Minister Muş stated that semi-stationary models of the first domestic and national x-ray scanning systems have started mass production, and that the production of mobile and 'backscatter (ghost system)' scanning systems has started in Turkey.
Minister of Trade Mehmet Muş attended the introductory meeting held at the MS Spectral Defense Industry Inc. Facilities of the National Scanning Systems (MILTAR), which was initiated by the joint ventures of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) and the General Directorate of Customs Enforcement.
In his speech here, Muş said that the Ministry of Commerce always closely follows the latest technologies and developments in the field of non-physical control technologies, and within this framework, more than 20 scanning systems have been procured from abroad in the last 70 years.
Explaining that they have carried the customs control capacity to the most advanced point by deploying x-ray systems to all the land customs gates of the country, to the transit points of the trains carrying bonded goods in the east and west, and to all ports above a certain capacity, Muş continued as follows:
“Considering that the scanning systems in question, which can be produced by a limited number of countries in the world and have not been produced in our country until today, are imported with a payment of approximately 2 million dollars per device, it can be understood how high a cost these systems impose on our country's economy. It is obvious that the procurement of these systems, which are essential for preventing illegal trade, from abroad also affects the foreign trade balance negatively. Here, the MILTAR Project is the guarantee of the production of the said x-ray scanning systems in our country with domestic and national resources, and it is a turning point in reducing foreign dependency in this field.”
“Ahead of its counterparts abroad”
Reminding that the semi-fixed x-ray scanning system, the prototype of which was first produced as a result of the R&D project initiated in 2018, was used in İzmir Alsancak Port in 2022, Muş said, “As the first system produced was quite successful and had superior technical features compared to its foreign counterparts, this We also decided to start mass production of systems and also to produce mobile and 'backscatter' type x-ray systems. Today, I would like to share with pleasure that the semi-fixed models of the first domestic and national x-ray scanning systems have started mass production, and that the production of mobile and backscatter scanning systems has started in our country. I would like to proudly say that the systems produced are far ahead of their foreign counterparts in terms of image quality and performance tests.” said.
Muş stated that although it has been a very short time since the first semi-stationary system was put into operation, important catches were made, and that it proved the high capabilities of domestic and national production devices in practice, and said:
“We are also pleased that, with the mass production decision of MILTAR, 7 more of our semi-fixed system has been produced and deployed in important customs areas of our country. Thanks to the domestic and national technologies we will use at our customs gates, the technological systems needed in the fight against smuggling will be produced at more affordable costs, and our country will have reached an important point in the production of these systems, which only a few countries in the world can produce. Moreover, our local companies and SMEs that will participate in the supply chain, especially our domestic company that carries out the production, will also have knowledge about high-tech production processes.”
“Devices will be exported to the world market”
Muş, who informed that the mass production of domestic and national scanning systems, which started with the MİLTAR Project, will be put into service in the customs areas, instead of the systems whose lifespan has expired, said, “The systems that we import and use will be replaced with local ones. Afterwards, our domestic systems will be made available to our institutions in need. However, these systems will no longer be the subject of imports, they will become a strong export potential and their usage will be widespread around the world. Especially mobile devices are devices that other law enforcement agencies also need. They expect this from us too. First, our needs will be met, then it will be made available to the other law enforcement. The goal of our company is to reach the stage to export them in the world market. As the Ministry, we will provide the necessary support to our company. Thus, international markets will be reached.” made its assessment.
Muş stated that illegal trade will not be allowed with the capacity to fight against smuggling, which will become even stronger with these systems, and said:
"With the prevention of economic loss in our country, as well as the prevention of illegal goods transit, the factors that threaten public health and national security will be eliminated. You can see 3 of these systems now, there are different technologies we use in customs. After these assets are localized, we will start a project for the localization of other products we need.”
“Indigenousness rate is more than 70 percent”
Onur Haliloğlu, General Manager of MS Spectral, which produces the systems, also explained that they prepared the MİLTAR 1 system on the basis of the success of the MİLTAR 2 system. Stating that these vehicle and container scanning systems will be used to detect smuggled goods, drugs, weapons, explosives, ammunition and irregular migrants, Haliloğlu said that the systems they developed have more advanced technical features than imported systems. Haliloğlu noted that they will deliver 2 systems within the scope of MİLTAR 9, and 3 of them are ready for use at customs gates. Emphasizing that the systems have a locality rate of more than 70 percent, Haliloğlu said, “Our first system is a semi-fixed vehicle and container system. This system can even see wires with a diameter of 1,2 millimeters. The system gives warnings for materials such as drugs, explosives and weapons. The second system, Seyahat, is based on a trailer. Our third product, the Ghost, also has retroreflective technology. Since it is placed in a panel van type vehicle, it also allows images to be taken in the city.” said.
After the speeches, President of the Presidency of Defense Industry İsmail Demir and Minister Muş, who attended the ceremony, pressed the button to take the first x-ray image of the MİLTAR system. In the image projected on the screen, it was seen that the device detected drugs and weapons in the scanned vehicle.
Afterwards, Muş examined the MİLTAR 2 systems found in the ceremony area.