Turkey has achieved remarkable success in industrialization and this is considered to be the fundamental factor in Turkey’s development.

The initiation of the Turkish machinery industry dates back to the 1950’s. In 1950 the first large-scale industrial investment in the Turkish Republic came through MKEK (Machinery, Chemical Industry Institution), a completely governmental institution. The private firms in the sector evolved in the 1960’s.

Development of the machinery industry accelerated especially during the Second Five-Year Development Plan period (1968-1972) with the establishment of both state and private enterprises of manufacturing plants for sugar processing machinery, pumps and diesel motors, boilers, ovens, hoisting and conveying machinery, storage tanks, pressurised tanks and machine tools.  Although the machinery industry was initiated and established by state enterprises, currently private enterprises dominate the industry. The share of state companies in the sector is 6% with 360 companies, which have more than 25 employees.

The product range of the Turkish machinery industry consists of boilers and burners, building machinery, heavy industrial machinery, machine tools, milling machines, drilling machines, cutting and bending machines, woodworking machinery, pumps and compressors, hand tools, power turbines, air conditioning units, textile machinery, food processing machinery, hoisting and conveying machinery, sewing machines, refrigerators and washing machines (both domestic and industrial), valves, gears and bearings. The Turkish machinery industry is able to produce almost all of the parts and accessories for the above named items with competitive prices and of high quality. The average local input content in the production stage is around 80-85 %.

The machinery manufacturing industry has particular importance for Turkey due to its promising export potential. Manufacturing firms in this field made production mainly for the domestic market until 1990. After 1990, rapid developments in the sector were observed and the sector has directed its attention to foreign markets also.

The rapid increase in the population and living standards in Turkey have resulted in the need to produce more and better quality white goods. The sector has been adapting itself parallel to the consumer preferences by modern production technology. Turkey has about 11 million households, which indicate a huge market for white goods. According to the data provided by White Goods Manufacturers’ Association, the quantity of refrigerators, washing machines and dish washing machines produced were 2.1 million units, 1.2 million units and 325.4 thousand units respectively in 1999. The exports of white goods are mainly directed to the EU countries.

Turkish construction sector is one of the major sectors, which contributes to the exports of the Turkish services sector. Now Turkey is among the top countries which exports services in construction sector. In the period of 1972-1999 the total value of services undertaken by the Turkish contractors abroad reached US $40 billion. Today, the share of Turkish contracting services in international global contracting services is about 2-3%. Parallel to the developments in the Turkish construction sector, the production of construction and mining machineries in Turkey has increased, as well.

Textile sector is one of the most important sectors in Turkey and shows steady developments. There is a permanent increase in textile production.  As a consequence of these improvements, the Turkish spinning and weaving machinery industries have also developed.

Strong Turkish food industry resulted in fast growth of the food processing machinery sector. The recent developments in catering services in Turkey have accelerated the demand for industrial kitchenware. The machineries produced in the sector are mainly, kebab machines, bakery equipment, olive-oil machines, biscuit machines and chocolate machines.

Turkey with its traditional good quality workmanship, efficient infrastructure, advantageous labor costs and liberal economic policies is attracting the interest of developed countries for investment purposes. A significant number of medium and large scale companies have “know-how” license agreements with well-known international companies. Turkish companies welcome foreign investors through joint-ventures with the transfer of technology, making use of skilled labor to be competitive in the world markets.

Turkish machinery exporters follow the European and international standards and norms, and the majority of them include the “CE Mark” on their products.

Turkish machinery sector products are more competitive in international markets due to relatively cheaper labor and good engineering skills in Turkey. In recent years, Turkish machinery industry has recorded a substantial increase in exports compared to Turkey’s overall exports. In 1999, the export value of the machinery industry was approximately US $1.3 billion.

The most important items in exports were engine and spare parts, pumps and compressors, refrigerators, construction and mining machinery, metal and wood processing machinery. The export values for pumps and compressors, metal and wood processing machines, construction and mining machines, refrigerators and engine and spare parts exported were 65 million Dollars, 97 million Dollars, 150 million Dollars, 199 million Dollars and 206 million Dollars, respectively

The total export value for textile machines was 27 million Dollars in 1999.

Engine and spare parts sector, which is a part of automotive sector, has shown a significant development in recent years. The engine and spare parts exports were 200 million Dollars in 1998 and 206 million Dollars in 1999.

The other major products in machinery industry exports are refrigerators. The exports of refrigerators totalled to 199 million Dollars in 1999 increasing by 19% as compared to 1998.  The United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, Belgium and Greece were the major markets for Turkish made refrigerators in 1999.

In 1999, a breakdown of countries importing machinery from Turkey shows that Germany is the main customer. Germany is followed by the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Italy and the Russian Federation. Algeria, Romania, Spain, the Netherlands, Tunisia and Kazakhstan are the other important markets for Turkish machinery exports.