Whether it's the heat-resistant handles on your kitchenware, the knobs on your cooking stove, fans for your washing machine, or even brake shoes for your vehicle, odds are, you use a piece of an MRI product in your everyday life. Mansoura for Resins and Chemical Industries (MRI) produces chemicals and raw material used by other companies to manufacture these products and more including components for electrical meters, fertilizers and disinfectants for agricultural land and crops, as well as iron and steel molds. On a daily basis, the company produces up to 40 tons of chemical products used to supply companies such as Nuval, Zahran, Techno Gas, Universal, Fresh, Zanoussi, Keriazzi, as well as Abu Qir Fertilizers and Chemical Industries, and Misr Fertilizers. And that is still not enough for MRI. "We also export to regional and international markets, namely Saudi Arabia, Syria, Jordan, Libya, Yemen, Ethiopia, France, Spain, Turkey, and India, said K.N. Agarwal, director of MRI. The company's sales turnover for the current year so far have reached LE 60 million, and 2008 figures are projected to soar to LE 200 million. MRI's dominance on the market drove some competitors out of business, says Agarwal. "Our goal is to manufacture high quality products at competitive prices. .Quality and affordability are the factors that determine who remains in the market. MRI has not always been an evergreen success story. Established in 1971, the then publicly-owned company experienced losses and was weighed down with mismanagement, slipping into closure. In a bid to save whatever was left of MRI, the company was fully privatized in 2004. "We want to show society how professional management can [affect] Egyptian companies, and how these companies can contribute to the entire Egyptian industry, he explained. Under the new management, MRI joined forces with Swiss, Japanese, and Korean technologies and was able to increase its production by 33 percent. "We want to turn MRI into a first-class company not only on the local level, but on an international level as well, Agarwal boasted. Indeed, MRI has embarked on ambitious renovation plans. After privatization, the new management revamped the company's plant, introducing automated processes that further augmented production capacity while decreasing production costs. Packaging methods were modernized to meet international standards, thus enabling the company to cater to and compete in the international market. MRI has also established a state-of-the-art laboratory and imported several devices from Europe to enhance production, said Agarwal. Additionally, international experts were brought in to train various chemists, engineers, and workers on up-to-date production mechanisms. "We have a [vigorous] vision for this company. In five years' time, MRI will become a prominent company on a global scale. We plan to raise our capacity five-fold, producing 200 tons per day and hitting an annual sales turnover of LE 1 billion, Agarwal added. Egypt's local market is too small to absorb MRI's production capacity, with 50 percent outbound for exports. "The Egyptian market only absorbs 250,000 tons per year, while international markets consume 33 million tons. ...Our future goal is to expand our international supply and allocate 90 percent of our production for exports. Building on its success, the International Finance Corporation - the private sector arm of the World Bank Group - is currently looking into signing a cooperation agreement with MRI, pouring in more investments and assisting the company on its path to growth.
