“Jalal Taha”… Sheikh Kar  of shipbuilding  

The shipbuilding profession constitutes one of the most important maritime professions that Syrians have distinguished themselves in the city of Baniyas for many decades, and their fame has spread in various Arab and regional countries. 

The craftsman  Jalal Taha is considered  one of the most prominent and unique in the field of ship maintenance and  building . He was asked to work in several Arab and regional countries specialized in this type of marine work, and he is almost one of the most important workers in this hereditary profession that  his family has worked in. 

The high cumulative experience and skill in dealing with the most difficult structural maintenance that extends to all parts of the ship, the low material costs and the precision in the dates of receipt and delivery, all of this prompted Captain “Ali Al-A’al to bring the foreign ship that he manages to the port of “Baniyas” for maintenance and reconstruction. 

Captain Ali points out  to e-Syria ( Wattan Blog ) that  the maintenance and reconstruction of medium and large cargo ships carried out by specialized industrialists and skilled craftsmen in the port of Baniyas has gained wide fame , despite the lack of full auxiliary infrastructure in the port as it is a fishing and pleasure port only. This made the port a destination for ships to be reconstructed. 

Captain Ali believes that shipbuilding and construction in Baniyas Port is superior in many of its details to the same industry in Arab and regional ports, in addition to lower costs, as local expertise . 

The workshop of the craftsman “Taha” was known for its commitment to international maritime safety standards, even though his learning of the profession was not academic, but rather through practice and by specialized industrialists and skilled craftsmen in the port of Baniyas .  

Captain Ali believes that shipbuilding and construction in Baniyas Port is superior in many of its details and is  the same as  gaining experience from working with heavy equipment and machinery and their maintenance operations, so that he would later learn  to read marine engineering designs.  

The cumulative experience gained by continuous work since he was a young man did not remain limited to him alone, but rather he helped to give it to those who wanted and loved maritime work.  

He became a teacher for all those who wish to work and learn the profession, the most important rules of which are discipline, commitment, honesty and skill, according to him. 

A large family of about 500 craftsmen and  assistants turn up  in his small workshop, or as he calls it his second family -this  made him   a master in the world of ship maintenance and reconstruction. 

Many foreign, Arab and local ships were built by the craftsman “Taha” with the simplest capabilities, including “Tishreen – Bashar – Abboud – Farah Star 1 – Farah Star 2”. He depended on his experience, which is framed by his local, Arab, and regional relations, and his work there with specialists and technicians of various nationalities and professional levels. 

His success in the operations of building, maintaining and reconstructing ships  enabled   and qualified  Taha to  recycle the  materials and build another ship with high-quality marine specifications, and this is what gained him popularity and reputation in the world of shipbuilding . 

Captain Khalil Bahlawan, owner of the Farah Star 1 and 2 ships, confirmed  that the craftsman Jalal Taha completed the construction of the two ships in accordance with the standards and requirements of maritime safety in accordance with the international system, with the smallest details and in record time, despite the weak capabilities available at his disposal.  

He hoped that this local industry would be supported by providing facilities for obtaining special marine paint, various types of fuel, and metal plates, all of which are used in the work. 

Rawaa Ghanam