designs significantly reduced the size of elevator machinery and its lift mechanism by using permanent-magnet electric motors (PMM). The use of these mechanisms enabled all of the elevator's equipment and its inner workings to be confined to the space above the elevator shaft, known as the hoistway overhead, instead of needing an entire room dedicated to machinery. At the beginning of the 21st Century, due to the apparent benefits of Kone's pioneering elevator systems, rival companies began competitively marketing machine-room-less elevators of their own. 1999–2021 Kone's chairman of the board, Pekka Herlin, died on April 4, 2003, after a long illness. Antti Herlin was subsequently appointed the new chairman of the board in June 2003. Matti Alahuhta, a former executive vice president at Nokia Corporation, previously serving as the president of Nokia Mobile Phones, was later chosen to fill Herlin's vacant position as the acting president of the Kone Corporation. He held the position since 2005 and officially became the firm's president and CEO in 2006. In April 2014, Alahuhta stepped down and Kone's CFO at the time, Henrik Ehrnrooth was appointed Alahuhta's successor. In 2000, Kone sold off the American factory in Winfield, KS to Wittur. This was done despite repeated assurances by Kone management to its employees that the factory was not for sale. In 2002, Kone acquired Partek, a Finnish industrial engineering company with net sales equal to Kone's. Partek's business areas specialized in container handling, load handling, forest machinery, and tractors. The tractors were manufactured under the Valtra brand. The Kone Materials Handling division thus comprised these Partek business areas. In 2003, Kone decided to concentrate on Container Handling and Load Handling, and the tractor and forest machine businesses were sold. The Valtra tractor business was sold to AGCO, a worldwide agricultural manufacturer. As the structure of Kone Materials Handling changed significantly, the name Kone Cargotec was introduced in January 2004. Its business areas were Kalmar (container handling) and HIAB (load handling). At the end of 2004, Kone Cargotec acquired MacGREGOR, a global marine cargo-flow service provider. In August 2004, the Kone Board of Directors presented a plan to split the company into two separately listed companies on the Helsinki Stock Exchanges in June 2005. One company would comprise Kone's existing elevator, escalator & building door service business and continue to operate under the name Kone Corporation. The other company would comprise Kone Cargotec's business area