We just completed an interesting project in Iraq earlier this summer that included a gymnasium full of Draper equipment. I have invited Nate LaMar to share the story of this project. I am looking forward to introducing you to other members of our international sales and marketing team to share their stories about other projects and events.

– Jentry Wittkamper

Draper gym equipment in Bubs School, Erbil, Iraq

Ketu Construction, a distributor of Draper athletic equipment, based in Ankara, Turkey, won the gymnasium tender for the Bubs School in Erbil, Iraq. Erbil is located in northern Iraq, the part of the country that has seen the least warfare and violence. The Draper products in this tender included our TF-20-B Forward Folding Basketball Backstops, with electric winches, safety straps, glass backboards, bolt-on edge pads, tube-tie breakaway goals, and manual height adjusters. Draper also provided a Roll-Up style gymnasium divider, as well as a PVC power volleyball system with accessories. (The photos attached are snapshots taken during the construction process).

Draper basketball backstop at Bubs School, Erbil, Iraq.

The basketball backstops and gymnasium divider curtain supplied for this project were custom-manufactured to fit the exact building conditions. The project had a compressed construction schedule and the shipping time was protracted since it went by ocean freight. Working with Ketu Construction to collect all necessary details, Draper was able to design, fabricate, and ship these highly-customized products in about 30 days to meet the tight schedule and allow on-time facility completion.

Draper continues to experience growth in sales of our athletic equipment overseas, to include Guam, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. We have also bid on athletic equipment tenders in Cameroon, India, Nigeria, Peru, and elsewhere.

Having served the US Army in the Middle East (though not in Iraq), I am pleased to see Draper products help in the rebuilding of Iraq!

– Nate LaMar, International Regional Manager

More information about Nate:

My name is Nate LaMar.  Since 1999, I have been International Regional Manager for Latin America, Middle East / Africa, and Central & South Asia for Draper. I also serve as President of Henry County Council (county legislature), to which I was first elected in 2006, and manage government relations for Draper at the federal, state, and county levels. Prior to joining Draper, I was an international manager in the automotive industry, a high school foreign language teacher, and an active-duty Army officer. I received an MBA in International Management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management in 1995 and a B.S. in Middle Eastern Studies and General Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1989. My wife, Kristin, and I have two daughters, (Elizabeth, 11, and Alexandra, 9), and breed Shetland sheep on our hobby farm.  I enjoy distance running, recruiting for West Point, and our daughters’ activities.