sheikh saud inaugurates manufacturing plant of kludi rak llc
H.H. Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, inaugurated the new manufacturing plant of Kludi RAK LLC, a joint venture between global ceramic major, RAK Ceramics and Kludi group of Germany to produce top of the line bathroom and kitchen fittings at a function held at the company premises here last evening.
The state- of- the- art plant, set up at a cost of USD 15 million, will manufacture high quality bathroom and kitchen fittings including faucets, mixers, showers and other accessories.
Speaking at the function, Sheikh Saud said that the basic tenet that has guided the reform and development agenda of the Government of RAK has been to create an enabling atmosphere where entrepreneurs could feel at home and pursue their dreams.
“The mandate we gave to Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA), when it started three years ago, was to create the right atmosphere where entrepreneurs could come in and duplicate the success model created by firms like RAK Ceramics,” he added.
Sheikh Saud noted that the opening of Kludi RAK marks the addition of yet another successful enterprise in the industrial sector of Ras Al Khaimah.
RAK Ceramics holds 51 percent stake in the new venture with Kludi having the remaining 49 percent. The manufacturing plant, spread over an area of 76,715 square metres, has an annual production capacity of one million pieces of bathroom and kitchen mixers.
Dr. Khater Massaad, Advisor to RAK Crown Prince and CEO of Kludi RAK, said that the new company draws strength from the synergetic combination of industry leader RAK Ceramics, which has a significant market share in the ceramics and bathroom fittings industry, and Kludi, a high profile German manufacturer in kitchen and bathroom fittings.
“The joint venture is poised for great success as it can make use of the market knowledge of RAK Ceramics and the long standing expertise of Kludi in the field. This marks another step in the diversification efforts of RAK Ceramics to extend and compliment its existing product range,” Dr. Massaad added.
He said that Kludi RAK will acquire ISO 9001:2000 BVQI certification by June 2008 and added that the company is set to create new benchmarks by attaining highest quality standards in the faucet industry.
Bernd Neidhardt, Managing Director of Kludi RAK, said that the plant would cater to the fast growing Middle East market and exports to other regional and global markets.
Kludi Group is a leading producer of bathroom and kitchen fittings based in Germany with manufacturing plants in Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary and China and subsidiaries in several countries across the globe.
Kludi RAK products would have inbuilt water saving features which make them three times more efficient that other products. The plant has the latest machinery and advanced process systems to ensure superior product quality and raw materials like brass ingot and chemical mixtures are imported from Europe.
It also employs cutting- edge technologies in Gravity die casting to enhance product quality by avoiding pinholes, air blow and casting impurities which are not possible to avoid in manual casting. The dual nickel plating plant would provide 12- micron thick nickel coating and chrome coating of 0.3- micron for superior product finish
