SAMINavantia launches on-the-job training program with first batch of Saudi engineers arriving in Spain

SAMI Navantia Naval Industries (SAMINavantia), a joint venture between Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) and Navantia S.A., has launched its On-the-Job Training (OJT) program on the sidelines of the First Saudi International Maritime Forum 2019 (SIM), which is taking place from 24-26 November in Riyadh, under the patronage of HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Vice President of the Council of Ministers and Minister of Defense, and was inaugurated by His Excellency General Fayyad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili, Saudi Arabia’s military Chief of Staff, in the presence of His Excellency General Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Ghufaili, Commander of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces and His Excellency Dr. Rumaih Al-Rumaih, President of the Transport General Authority. 

The first batch of the trainees includes 11 Saudi male and female engineers, who recently enrolled in the SAMINavantia OJT program, which kicked off at Navantia’s San Fernando shipyard in Cádiz, Spain. The trainees will benefit from practical experience and training as part of the team working on the joint venture’s Avante 2200 project. The SAMINavantia OJT program comes in line with Saudi Arabia’s ambitious vision of localizing 50% of its military equipment spending by 2030. 

The OJT program targets talented Saudi engineers, who will participate for a period of 24-36 months according to their areas of expertise. SAMINavantia’s Avante 2200 project is tasked with the design and installation of the naval combat systems on the project’s vessels. The 11 engineers will participate in the Combat System Integration (CSI) and installation for the vessels, during which they will gain valuable knowledge on the hardware and software maintenance requirements for the Avante 2200’s cutting-edge CATIZ Combat System. 

Mohammed Bushnag, Vice President of Human Resources at SAMI, expressed his pride in the important step, highlighting the happiness of Navantia officials to host the Saudi trainee engineers from SAMINavantia as part of the new on-the-job training program. He also praised the admiration of Spanish officials for the high academic level of each trainee, their good manners and noble values, stressing that this reflects the honorable image of Saudi citizens abroad. 

Bushnag added: “This initiative is part of several OJT training programs aimed at building a strong base of talented young men and women who are capable of supporting the military sector at the highest technical and scientific levels, as well as contributing to the development of a solid defense industry ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.” 

The program will support the transfer of technology (ToT) to Saudi Arabia and contribute to the development of indigenous capabilities, from design and testing to Through Life Support (TLS), as well as program management, facilities upgrade, and training. Twenty-four engineers are due to participate in the Avante 2200 project as part of the program, within three distinct teams; the System and Software Engineering Team (SS-ET), Through Life Support Engineering Team (TLS-ET), and Installation onboard Technical Team (INST-TT). 

The training program will take place at Navantia facilities in Cádiz and Cartagena, and will consist of a mixture of lectures, workshops, and on-the-job trainings. One of the first batch of trainees, Eng. Abdullah Al Dayel, said: “I am looking forward to working with one of the Vision 2030’s main goals, as it will make me very happy to help my country in any way I can. The environment of the company is perfect, and the employees that I have met were very welcoming. I truly believe that SAMINavantia will be one of the biggest naval companies in the world, making it a big achievement for Saudi Arabia.” 

The 11 male and female engineers taking part in the OJT program include Eng. Hassan Fahad Almuzaini, Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.; Eng. Abdullah Al Masary, Master of Information Science and Engineering from Tokai University, Kanto, Japan; Eng. Sultan Al Ghufaili, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.A.; Eng. Reema Al Mashari, Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering from Al Faisal University, Saudi Arabia; Eng. Saad Al Khamaly, Master in Computer Science and Software Engineering from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.; Eng. Fahad Al Odan, Bachelor in Computer Science from The University of Texas at San Antonio, U.S.A.; Eng. Abdullah Khaled, Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from Inha University, South Korea; Eng. Abdulrahman Al Ammar, Bachelor in Computer Science from Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, U.K.; Eng. Abdullah Al Dayel, Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering from Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia; Eng. Rawan Al Abdulkarim, Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering from Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia; and Eng. Bahaa Gazzaz, Bachelor in Computer Science from King Abdul Aziz University, Saudi Arabia.