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Turkish construction machinery and attachments manufacturing company, Galen Group, wants to broaden its reach to the construction industry in the Middle East region. It has an extensive range of competitively priced machines, parts and components that can be shipped globally. Being near the MENA region is a definite advantage.

Based in Turkey, the Galen Group was established in 2004. As a manufacturer of construction machinery, attachments, wear plates and components, the Turkish manufacturer has a stable client base of 285 companies from 37 countries around the world. The group’s clients are mostly around the European region but are also located in North and South America, Africa, and Asia. In the Middle East region, except for a couple of sales, they don’t have any other business so far.

Galen Group is keen on tapping into the immense potential this region has to offer and have signed on contracts with shippers that will facilitate sending their manufactured goods to companies located located in the Middle East. “Until the second half of 2021, we were focused more on the European market. We now have the right shipping partners to transport our machines and attachments to the Middle East region at very affordable prices. Frankly, we are looking for reliable long-term partners for the Middle East,” says Orkun Batuhan Yildiz, Export Manager at Galen Group.

Galen Group manufactures more than 200 different types of attachments and machines. The attachments are for demolition, construction machinery, snow removal, recycling, among others. Available in different sizes, buckets are another item they produce, which are suitable for recycling, loading and excavation. The group also manufactures boom arms that come in varying sizes and types including long reach, demolition and dredging.

The boom arm

The boom arm is a special attachment with multiple uses such as for deep and long distance digging and dredging, slope shaping, settlement banks, cleaning pools or waterways. With the long reach attachment, the inner baffle plate gives the torsion arm extra force to withstand torsional strains.

The boom arm can be attached on a wide range of excavator models that have up to 10-200 metric tonnes (22,000 – 488,400 lbs) of operating weight. The long reach boom arm saves cost and time and maximises profits as it achieves 50 percent more digging depth and advanced reach than a standard boom.

The boom and arm are critical components of an excavator and require tight tolerance and precision. They are machined on state-of-the-art equipment to ensure sturdiness. The long reach boom arm is ideal for river and sea dredging on land or barge; for basement and deep foundation excavations; also, for marine wall construction among a host of other uses.

The design of this machine is comprehensively simulated, ensures integrity, and identifies potential stress and fatigue points. All surfaces are sandblasted, and it comes with marine grade epoxy paint as a primer.

The excavator bucket

Galen Group’s excavator bucket is manufactured for different industries and hence the design varies depending on its usage. Having said that, all excavator bucket types share some common design features: buckets are made of Hardox 450 steel; they have diamond folded tops for higher structural strength; their double radius shape increases heel cavity and clearance and reduces friction and wear and tear; buckets come with overlapping plates which reduce stress in critical areas. Also, machines in the 20-70 tonnes range come equipped with rock buckets.

The heavy-duty bucket’s torque pipe provides maximum power and eliminates corner cracks and upper beam faults. Side cutting blades are preferred in rock and stone applications as the Hardox 450 grade steel with optimal thickness provides maximum wear resistance. It has three wear protection levels for more demanding applications, including inner wear belts, additional wear blocks (700 BHN) and side and blade covers. Four reinforcing angles are used to strengthen machine connections and two mesh plates provide additional strength and evenly distribute stresses throughout the bucket.

The hydraulic crusher

The hydraulic crusher, manufactured by the Galen Group, is designed to work in harmony with the company’s compact excavator. Hydraulic crushers give impressive results in a variety of crushing applications. Together with the Galen excavator and a variety of work tools and configurations, the hydraulic crusher provides consistent power and performance.

Medium and heavy-duty hydraulic crushers combine superior efficiency and performance with high durability and a low environmental impact. They are suitable for a wide range of carriers, such as wheeled and tracked excavators, backhoe and skid steer loaders and demolition robots.

With outstanding impact energy, two-speed control, and a wide range of working tools, the hydraulic crushers are supplied as an all-in-one package, including hoses and brackets making them ready to be used upon delivery.

The manufacturing plant

Galen Group’s factory is built on an area of 16,000 sq. meters. “We have an additional 4,000 sq. metres casting factory,” says Yildiz. “We have oxygen, plasma and laser cutting, borverk, lathe, bending, gas metal arc welding, radial and milling in our production unit. We do most of the processes in-house.”

Additionally, high quality scraps are sent to the casting factory that manufactures ground engaging tools. Excavator buckets and attachments are produced mostly in the main factory. “Our customers are usually end-users like contractors, mining companies, infrastructure companies and traders. However, we have recently started working with distributors as well,” continues Yildiz.

Since most products are custom made, the first step of the production process is always determining the customer’s needs and the possibilities at hand. Solutions are then developed and put into production by the group’s R&D team, consisting of eight experienced mechanical engineers. Every stage of the production process is inspected by quality control engineers. Therefore, ensuring the creation of the perfect product.

Research and development are also what sets Galen Group apart from other traditional manufacturers. “We have continuous product development, which allows us to produce more than 250 attachments. If you look carefully at each of our bucket designs, you will see that they provide better cycle time, increase penetration, and keep product durability high. You will see the design differences made for them,” he adds.

Currently the only challenge the company faces is providing the right kind of after-sales service. Yildiz says: “Although we have a team in some countries, it can be difficult to provide direct service. Based on the product, we sometimes manage to send a specialist from Turkey, or we provide remote support.” However, there have been no major problems so far.

Getting the products to the customer’s warehouse is also a straightforward process. “In Turkey, shipping prices are really affordable, and we are constantly in talks with the shipping companies we work with for better prices,” concludes Yildiz.

In the face of the ongoing pandemic, there was a pause in the construction industry in 2020 due to restrictions which led to a 2.4 percent drop in earnings worldwide. This, however, led to a demand explosion once vaccines were rolled out and restrictions were not so strict on work sites. Hence, global growth in the construction industry output is projected to be 5.7 percent this year. From 2022 to 2025, global output growth is projected to average 3.7 percent per year.*

Galen Group is well prepared for this process and has already increased production capacity. The numbers that they can see predict healthy growth in the future.

*According to GlobalData, a data and analytics company.

Orkun Batuhan Yildiz, Export Manager at Galen Group.