Cida for Turkey

In 1990, my employer, a Turkish engineering and construction company, formed a joint venture with an American construction company. We transferred personnel from my employer's head office and our American partner sent over a general manager to staff the joint venture. He was a British national working in Canadian branch of our partner. Initially, the joint venture was solely funded by the Turkish partner. Although we now had access to many propriety licenses and know-how we had no order and thus no cash flow yet. Upon return from one of his business trips to Canada, our general manager presented us with a large file with an application documents for R&D from CIDA (Canadian International Development Aid). We prepared a comprehensive submittal for an atmospheric fluidized bed test laboratory together with METU Chemical Engineering Department. CIDA was quick to approve our application and granted us C$500,000. This was a great sum of money back in 1990 and we were able to put our staff to work immediately. We purchased desk top computers, business and engineering software and set out to design the equipment. METU provided the process design. We were able to receive draft copies of similar designs from our partners. Our partners also provided control systems at a discounted price. The equipment was then fabricated locally. Our staff were quick to assemble the test set up and commissioned it for use. It was a great experience for our engineers. Atmospheric fluidized bed test unit started to work in METU thermal laboratory within a few years. Combustion experiments of domestic lignite coals in fluidized bed test rig have begun. Successful results were obtained. Numerous MSc and Phd studies have been concluded using the test set up we had prepared. Technical publications have been written for many journals, and presentations have been made at international congresses, conferences and symposiums. It was a positive expierence and influence for all. Thanks to this grant fund, our local joint venture company overcame the initial start up issues, were able to start participating in bidding activity, started receiving new orders. Use of the desktop computers and the engineering software for thermal analysis, drafting etc. grew assisting in winning new orders greatly. In our part of the world, the research grants are difficult to come by. Although such grants are made available by the government, the distribution is typically not smooth. CIDA grant gave us the opportunity to help a new start up a chance to improve skills and helped a university to open a new laboratory to educate countless students. Over the following decade, we were able to secure commercial contracts, making money for our partners. Significant amount of licenses fees were paid in addition. CIDA grant funds we had received were returned many times over. Our general manager has retired since and returned to Britain to spend his retirement years. METU academics still use the test unit with success. The joint venture was closed down due to the financial difficulties of the foreign partner. Our local partner bought the rights of the foreign partner and continues to market the services, engineering and construction under the new name. CIDA still exists under a different name and continues to provide grant support to R&D studies all over the world.