German engineering giant Siemens will invests four million euros ($5.6m) in a metallurgical service center in Bahrain. The center at Baytik Industrial Oasis will be home to a team of Bahraini and international technicians serving the Middle East steel and aluminum industry with the manufacturing, overhaul and repair of mechanical equipment. This service will help the existing mills in the region to optimize spare part storage and to reduce the downtime of their machines for maintenance and repair. The component lifetime can be increased and time consuming import of spare parts from Europe and South Asia will be obsolete. The center will employ 40 technicians, at least half of whom will be Bahraini nationals. The announcement was made yesterday by Industry and Commerce Minister Dr Hassan Fakhro. Dr Fakhro said he was pleased that a global company like Siemens had chosen Bahrain and the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP) for this new project. Describing Siemens as one of the true global leaders in manufacturing and development of new technologies, Dr Fakhro said that this project was a very important one for Bahrain in that it met several of the its objectives, particularly the provision of new quality skilled jobs for Bahrainis in manufacturing, engineering and services. Dr Fakhro Thursday received Siemens Bahrain chief executive officer Mark Szymanck, Baytik Industrial Oasis chairman Osama Al Khajah and Unitag Group founder and executive chairman and Siemens advisory board chairman Jamil Wafa. ""Siemens has a successful history in Bahrain and a presence in the Middle East of over 150 years,"" said Mr Szymanek. ""The establishment of this service centre is an indicator of both our confidence in the Bahraini economy and our commitment to playing an active, positive role in the country. ""The ongoing development of Bahrain and the attractive facilities of the BIOs and BIIP played a crucial role in our decision to invest here."" ""Middle East steel and aluminum companies generally depend on importing spare parts and technical know-how from countries outside the region,"" he added. ""The Siemens service center will close a gap and help reduce the downtime of machines, which will directly result in operational cost reduction for the companies."" The facility also expects to offer business and technical trainings for the new employees in cooperation with the National Institute for Industrial Trainings at the BIIP. The center is planned to be fully operational by the end of the year. Siemens major projects in Bahrain include the construction of the Al Riffaa power plant, turnkey implementation of a remote baggage handling facility at Bahrain International Airport and the installation of the race control management, security, data-exchange, and communications infrastructure at the Formula One Grand Prix race track. They also supply and service major portions of healthcare imaging equipment for the Ministry of Health and Bahrain Defense Forces Royal Medical Services and are involved in the design and construction of the Al Ezzel Power Plant, the kingdom's first private power plant. (Source:gulf-daily-news.com)