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Temet aims to strengthen the relationship with Turkey by its CBRN solutions

Temet is the global leader in blast protection and special ventilation technology applied in protective constructions such as civilian shelters and hardened military facilities. Jyrki Ronkainen, Temet President & Chief Executive Officer enlighten us on capabilities, products, ongoing projects, strategies and plans for Turkish Market.

Defence Turkey: Could you please inform about your organization and history in brief?

Temet was founded in 1953 to serve the newly established Finnish heavy industries as a subcontractor for steel and metal products. The founders soon decided that for long term success the company also needed own products and started to manufacture school gymnastic equipment and various kinds of transport devices.

The Finnish government started to modernize the Civil Defence arrangements after the Second World War with focus on a new Civil Defence law that was passed in the Parliament in October 1958. This was the start of the building of Civil Defence shelters in Finland. Temet rapidly diversified into this new field and participated in this program as a shelter equipment supplier from the very beginning. As the demand for the other product groups fell, the success of Civil Defense shelter equipment grew strongly. By 1963, the share of these products in Temet's production was already 85%, and the company had become the market leader in Finland.

Strong technology and product development opened the way for Temet to international markets in the beginning of the 1970’s. Exports began with the Swedish market and widened to the Middle East and South East Asia through the sister company Temet USA established in the United States in the early 1980’s.

Since the end of the 1980’s, Temet has actively sought new technologies to complete its shelter business. Today, Temet belongs to a group of high-tech companies owned by a privately held group holding company Finntemet Oy. Temet’s sister companies within Temet Group are: Environics Oy which specializes in CBRN detection and detection systems and TVI Vision Oy, an expert in high-end line scan cameras used in demanding industrial machine vision applications.

Defence Turkey: It is well known that TEMET is the global leader in blast protection and special ventilation technology applied in protective constructions such as civilian shelters and hardened military facilities. Could you please enlighten us about your capabilities and products? What are your Technologies focused on military facilities?

Today, the Temet brand covers four distinct areas all based on the same core blast protection and special ventilation technologies. These are: hardened shelter technology, industrial protection, mobile collective protection and special applications. Three of these four areas are clearly focused on military applications. We can provide a full range of special shelter equipment and protective systems for any hardened military facility be it a command center, personnel shelter, ammunition storage etc.. For mobile systems such as collective protection tents or containers we can provide an integrated CBRN filtration and air-conditioning system, and for CBRN-protected vehicles and vessels we can offer various types filters and filtration systems. Our special applications cover for example fully automated large scale carbon dioxide removal systems for military facilities and special high pressure blast resistant doors intended for laboratories where the explosion can occur at a very short standoff distance producing also a severe fragment load to be considered.

Defence Turkey: Could you please inform us about the military programmes and projects carried out by TEMET in local and international platforms?

Naturally, Temet is the supplier of choice for the Finnish military for both hardened shelters and mobile systems. In the international market our strongest areas are the Middle East, Central Asia and the United States. Most of the programs Temet has been, and is currently working on are classified and thus can not be used as references. However, we can say that the Temet Organization has been working with literally all major A/E Design Firms, Construction Management Companies and Contractors dealing with military construction. These firms work for organizations around the world that have approved the use of Temet technology in facilities they operate or in facilities constructed under their supervision.

Defence Turkey: What are your R&D projects on new technologies?

In blast protection, our R&D focus is on blast valves and blast dampers that are needed for protection of the facility ventilation system. We constantly introduce new valve products on the market. All our valves and dampers have been tested with either gas driven or high explosives blast simulators to prove their blast resistance and damping efficiency. As an example, we have developed together with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland a new blast simulator for testing blast dampers for long duration pressure loads present in industrial accidents caused by deflagration of hydrocarbons.

In the field of special ventilation, our recent R&D focus has been on the new technology for adsorbing carbon dioxide from the air inside the protected facility. This becomes a necessity in case a high concentration of toxic agents or heavy fires makes it impossible to take the outside air into the building even through filters. As a result of this work, we have been able to introduce a continuously operating automatically regenerating CO2 removal system capable of removing the carbon dioxide emitted by the shelter occupants thus making the living conditions inside the shelter tolerable..

Defence Turkey: Could you please inform us about your activities in Turkey? What are your strategies towards Turkey to strengthen the collaboration with Turkish Defence Forces and Turkish Defence Industry?

Until a short time ago, our activity in Turkey was focused on shelter equipment sales and renovation projects of some critical shelters. Besides, M86 and M90 CWA Detectors from Environics were popular through Turkish Civil Defence and Turkish Armed Forces. However due to the changing circumstances in the region and developments at Temet Group, we are starting a new phase in our activities in Turkey.

When we look at the map, Turkey has a geopolitics which becomes more critical and more complex every day. Considering this situation and analyzing the changing strategic threats, main characteristic is that Turkey is a territory where both conventional and asymmetric threats are combined together with many various risks. This is very important for Temet’s business strategy for Turkey. Because, we can provide integrated and sophisticated CBRN solutions against both threats and risks.

We believe Turkey is interested to learn more about and implement Temet Group solutions into its own National Security and Defence plans.

Now, the false threat perception after the cold war is changing rapidly. We see it from the new projects developing, discussions and strategic analyses. More tenders are being prepared and already going on to fill the gaps. Turkish Under Secretariat for Defence Industries is taking very important steps such as mobile CBRN Laboratory which our group company Environics has also proposed.

At this point we are starting a new three year introduction campaign with our Turkish Representative Ileri Defense Co.. Scheduled campaign consists of informing of The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), defence industry companies and related press and media. The final step for this introduction will be a strong participation to IDEF 2011 Exhibition.

Defence Turkey: It is seen that TEMET has taken achievements in various projects with different Defence Forces in all over the world. Can it be considered that Turkish Companies will be your team player in line with your marketing strategies around Turkey?

We know it very well that Temet brand name is always a respected and trusted name for Turkish Defence Authorities. But many key persons don’t know the perfect synergy in Temet Group and its capabilities for the state-of-the art CBRN solutions.

Our purpose is to make well known our capabilities and our cooperation potential with TURKEY. We will achieve it and contribute more to the Turkish Defence Industry projects.

It is obvious that, we can reach to this target by building long-term relations with the Turkish MOD, SSM, Turkish Army and Turkish companies. It is very important for us to develop our dialogues on the basis of some concrete projects.

As Temet Group, we are not a competitor of the Turkish companies; but we are their supportive partner and most dependable source to their CBRN projects.

Defence Turkey: Would you like to give some additional information and messages for our readers?

Though already stated a few times during this interview, I would still use this opportunity to further explain how we see the previously mentioned Group synergy providing enormous added value to the customer. This is best illustrated by the logics that initiating correct and purposeful protective measures implies a fast and reliable detection of the CBRN threat. Now, both detection and protection technologies and solutions are available from a “one-stop-shop” which will greatly facilitate reaching of a better end result for the customer.

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