Part Pre-Processing Initiative
GESAD – the Turkish Association of Ship Industrialists – has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with IHC Metalix from the Netherlands to establish a joint pre-processing plant for steel and aluminium parts in Turkey; a joint feasibility study is underway.
The LoI was signed by Mr. Ziya Gökalp of GESAD (left) and Mr. Roel de Graaf (right) of IHC Metalix in the presence of the Dutch Foreign Trade Minister Mr. Frank Heemskerk at the Dutch Consulate General in Istanbul, Turkey. The joint-venture initiative of IHC Metalix and GESAD will combine the high-tech background of IHC Metalix with the dynamics of the Turkish shipbuilding industry.
IHC Metalix’s main production site near Rotterdam, the Netherlands, has been producing building kits for all types of vessels for almost 25 years now. Since 2005 there is also a production facility in Belgrade to serve the Balkan area. Mr. Roel de Graaf of IHC Metalix expects the local facility in Turkey to be of great value in professionalizing the Turkish shipyards’ production processes, getting the upper hand on the international competition in the long run.