Global medical supplier in town, scouting for Lanka entry

Saturday, 28 June 2014 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A leading global electrosurgical gear maker with nanotech capacity is scouting Sri Lanka’s healthcare sector for entry. “We are gold standard in terms of electrosurgical gear and operating theatre equipment. In Sri Lanka we are looking for turnkey hospital projects to start with,” said Turkey’s Üzümcü Tıbbi Cihaz ve Medikal Gaz Sistemleri San. ve Tic. A.Ş. Sales and Marketing Manager Tugrul Karagulle on the morning of 26 June in Colombo. Üzümcü’s Marketing Manager Karagülle was addressing Minister of Industry and Commerce of Sri Lanka Rishad Bathiudeen in the presence of Turkish Ambassador to Sri Lanka İskender Okyay and Harcourts Group of Companies Chairman Ahmed Rheyas on 26 June at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Colombo. Turkey is the eastern-most member in the powerful NATO bloc. According to the Department of Commerce of Sri Lanka, trade with Turkey has been on an increasing trend lately. The total trade turnover in 2005 which stood at $ 97.4 million almost doubled by 2012 to $ 190.57 million, registering an increase of 95.66% (compared to 2005). The balance of trade between Sri Lanka and Turkey has been in favour of Sri Lanka during the last eight years, increasing six-fold-from $ 14.7 million to $ 88.39 million by 2012. Karagülle said: “This is our first visit to Sri Lanka. Our products are used in more than 60 countries in five continents. In this visit, we are meeting government officials and several private sector companies in Colombo to explore here. We are headquartered in Ankara. Our products are in EU standards. We are a well-known brand in the Middles East, Africa, Russia and the Russian speaking countries. We are not in manufacturing of pharmaceuticals. Our in-depth expertise is in production and installation of medical devices and medical gas system equipment since 1969 and this has given us the medical infrastructure and tech ability such as using nanotech. “We are gold standard in terms of electrosurgical gear and operating theatre equipment. In Sri Lanka we are looking for turnkey hospital projects to start with. We are also interested in hospital management as well as BOT projects. We are ready to transfer the high quality healthcare systems and expertise of our Turkey operations to Sri Lanka. We studied Sri Lanka’s medical system and we think there is a need for more ‘technologically advanced hospitals’ here. “Even in existing hospitals, there appears to be a need for modernising medical equipment. We have high capacity manufacturing in Turkey and Germany in this regard. We will not be looking at setting up medical equipment manufacturing here but rather entering to set up a private hospital possibly as a joint venture with a local partner; in that, construction of a medical hospital with our own medical equipment technology.” “We warmly welcome you to Sri Lanka,” said Minister Bathiudeen, responding to Karagülle, and added: “We notice that you have a strong global presence and are a specialised medical provider. We are also thankful for your interest in technology transfer, which is important for us. I and my officials will extend our fullest support to you for your entry.” Thereafter Minister Bathiudeen and Okyay joined together to discuss matters of bilateral trade on 26 June.

Minister of Industry and Commerce of Sri Lanka Rishad Bathiudeen (centre) in discussions with Turkey’s Üzümcü Tıbbi Cihaz ve Medikal Gaz Sistemleri San. ve Tic. A. S. Sales and Marketing Manager Tugrul Karagulle (left) and Turkish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Iskender Okyay (right)