Kocaeli remains one of the fastest developing manufacturing regions of Turkey, thanks to industrial investment begun under a state-run planning period, gaining in intensity especially between 1960 and 1975. Kocaeli’s manufacturing industry, possessing as it does the means for producing both intermediate and investment goods, has since the close of the ‘70s found itself second only to Istanbul in national importance. This holds true for both its overall productivity and for the revenue it generates. Statistics over the last decade show Kocaeli averaging a 13-14% share in Turkey’s manufacturing industry productivity.
The national sector may be represented thus:
Consumer Goods: 2.82%
Intermediate Goods: 22.03%
Investment Goods: 10.23%
There are 1915 manufacturing enterprises registered with the Chamber of Industry and operating in Kocaeli. The table below shows the number of firms in their various sectors.
|
INDUSTRIES BY SECTORS
|
NUMBER of
FIRMS
|
|
Food Products Industry Group
|
81
|
|
Livestock/Poultry and Feed Industry Group,
|
38
|
|
Flour, Flour Products & Sugar Products Industry Group
|
41
|
|
Wooden Products Industry Group
|
93
|
|
Manufacture of Paper Product and Publishing Industry Group
|
56
|
|
Basic Chemical Industry Group
|
86
|
|
Medicine and Other Pharmaceuticals Industry Group
|
77
|
|
Petroleum and Industrial Gases Industry Group
|
52
|
|
Rubber Tyre & Plastic Products
|
50
|
|
Plastic Product Industry
|
139
|
|
Construction Industry
|
44
|
|
Construction and Construction Materials Production Planning and their Servicing Industry
|
68
|
|
Stone and Earth Based Industry Group
|
102
|
|
Basic Metals Industry
|
76
|
|
Metal Product Ind.
|
82
|
|
Steel Construction and Equipment Industry Group
|
85
|
|
Manufacturing Metal Pipes & Boilers and Container Products
|
74
|
|
Other Metal Product Industry
|
59
|
|
Rolling Industry Group
|
47
|
|
Special Industrial Machinery & Equipment, Constructing and Repair Industry Group
|
52
|
|
Other Machinery Constructing and Repair Industry Group
|
71
|
|
Automotive Industry
|
153
|
|
Electrical Appliances and Equipment Industry
|
49
|
|
Cable and Other Electrical Devices Industry Group
|
46
|
|
Other Manufacturing Industry
|
132
|
|
Aluminium Profiles Industry Group
|
62
|
|
Total
|
1915
|
In recent years the automotive industry has become one of the favourite sectors by virtue of the amount of investment it has attracted. In addition to established companies such as Chrysler, big names like Hyundai, Honda, Ford, Toyota and Isuzu have begun or completed their establishment process. By means of the TAYSAD Organized Industrial Zone (TOSB) at Gebze, the importance given to this sector has expanded dramatically.