DEİK-FCIC International Engineering Forum, which gave heaven this year in cooperation with the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) and the Federation of Consultants of Islamic Countries (FCIC), brought together the global organization that leads the sector, public institutions and businesses in human Istanbul. In the hybrid forum, the effects of wars and disasters in technical consultancy and the difficulties experienced in human resources in this field were discussed. These separations, the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine and the reconstruction effect of the earthquake, which is one of the most important agenda expenses of Istanbul, were emphasized.

Speaking at the opening of the forum, Hasan Murat Nesimoğlu, Head of the Foreign Contracting and Technical Consultancy Department of the General Directorate of International Service Trade of the Ministry of Commerce of the Republic of Turkey, said, “We are evaluating the operation and efforts of DEİK, FCIC and TMMMB. The economic crises expected from the COVID-19 outbreak, the Russia-Ukraine war, major disasters in recent years and climate crisis are a few of the challenges. All crises can also bring some bonuses. We must see these crises as a chance to build a better world. Regarding the Russia-Ukraine war, as you have seen closely, Turkey plays a critical and founding role. There may be a revival in projects that were postponed after the war ended. FCIC foreign affairs would take part in the rebuilding of Ukraine. The devastation caused by earthquakes, floods and forest fires all over the world seemingly reflects great sadness. That’s why there are enclosures for greentransformation and better systems. We must ensure that our buildings and infrastructure can withstand the current and adverse effects of similar disasters and climate change. The expertise of technical consultancy businesses and the use of new technology will help in the green transformation and fight.

DEİK/International Technical Consultancy Business Council Chairman Munis Özer, on the other hand, took advantage of DEİK’s strong global network since 2013, referring to new business privileges in Turkish contracting, consultancy and architecture, as well as abroad: We signed an important protocol and started to organize the “DEİK-FCIC International Engineering Forum” in cooperation. This year, for the 8th time, we came together as a hybrid with very important names that shape the sector at the Forum. Within the scope of the forum, this time we focused on two critical current issues. With the impact of wars and disasters on technical consultancy, he captured the scenes they lived in, especially in the field of human resources, which has come to the fore in recent years. Events about disaster operations; Only if we are prepared for technical coverage can we reduce the dangers. Wars, on the other hand, can be stopped by diplomacy. Wars of expansion using chemical, biological and nuclear weapons have devastating effects on both humanity and the environment. Therefore, we must be ready for all kinds of disasters in the field of technical consultancy,” he said.

Mohamed E. Abdelrahman, President of the Federation of Consultants of Islamic Countries (FCIC), said, “8. I would like to thank DEİK for the DEİK-FCIC International Engineering Forum. As FCIC, we are extremely happy to cooperate with DEİK and to sign this important event together. It is extremely productive that we are together with directing the environment. We thank ISDB once again for their continued support of FCIC capacity building programmes. During COP27 10 days ago, technical consultancy was with an expert from around the world on feathers in siege and climate change challenges. Today, we’ve brought together some very distinguished champions, each of whom is proficient in their respective fields, to discuss the conflicts after war and disaster. I hope that with the exchange of ideas we have made within the scope of the Forum, valuable purchases will be made,” he said.

Aamir Ghani Mir, Project Procurement Department Manager of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), said that attention to the increasing importance of technical consultancy and engineering services in terms of international development, “The ongoing negative effects of the COVID-19 epidemic, which were exacerbated by the negative impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on global economic growth and eliminates it during a process that becomes more difficult. This challenging situation should make the service sector delay and resist finding crisis opportunities. Consulting services in the Islamic country, in particular, are lagging behind in understanding this development, and seeing this growing gap is alarming. “They have room for focused efforts to capture and adopt new technologies, develop human resources, and consider new curtains, including climate-friendly, green and sustainable solutions that are in demand.”

Turkish Association of Consulting Engineers and Architects (TMMMB) President İrfan Aker stated that Turkish engineering, consultancy and architectural firms undertook 2510 different projects in 131 countries with a total contract value of 2.9 billion dollars at the end of September 2022 and said, “Flood, drought, water shortage, earthquakes. and war is among the issues we have to deal with. However, with the current supply volatility, burgeoning concerns about the explosion and becoming devastatingly devastating globally as the Ukraine war, it means that the degree of development of project demand becomes more difficult to predict. But we must also consider the reward in these difficult situations. In my personal opinion, the main driving forces are; digitalisation, adaptation and sustainability. It is the result of both the challenges for incumbent engineering consultants, technical consulting firms, and contracting firms, and the entire industry providing the service. Digital and technological advances have made significant advances and are increasingly being adopted and standardized in some areas. In particular, digitalization will play a key role in increasing and disseminating the architecture, engineering and construction industry disciplines that provide sectoral challenges and challenges.”

Kazım Gökhan Elgin, Director of Istanbul Governorship Istanbul Project Coordination Unit, also made a presentation titled “Implementation of Istanbul Seismic Risk Mitigation and Emergency Preparedness Project (ISMEP) in Turkey”. Elgin said, “Within the scope of the ISMEP Project, public buildings, especially schools and hospitals, are either strengthened or demolished and rebuilt for earthquake safety. Since 2006, 2520 buildings in Istanbul have been made earthquake-safe for 1587 passengers,” he said.

In the forum, the “Effect of War and Disaster” on Technical Consultancy Services” panel was moderated by Newtech Consulting Group (Sudan) Engineer Mohamed Abdelrahman, Majid Hamouda from Glory Engineering (Palestine), DOLSAR Mühendislik A.Ş. Co (Turkey) and Nevzat Yaşar from IsDB Regional Center (Turkey).

In the forum, “Human Resources Challenges Faced by Technical Consultancy Firms” panel was moderated by FCIC Vice President (Morocco) Moncef Ziani, FCIC Vice President (Bangladesh) Engineer Abdul Aziz, Su Yapı Mühendislik HR Manager (Turkey) Ayşe Kaymak and ACE Co.’ from (Jordan) with the participation of Jawdat Yaghmour.

Koltek became the sponsor of the 8th DEIK-FCIC International Engineering Forum.