The opening ceremony was attended by Industry and Trade Minister Nihat Ergün, PAGEV and Chemical Industry Platform (KSP) President Mehmet Uysal and TOBB Turkey Chemical Industry Council President Timur Erk and many sector representatives, hosted by TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that though nations may develop expertise in one sector or another, the chemical sector is the driving force behind all of their various fields of expertise as the chemical sector provides raw materials for every conceivable industry.

“If we wish to produce added-value products then we must further our R&D to this end, which will inevitably lead to higher value-added products in all sectors as the added-value of the chemicals we produce increases.”

“The sector in most dire need of university-industry collaboration is the chemical industry as the required knowledge of various branches of chemistry will be vital in the research and development of said higher value-added chemicals. As there is a large university capacity co-located where the chemical sector is already present in certain areas of the country, it’s evident we already have the infrastructure in place to improve our products.”

“The R&D Innovation Sub-Committee has been formed under TOBB Turkey Chemical Industry Council, to prepare and enact the decisions made through The Chemical Industry Strategic Plan Report. I would like to thank all the members of the Turkey Chemical Industry Council and public, university and private sector representatives beginning with our esteemed Sector Council President Mr. Timur Erk.”

TOBB Turkey Chemical Industry Council President Timur Erk, who in turn expressed his gratitude to M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu for his contributions to the chemical industry, and PAGEV and Chemical Industry Platform (KSP) President Mehmet Uysal also gave speeches detailing their work to improve the chemical sector in conjunction with TOBB.
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