model in 2016, Lilong Group has successively become the original design manufacturer (ODM) of residential elevator products for a number of leading domestic and international elevator brands.

"However, as an ODM, the customer requirements we received had already been filtered through our clients. To gain direct access to first-hand customer needs and market feedback, we subsequently established our own brand, 'ZOIRSAN Elevator'." According to Chen Yongtuo, ZOIRSAN Elevator now accounts for more than 60% of the residential elevator market in Ningbo. The company operates residential elevator experience centers in more than 120 cities across China, including Ningbo, Jinhua, Taizhou, Wenzhou, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, and Tianjin, providing direct sales, customized solutions, maintenance, and after-sales services to individual customers. As a result, "ZOIRSAN Elevator" has become a well-recognized brand among Ningbo homeowners seeking residential elevators. Approximately 30% of its annual orders come through referrals from existing customers.

Shortly before last year's "May Day" holiday, ZOIRSAN Elevator secured a "major contract" from the project's general contractor for 154 elevators to serve a world-class international event in Ningbo, backed by a written "commitment" guaranteeing on-time delivery.

Chen Yongtuo explained that the project involved no pre-existing steel hoistway structures, while the hoistway dimensions were extremely constrained. Under normal circumstances, the project would have required at least three months to complete. However, the entire project, including hoistway surveying and construction, elevator design and manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and final acceptance, had to be completed within just 45 days.

To meet this deadline, ZOIRSAN Elevator rapidly assembled a cross-functional project team during the "May Day" holiday and fully leveraged the logistical advantages of being locally based in Ningbo. Construction was organized in groups of ten elevator hoistways, while elevators were simultaneously dispatched from the factory in batches of ten units. As each group of hoistways was completed, the corresponding batch of elevators was immediately delivered for installation. Meanwhile, 180 installation technicians, organized into 60 crews, worked in two shifts according to a tightly coordinated daily schedule, installing each batch of elevators immediately upon arrival. Through this high-efficiency, rolling deployment approach, ZOIRSAN Elevator completed the project on schedule and earned high recognition from the general contractor.

Overseas, ZOIRSAN Elevator's products are now sold in Japan, the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Italy, and several countries in the Middle East.

Shortly before this year's National Day holiday, a purchasing representative from Italy paid another on-site visit to ZOIRSAN Elevator and spoke highly of its production facilities: "Last year, I visited the company because of its strong reputation, and I was highly impressed by both its product quality and production capacity. This is already my second visit to ZOIRSAN Elevator this year. The purpose of this visit is to discuss becoming ZOIRSAN Elevator's authorized distributor in Italy. I'm confident that we will establish a strong and long-term partnership with ZOIRSAN Elevator!"

ZOIRSAN Elevator's Savagnini Bending Center

A "Veteran Brand" in the "New Arena" of Elevator Retrofit & Modernization

Following decades of dedicated commitment to the elevator industry, Lilong Group has grown into a National High-Tech Enterprise (Group), a National Intellectual Property Advantage Enterprise, and a member of the National Technical Committee for Elevator Standardization. The Group holds more than 200 valid patents and has participated in the drafting and revision of numerous national standards. It has also established R&D and testing centers in Nagoya, Japan, and in Shanghai and Ningbo, China. Supported by 16 elevator hoist test towers and a central laboratory platform, the Group has established a collaborative innovation network spanning the Asia-Pacific region and extending worldwide, continuously delivering safe, intelligent, and efficient mid- to high-end residential and passenger elevator solutions to customers around the globe. Its annual production value has reached RMB 1.5 billion.

In the production of complete elevators under its own brand, ZOIRSAN Elevator has introduced its automated production equipment and smart manufacturing systems entirely from Germany and Japan. In particular, the Automatic Bending Line from Murata of Japan and the Savagnini Bending Center represent industry-leading manufacturing capabilities. According to Chen Yongtuo, these systems are considered "benchmark" equipment even among leading global elevator manufacturers.

He explained that elevator doors are the components most susceptible to faults. Problems such as doors failing to close tightly, impact noises during closing, door rebound, and abnormal operating noise are all closely related to insufficient door precision and poor vertical alignment. The Murata Automatic Bending Line and the Savagnini Bending Center significantly improve the precision and vertical alignment of elevator doors, thereby delivering a smoother, quieter, and more comfortable riding experience.

This year, ZOIRSAN Elevator identified the retrofit & modernization of aging residential elevators as another strategic growth area in its passenger elevator business. As with its residential elevator business, the Company is committed to localizing advanced imported technologies for the Chinese market. The initiative benefits from the Company's existing expertise while presenting a new set of challenges.

"The first step in elevator retrofit & modernization is to conduct a thorough survey of the dimensions of the existing elevator hoistway and machine room. Based on the survey results, the elevator must be specifically designed to fit the existing hoistway. While ensuring that every configuration fully complies with applicable regulations and standards, we also strive to maximize convenience for residents." Chen Yongtuo cited the Xingye City Jiayuan elevator retrofit & modernization project, the first such project completed by ZOIRSAN Elevator, as an example. The project included two panoramic elevators with irregularly shaped cars, while load-bearing steel beams had to be retained in the machine room, presenting considerable challenges for both design and installation. Drawing on the Company's years of hands-on experience in flexible customized solutions for residential elevators, the project was completed in less than 20 days, well ahead of the typical construction period of about one month.

As the number of projects increased, ZOIRSAN Elevator's staff gradually developed an effective way of working with community residents. In residential buildings with many elderly occupants, they place stools in the corridors for residents to rest, lend a hand by carrying groceries such as rice and flour, and voluntarily help collect parcels. These thoughtful gestures not only ease residents' anxiety during the elevator retrofit & modernization process but also help projects progress more smoothly and efficiently.

To date, four of the elevator retrofit & modernization projects undertaken by ZOIRSAN Elevator have been completed and put into operation. Residents most frequently describe the elevators as "ultra-smooth running" and "quiet", while praising the staff for their "friendly service" and "high efficiency."

Chen Yongtuo said that, after years of experience and expertise in the elevator industry, Lilong Group has established comprehensive R&D, manufacturing, quality management, and after-sales service systems. The Company is both determined and confident that the ZOIRSAN passenger elevators deployed in elevator retrofit & modernization projects will offer more robust materials, finer workmanship, more reliable performance, longer warranty coverage, and faster maintenance response than most economy-class passenger elevators on the market.

"As a homegrown Ningbo brand, we sincerely hope to serve our fellow citizens with products and services that surpass those of our peers. We also hope to earn more opportunities to contribute to elevator retrofit & modernization and the Beautiful Countryside initiative by serving our local communities." Reporter: Xu Luqing