Our fifth day started off with a 9am bus ride down to the Mari area near Limassol. There, we had a company visit with executives from Vassiliko Cement Works and from VTTV, who described how their respective cement and oil companies each play a role in the supply chain of Cyprus. Vassiliko Cement Works explained that since they have the largest production unit in Europe, they have a crucial role providing the continent with the necessary materials for the building of new infrastructure continentally. They also described each stage of how they make cement, from the quarry to the cement mills. Additionally, since one of the stages, the kiln stage, requires large amounts of heat, they described how they are looking into alternative fuels instead of fossil fuels as a more environmentally friendly option.

For VTTV, they described how their company acts as a sort of “hotel” for the oil, since they don’t actually own any of the oil in their facilities. However, they are able to change the oil they are storing to fit the specifications of their customers. Relating to supply chain, one executive described how diversifying your customer base as a company leads to a stronger and more adaptable supply chain for the company. For example, when one customer becomes severely affected by worldwide events, income from other customers can be sufficient enough for the company to stay afloat.We then went on facilities tour of both companies, where we were able to see much of the equipment described in the lectures. We were also able to see the control room, which was pretty cool. Something I found interesting that one executive said was that normally no humans work inside the factory because everything runs smoothly on its own.

After the company visits in the morning, we had lunch at Koumbaris Fish Tavern. I was impressed with the variety and amount of food brought out, and the food was very good. After lunch, we traveled to the city of Larnaca, where we first visited Hala Sultan Tekke, a mosque which is the third most important religious site for Muslims in the world. The mosque was located right on the bank of a lake and surrounded by gardens, making it a beautiful site. We then went to the coast, where we spent a couple hours on the beach, which was very nice. Overall, it was a pretty fun day.