Trade file · Building systems
Hospitality Radar follows 5,780 hotel projects in planning, construction and renovation. For elevators and escalators, about 730 of them are being specified right now, while the products are still being chosen, and about 600 are buying. A product that is already in the spec goes into the tender with the best odds.
Hotel projects entering specification for elevators and escalators, by quarter.
Hotel projects entering the purchasing window for elevators and escalators, by quarter.
Estimate from each project's opening year and typical lead times for this trade. Later quarters fill up as new projects are announced, so a lower bar further out is not a falling market.
Cities with the most hotel projects being specified for this trade right now. The city file opens with your trade on top.
Projects being specified now or entering specification in the next 12 months, by region.
Share of projects with a known class. Our coverage is strongest in upscale and luxury hotels; midscale and select-service projects are being added.
For elevators and escalators, specification typically runs from 36 to 22 months before opening and purchasing from 24 to 14 months before opening. There are two ways into a project: through the specification or through the tender. A product that is already in the spec goes into the tender with the best odds.
The architect or a dedicated vertical transportation consultant sets car count, capacity, speed and type early in design, with brand standards from operators such as Marriott, Hilton, Accor, IHG and Hyatt setting minimum technical requirements. Procurement runs through the general contractor or owner, typically via a tender with a shortlist of three to four manufacturers.
Elevator shafts are fixed early in the structural design, so suppliers that wait for a public tender are often too late to shape the specification.
Across the elevator industry, service and modernisation now generate higher margins than new equipment and are growing faster, driven by an ageing installed base. For hotel owners this means more renovation-driven elevator spend relative to ground-up new builds over the coming cycle.
Source: rolandberger.com
Modernisation demand is expanding fastest in Asia and in the Middle East and Africa, regions with large stocks of ageing high-rise buildings including hotel towers. Suppliers active in these regions can expect retrofit and upgrade volumes to grow faster than the global average.
Source: rolandberger.com
Manufacturers now position glass and panoramic lift cars explicitly for hotel, retail and commercial lobbies, built to make a visible architectural statement rather than serve as plain circulation. This pushes cab design and finish into a separate, later decision from the core technical specification.
Source: stannahlifts.co.uk
Otis reported its modernisation order backlog at a record high and up sharply year on year, which points to a multi-year replacement cycle rather than a short-term bump. Suppliers can plan outreach around renovation pipelines with more confidence than in a one-off upgrade wave.
Source: s203.q4cdn.com
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As of November 2026. Figures are estimates, rounded, and recalculated with every update of the radar.