NUROL Makina General Manager Engin AYKOL:

Defence Turkey: Founded in 1976 with 100% Turkish capital to operate in the machinery manufacturing industry, NUROL Makina entered the defense industry in 1992 and started its activities in the facilities at the Sincan Organized Industrial Zone in Ankara. Can you briefly introduce us to NUROL Makina? What can you tell us about the goals set for the defense industry and the projects realized so far?

Engin AYKOL: NUROL Makina, which was founded in 1976 to build industrial facilities and operate in the engineering field, has become a global player in the defense industry with its indigenous and national products. Since its establishment, NUROL Makina has undertaken and completed numerous large-scale contracting projects. In 1990, it started using its experience in engineering and production to design domestic subsystem products. We set off in 2012 as a group of senior management with extensive experience in the defense industry. We got started with the aim of becoming a significant player both domestically and globally. As NUROL Makina, we have been acting as an integrator and technology developer over the past 10 years, in addition to our role as an armored vehicle manufacturer. I would like to state that we are one of the leading companies in exports in the defense industry and that our exports will keep increasing in the future. 

Today, NUROL Makina's armored vehicles are actively used in more than twenty countries, spanning continents from Africa to Europe and from South America to Southeast Asia. As you can see, this is not a coincidence. One of our key objectives is to establish facilities, through which we can serve in a more agile way to respective End Users.  You will hear more about this soon; we are achieving our goals one by one. In addition, with the vision to become one of the globally leading 4x4 armored vehicle company, we have been constantly investing to our people, infrastructure and internal processes since the day we assumed office.

Defence Turkey: Can you inform us about NUROL Makina's current organizational structure, personnel status, 2021 performance, as well as goals and expectations for 2022?

Engin AYKOL: As of today, we have a well-established organizational structure as NUROL Makina. We have more than 600 employees. We were able to address our need for additional facilities, which became apparent with the growth in the number of our employees, with the commissioning of our Göktürk branch, where we will conduct our newly established product support activities in Sincan OSB, and the plans we made for our current campus. We will start the investment for a production facility at Hungary by 2022, from where we aim to serve also some European countries. Frankly, it does not stop there.

We are willing to be one of the few notable global manufacturers in the tactical wheeled armored vehicles segment, and I believe we are coming closer to that objective each day. In the upcoming years.

Defence Turkey: Can you inform us about the current infrastructure of NUROL Makina production facilities, annual production capacity, and the production technology infrastructure?

Engin AYKOL: We highly value operating with cutting-edge manufacturing infrastructure at our facilities. Superior quality and exceptional performance, in our opinion, are not a coincidence. We have advanced machinery and equipment at our facilities such as 5-axis laser cutting devices, 7-axis robotic welding machines, hydraulic eccentric presses, laser scanning measurement systems, and painting units.

In this manner, we ensure the sustainability of the high quality of our products, enhance customer trust, and provide long-term service to end-users. We have high manufacturing capacity that is enough meet multiple projects requiring different vehicle configurations simultaneously. We delivered hundreds of vehicles last year despite slow-down in the supply chain due to the pandemic. once we reach post-pandemic era, thanks to our skilled and innovative people as well as advanced infrastructure our production rates will go up even further. 

Defence Turkey: What can you tell us about NUROL Makina's export-related activities? What would you like to say about the products exported in 2020 and 2021, as well as the company's export performance? What percentage of your overall production do you export?

Engin AYKOL: Despite the pandemic, we have made significant progress globally over the last two years. We signed numerous new contracts with both new customers and existing users in 2021. We attained the greatest variety of vehicle configurations in 2021 as well. The majority of our total production is intended for export. We are always ready to satisfy demand as it arises in the country as well.

Regarding our export success, I would like to underline that all our export contracts are based on Nurol Makina’s competitive vehicle performance as well as organizational agility in the international arena. Thus, they are all direct procurement contracts by the End User countries and none of them is based on government donations. I am proud to say that all our users are quite satisfied with the performance of our vehicles and our people, which brings further orders from existing users. 

Many countries around the world utilize our EJDER YALÇIN, NMS 4X4 YÖRÜK, ILGAZ and TOMA vehicles. We are currently working on our new EJDER KUNTER vehicle. We have seen over the years how important a highly protected armored personnel carrier is, so when this vehicle is fully completed, and the certification tests are over, we believe it will draw significant interest. As a result, exports account for a substantial portion of our turnover. We take great satisfaction in the export-related contributions we have made to both our industry and the national economy. This motivation can be seen in both our production and product development efforts.

Defence Turkey: EJDER YALÇIN is an indigenously designed platform that has proven itself on the battlefield, offering superior protection and mobility, developed to meet the operational needs of the Armed Forces and Security Forces in all kinds of regional and terrain conditions, including rural and urban areas. Hungary became a customer of the EJDER YALÇIN after a contract was inked in 2019. As a result, NUROL Makina became the first Turkish Defense Industry business to export a domestically produced Tactical Wheeled Armored Vehicle (TTZA) to EU and NATO member countries. Can you provide details about the project's most up-to-date status and delivery schedule?

Engin AYKOL: At the end of 2020, we delivered the first vehicles to Hungary. In 2022 and 2023, more number of vehicles will be delivered. Hungary has been realizing a very successful modernization program called Zrinyi 2026, where they procure only the best in class systems for all military domains. We are proud that EJDER YALÇIN and YÖRÜK 4X4 NMS vehicles will continue to be added to Hungary's inventory as part of the Zrinyi 2026 modernization program. 

Defence Turkey: What kind of user feedback are you receiving on the vehicles? Are there any plans for additional vehicle orders?

Engin AYKOL: Both domestic and foreign users give us quite positive feedback. We know the significance of our vehicles' missions and the benefits they provide to their users. For this reason, whenever something must be improved, we make every effort to do so.  Currently there are nearly 1,000 EJDER YALÇIN vehicles in the field. Our product support teams go above and beyond to repair and maintain our damaged vehicles, whether at home or abroad. Utilizing our time and resources effectively, we work with our business development team to meet the needs of the entire geography and industry.

Defence Turkey: You have recently launched a business in Hungary that will operate in accordance with local regulations. Could you tell our readers why this company was founded and how many people work there? Will this future business be used to produce various vehicle types locally, including YÖRÜK and EJDER NUROL?

Engin AYKOL:We founded NUROL Makina Hungary for the local production activities in Hungary. Our corporate headquarters is located in Budapest. We will establish a JV with a local company in 2022 to produce 4x4 armored vehicles, including EJDER YALÇIN and YÖRÜK, with the newly established company. . We will also provide services to the countries in the region.

Defence Turkey: Platforms like EJDER YALÇIN TTZA and YÖRÜK NMS quickly attained worldwide fame. Unquestionably, critical R&D projects and significant infrastructural investments have been crucial to this accomplishment. Can you tell us more about NUROL Makina’s ongoing land platforms R&D projects?

Engin AYKOL: EJDER YALÇIN is a combat-proven vehicle; thus, it is a fact that it has developed a formidable reputation in the regions where it is utilized. The process is just getting started for our YÖRÜK vehicle. In our R&D activities, we focus on autonomous vehicle technology. In this context, we concentrate on advancements for remote control of vehicles as we continue our development activities for full autonomous vehicles.

In regions where asymmetric engagement is prevalent, remote control of vehicles is crucial for guaranteeing that the vehicle can operate without endangering troops. In order to cover the long-term demands of high-end users, we have now made this architecture compatible with the NATO Generic Vehicle Architecture standard. We continue to perform R&D at our facilities using modern manufacturing techniques and effectively use the potential offered by the latest technologies in our vehicles. We are making every effort to use the contributions of modern technology to the fullest and can now control our vehicles using tablets and mobile devices, thanks to our in-house software and applications kits.

Defence Turkey: Can you give us some hints about the new vehicle you plan to introduce in 2022?

Engin AYKOL: Without delving into specifics, the EJDER KUNTER vehicle will be on the field with a brand-new design. We intend to introduce our vehicle as soon as the design and qualification tests are completed. Via your magazine, I can let you know the good news about this. We will also share more details of the vehicle with you over time.

Defence Turkey: What feedback did you receive for the pick-up version of YÖRÜK, which you debuted at the IDEF 2021 Fair? What can you tell us about its export potential and the current status of your negotiations?

Engin AYKOL: We are getting a lot of positive feedback. We were aware that the market had such a demand. I believe the responses we get in the near future will be positive. Promotional activities of our pick-up vehicle continue at various events, and we recently showed our vehicle at the BSDA exhibition in Romania. We will keep our marketing activities at full throttle.

Defence Turkey: Within the scope of the contract signed with QATAR, covering the procurement of a large number of YÖRÜK NMS 4×4 and EJDER YALÇIN, it was declared that the deliveries would be made in "two" batches; the first batch would be delivered in 2021 and the second batch in 2022. Can you update us on the project's status as of 2022? What can you tell us about the configurations and numbers that were delivered? Is it possible to expand the existing contract with new purchases in the coming period?

Engin AYKOL: Thanks to the successful performance of our vehicles in Qatar, we expect that the number of orders may increase in line with the evolving needs. In this context, we continue our production activities and deliveries for Qatar.

Defence Turkey: You have a significant contract in Qatar, and discussions about other projects are ongoing. What can you tell us about the present state of the partnership you have forged with the local business Barzan Holding and your long-term objectives? We would also like to know more about the specifics of the "know-how" transfer you will be making to Qatar/Barzan Holding for the repair and maintenance of NUROL Makina vehicles in the inventory of the Qatar Armed Forces.

Engin AYKOL: Nurol Makina has firm cooperation with Barzan, which gains strength with each completed and new project. Our collaboration with Barzan also includes providing long-term repair and maintenance support, along with meeting system-level needs. Within the framework of the letter of intent we signed with Barzan during the DIMDEX Fair, we continue to work on repairing and maintaining our systems in Qatar.

Defence Turkey: As per the contract signed in 2017, the first export customer of the EJDER YALÇIN 4x4 Tactical Wheeled Armored Vehicle was a North African country. On May 14, 2021, Ejder YALÇIN 4x4 vehicles were also exhibited as part of the 65th-anniversary celebrations of the Moroccan Army. In addition, images of Chad Army soldiers using EJDER Yalçın and YÖRÜK 4x4 vehicles were posted on social media. What can you tell us about NUROL Makina's footprint in the African market and its recent sales and deliveries? Can you inform us about your vehicle models and the total number of vehicles operating in Africa? Do you have any plans to open a local maintenance/repair facility to serve the African market?

Engin AYKOL: Today, all our vehicles -aside from EJDER KUNTER- are actively used on the African continent, and we have a strong logistics support network there. The number of our vehicles in Africa is rapidly increasing with the second and third contracts we have signed with most user countries. We now have solutions in different models for maintenance and repair operations in every African country where we operate. We are a business that places a high value on post-sale activities. Maintenance and repair are thus among the most crucial criteria in the design phase of our vehicles. In the future, it may be possible to establish a facility in direct relation to the increase in the number of vehicles.

Defence Turkey: Your vehicles are used in various regions around the world. Can you provide some details about the number of tactical wheeled armored vehicles currently in use or already delivered?

Engin AYKOL:We have now become a global player with thousands of vehicles delivered to more than 20 countries. However, our customers do not only require personnel carriers from us. Our vehicles have several variants with various payload capabilities. These configurations are actively deployed in the field and they also bring added value to our country. We offer original armored vehicles designed and manufactured according to user specifications in every part of the world, from Türkiye to South America and Africa, Europe to the Gulf countries, and East and Southeast Asia.

Defence Turkey: What can you tell us about the marketing campaigns you conduct in Malaysia? You had previously collaborated with the regional business NADI Corp Holdings Sdn Bhd and proposed your EJDER YALÇIN 4x4 solution within the context of the 4x4 armed TTZA needs of the Malaysian Armed Forces. The Malaysian Land Forces plan to purchase 4x4 and 6x6 wheeled armored vehicles, and Turkish businesses are closely monitoring the tender process.

Engin AYKOL: With Malaysia, NUROL Makina entered the Southeast Asian market for the first time. As a result, we have made our distinctive products available to customers in various regions, including South America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and even Asia and Southeast Asia.

The experienced structure of the Malaysian Army is well-versed in its objectives. Before selection, thorough tests were conducted, and the Malaysian Army selected our EJDER YALÇIN vehicle since it performed well in these tests, in addition to its proven success in many other countries. The vehicles are currently in production, and we aim to deliver them in 2023. 

Together with our local partner NADI Corp., we accomplished this feat. We are closely following the upcoming 4x4 wheeled armored vehicle projects.

Defence Turkey: What can you tell us about your expectations and objectives for the domestic and global markets over the next ten years?

Engin AYKOL: The progress we achieved last year also continues this year. As we talked, we launched our Hungary office this year. For us, this marks a significant turning point. In the forthcoming period, NUROL Makina plans to open sites abroad. We will continue our initiatives in producing top-notch vehicles and offering the highest caliber of customer care support.

Defence Turkey: Do you have any final words you would like to share with our readers? 

Engin AYKOL: Thank you for this interview. We appreciate that Defence Turkey magazine has a significant role in the industry. On this occasion, we send our sincere greetings and regards to those performing activities in our sector and to your readers