Samsung Sets New Records on Ship-building, CSR Projects
Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has set new records in ship-building and corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Nigeria with its latest donations to curb the spread of COVID-19 and its recent plan to develop innovative methods to facilitate smart shipping by undertaking thorough research across their multiple research centres in Geoje, Daeduk and Pangyo in Korea.
Also Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria (SHIN) Limited took an immediate initiative of handing over 5,000 COVID-19 test kits to the Nigerian government to help fight, control, and mitiage COVID-19 during the early stage of pandemic in Nigeria, where there were less than 200 identified cases in the country.
The donation was also part of the efforts of the Korean giant to help Nigeria benefit from the experience of South Korea in the global war against the virus.
SHIN broke the record during the construction of the Egina Floating Production Storage Offloading vessel (FPSO), the world’s largest FPSO, when it applied many innovations from their Korean operations.
This helped shorten the Egina project integration process to seven months, the fastest in Africa amongst comparable projects.
The company is currently planning to transform Samsung’s shipyard at Geoje into a smart shipyard, and transfer the wealth of technological knowhow from Korea to Nigeria.
SHIN has also established a Welding Qualification Centre (WQC) in Tarkwa Bay, Lagos as the sole provider of Nigeria’s only international welding certification.
Through this initiative, SHIN nurtures home-grown talent in order to power Africa’s industrial future.
Accredited by the International Institute of Welding (IIW) as an “Approved Training Body”, the WQC offers certified courses in international fillet, plate and tubular welding.
Since it was established 530 students have graduated from the WQC as qualified welders.
Speaking on the ship building initiative, the Managing Director of SHIN, Mr. Jejin Jeon, said the company had identified Nigeria and the West Africa region as an emerging market with an abundance of opportunity.
“Our investment in West Africa is a long term one, rooted in helping develop local human capacity by leveraging our fabrication and integration yard to the benefit of the entire West African maritime industry,” Jeon said.
Also commenting on the donation of the test kits, the Korean Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Lee In Tae, said: “It is indeed great to see that a Korean conglomerate such as SHIN has taken an initiative to donate COVID-19 test kits, which further validates the fact that the Korean Government and Korean companies operating in Nigeria truly care about Nigeria and feel the responsibility to support and help the federal government to tackle the pandemic in Nigeria. The Republic of Korea will also work closely with the Nigerian government to see any way we can support Nigeria to deal with the situation”.
SHIN has consistently given back to Nigerians over the years as part of its CSR.
For instance, the company has been sponsoring the eye surgeries of Nigerians on a yearly basis.
Since 2015, SHIN has worked with Vision Care, an organisation under WHO, in the yearly Eye Camp to give free cataract surgeries to Nigerians who cannot afford the treatment.
In 2019, it sponsored the eye surgeries of at least 115 Nigerian patients and 224 outward patients as part of its CSR in Nigeria.
In the previous Eye surgeries in 2018, 102 patients, who were at the risk of blindness, recovered their eyesight.
Since it started the programme, SHIN has sponsored the eye surgeries of 572 Nigerian patients, 1,593 outward patients and has also donated glasses to 99 patients.
The company had also donated electrical equipment, clothing and other relief materials to the victims of herdsmen and Boko Haram insurgents’ attacks in Jos, Plateau State.