São Paulo – Condor, a non-lethal weapons manufacturer based in the state of Rio de Janeiro, is working to expand its sales to the Arab market. The company produces equipment used by polices and military forces and already exports to Algeria, Jordan, Morocco and Egypt, in the Arab world. According to the International Business manager at Condor, Massilon Miranda, the company intends to diversify its foreign markets this year, and that includes entering Arab countries in which its products have not arrived yet.
Condor already has representatives in eleven Arab countries. Besides the four countries that it already exports to, the brand has representatives in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Libya and Tunisia. Many of them have already received samples of the product. Presently, the products that Condor exports to the Arabs include teargas grenades, explosive non-lethal grenades as well as non-lethal and teargas ammunition.
Algeria has been a client of Condor for over ten years, Jordan for four years, Egypt for approximately two years, and Morocco imported for the first time last year. In the Arab world, the company’s equipment is used by organisations linked to the security industry, such as police, armies and national security departments. The International Business manager claims that Condor devotes special attention to the region, because a large share of the countries already has the grasp and understanding of the concept of non-lethality.
Miranda explains that non-lethal weapons are meant for situations in which the threat does not justify the use of lethal ones, such as, for example, student demonstrations. “Whenever action is required in order to maintain the order and protect property, but not with excessive strength, using a proper response to the threat at hand,” says the Condor executive. In Brazil, users of the company’s products include the Military Police of São Paulo, considered one of the best prepared in the country.
Condor has over 100 items in its line of products. Among them are weapons for non-lethal ammunition, rubber bullet clips, teargas grenades, pepper spray, smoke grenades, and pyrotechnics, such as flare guns, for activities like rescuing shipwrecked people.
Last year, Condor manufactured over one million items. The company does not disclose export figures. However, according to Miranda, foreign sales grew 300% from 2007 to last year. For this year, according to him, a significant rise in exports is expected as well, despite the crisis. That is due to the launch of new products – more than 15 were released in 2008 – and to the entry into new countries. Condor usually sells by means of participation in tenders.
Condor is the leading Latin American manufacturer of high-technology non-lethal and pyrotechnic equipment. Its headquarters are located in the municipality of Nova Iguaçu, interior of the state of Rio de Janeiro. The company has been in operation since 1985 and holds an ISO 9000 certificate – for quality – and an ISO 14000 certificate – for environmental preservation. Condor occupies an area of 1 million square metres, 40% of which consists of forests.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
