Do you know?
I am sitting at the wheel of a large bus driving along the Esenboğa road near the Ankara airport. At that instant I remember a joke. A bus full of passengers is driving in high speed. One of the panic-stricken passengers shouts at the driver. “Slow down. Do you want to kill us?” The driver shouts back “Do you know MAN buses?” When the passenger says, “I don’t,” the driver retorts, “If you don’t, shut up.” This dialogue goes on with other passengers. Then when the last passenger yells at the driver, “I know MAN buses. So what?” the driver yells back. “Then tell me where the brakes are.”
Thank God I know where the brakes are. For your information, there are three brakes on MAN buses. Engine, shaft and wheel brakes are built in coordination. These are computer-controlled.
To tell you the truth, driving a bus is more comfortable than driving a car. Although a bus isn’t as agile as a car, it does give one a sense of security and confidence. It has all the luxury gadgets you can ask for. The driving seat is like a control unit. All through the drive you should glue your eyes to the large side mirrors. Also you have to constantly be on the alert so as not to crash into energy poles along the road. As the body of the bus is large you shouldn’t brake suddenly or speed up.
The bus contains several systems, including eight TV and music channels. There is another system that follows the vehicle in front so that the bus automatically keeps a secure distance. As technology has brought every comfort to buses, MAN and Neoplan buses are equipped with these hi-tech instruments. All of the buses are completely hand-made. They have 30,000 components. Turkey is producing MAN and Mercedes buses with access to important foreign markets.
We are touring the production plant with the CEO of the MAN Lorry and Bus Production Corp. Tuncer Bekiroğlu. Here buses are assembled meticulously and several times before being put on market.
I notice Tuncay Bekiroğlu is on very good terms with all the workers at the plant. Then I realize that Bekiroğlu is also the captain of the MAN football team. Our conversation centers on football.
Turkey is in a leading position in bus production. MAN is planning to export 1,550 buses this year. In 2006 the number of exports was 1,874. Last year MAN sold 488 buses in the domestic market. This year this number will be 406.
The bus production sector is an important source of employment. Only at MAN the total number of workers is 2,300. MAN uses a highly qualified work force. Placing stress upon productivity and high technology, MAN is an important school as well. The sector also has its side industry.
The Municipality of Ankara bought 400 buses that run on LPG. This helps to economize fuel by 62 percent. More important than that, the fuel is 10 times more environment friendly than regular fuels. EU norms have introduced specific environment standards for all vehicles in and outside cities.
Turkey has industrial sectors that produce, create new jobs, exports, which can be competitive in the world and use high technology and create value added. Young Turkish business people run these large international companies. How vital this is to the country.
We have to work hard to lift all restrictions that impair production. To produce more we have to raise the quality of the working force and develop it. More than that, to achieve this goal we have to change our way of thinking. Otherwise we cannot go on being pessimistic like Hans and Müler, who after two drinks start blabbering: “What’s going to happen to our poor Germany?”