HEISCO: 50 Years of Maritime and Industrial Growth

For more than five decades, Heavy Engineering Industries & Shipbuilding Company (HEISCO) has played a significant role in Kuwait’s maritime and industrial development, evolving from a shipbuilding enterprise into a diversified engineering organization with capabilities spanning shipbuilding, ship repair, offshore services, fabrication, and marine engineering.

In this interview, Eng. Salem Marafie, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Shipyard Operations at HEISCO, reflects on the defining milestones that have shaped the company’s journey, its efforts to enhance shipyard capabilities and develop local talent, and its vision for supporting Kuwait’s and the wider GCC’s maritime and engineering ambitions in the years ahead.

HEISCO has established itself as one of the region’s leading engineering and shipbuilding companies. Looking back on the company’s journey, what have been the defining milestones that shaped its growth?

HEISCO’s journey is a reflection of Kuwait’s own industrial and maritime development. Since our establishment in 1974, we have continuously evolved in response to the needs of the national economy and the wider maritime and energy sectors.

What began as a shipbuilding enterprise has developed into a diversified organization with capabilities covering shipbuilding, ship repair, offshore services, fabrication, and engineering. One of the most important elements of this evolution has been the continued development of our shipyard at Shuwaikh Port, enabling us to handle increasingly sophisticated vessels and technically demanding projects.

Our infrastructure today reflects that progression. We have developed facilities capable of accommodating a broad range of vessels, including a floating dock with a lifting capacity of up to 14,000 tonnes and vessel capacity of approximately 35,000 DWT with a Syncrolift facility and multiple repair bays. The real milestone has been the development of our people, expertise, systems and customer relationships.

Over five decades, HEISCO has built an accumulated depth of experience across marine and industrial engineering. That experience is one of our most valuable assets. It gives us the ability to understand not only the technical requirements of a project, but also the operational pressures faced by our customers.

How is HEISCO adapting its shipbuilding, ship repair, and maintenance capabilities to meet the changing expectations of shipowners while delivering greater efficiency, reliability, and long-term value?
The maritime industry has become increasingly demanding. For shipowners, every day a vessel is out of service has a commercial consequence. Consequently, the modern shipyard must offer much more than technical workmanship it must provide certainty, efficiency, safety, and confidence.

At HEISCO, we are strengthening our capabilities around this principle. Our objective is to provide customers with an integrated marine solution, bringing together dry docking, steel and structural works, mechanical and machinery overhauls, piping, electrical works, fabrication, blasting and painting, and specialist maintenance under one coordinated project environment.

We are also placing greater emphasis on planning, project controls, quality management, safety, and the effective utilization of our facilities and workforce. The goal is to continually improve execution while maintaining the standards that our customers expect from a major shipyard.

What initiatives has HEISCO implemented to foster local talent and encourage young professionals to follow careers in shipbuilding, repair, and marine engineering?
People are at the heart of the maritime industry. A shipyard can invest in the best infrastructure and equipment, but its true capability ultimately depends on the knowledge, discipline, and experience of its people.

For Kuwait, developing the next generation of engineers and technical professionals is particularly important. The maritime and engineering sectors offer young professionals an opportunity to work at the intersection of traditional engineering expertise and emerging technologies.

At HEISCO, we place considerable importance on practical experience, knowledge transfer, and continuous professional development. Young engineers and technical personnel gain exposure to real projects and work alongside experienced professionals, allowing theoretical knowledge to be translated into practical capability. For HEISCO, investing in people is not simply a human-resources initiative. It is an investment in the future competitiveness of Kuwait's maritime industry.

HEISCO has built long-standing relationships with clients across Kuwait, the GCC, and international markets.

In your view, what are the foundations of these successful partnerships?
In our industry, reputation is earned project by project. Long standing customer relationships are built on trust, and trust comes from consistency. Customers need to know that when they place a vessel, project, or critical engineering requirement in your hands, you will deliver with the appropriate level of safety, quality, technical competence, and accountability.

Many of HEISCO’s relationships have developed over many years, and we value those relationships enormously. They have been built through our ability to understand our customers’ businesses, respond to operational challenges, and deliver practical solutions under demanding conditions.

We do not view a successful customer relationship as a series of individual contracts. We view it as a long-term relationship in which both organizations develop together. Our commitment is to remain dependable, transparent, technically capable, and responsive. These qualities form the foundation upon which sustainable partnerships are built.

Eng.Salem Marafie

Looking toward the future, how does HEISCO envision its role evolving within Kuwait’s and the GCC’s maritime and engineering landscape, and what areas of growth will be central to the company’s next chapter?
HEISCO will continue building on its more than 50 years of experience while expanding its capabilities in ship repair, shipbuilding, offshore services, marine infrastructure, and specialized engineering.

The current regional situation and ongoing war have created challenges for businesses, particularly in logistics and maritime operations. This has also highlighted the importance of strong local capabilities, reliable infrastructure, and resilient supply chains.

Looking ahead, we see opportunities in Kuwait and across the GCC through the development of ports, offshore projects, energy infrastructure, and fleet modernization. Our focus will be on strengthening our facilities, developing our people, and adopting new technologies to meet these changing requirements.

Our goal is straightforward: to remain a trusted marine and engineering partner in Kuwait and grow our presence across the GCC.

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