Having invested in South Africa to establish a new factory, Elcab will start manufacturing during the first three months of 2018.

With this investment, the company has set the growth target for 2018 as 60 %. Stating that this investment makes Elcab one more step closer to the target set during the establishment, Elcab Cable Board Chairman Nejdet Tıskaoğlu has expressed that they are working to become a global company, leader in their sector.

SUBCONTURKEY: Could you inform us about the corporate identity of Elcab Cable?

Nejdet Tıskaoğlu: Elcab Cable was founded in 1999 with two partners. We started operating by producing cable groups for the white goods sector in the building of 125 meter squares with the team of 2 people. We had goals, and we started growing to achieve these goals. The targets were to become the leader in the sector and constitute a brand value in Europe. In order to reach these goals, at the first phase, we started working to get all the required quality certificates. As Elcab, to be able to become more competitive while producing silicon cable furnace door gasgets, we started producing glass fiber cable, which was produced by only one company in Turkey during that time. When we expanded our product range, the export increased as well. We made our own factory building constructed in 2008, and we have been operating in our factory in Arnavutköy/Istanbul since 2009. Our factory includes 5500 meter squares of indoor area, and we continue working with 170 employees. Supplying the manufactured products for both the domestic market and the customers abroad, Elcab Cable exports 40 % of its production. We supply products for white goods companies along with Arçelik, our biggest customer in the domestic market.

Our products have the quality certificate of VDE, the German quality certificate, and we are producing in accordance with the quality standards determined by the relevant certification body. We are extremely assertive about the quality, and we export our products to 43 countries, mainly to the countries in Europe and South America.

In the white goods cooker group, there are silicon cable groups in the non-visible area, and furnace door gasgets in the visible area. We manufacture these products in high quality standards with our expert staff. In addition to these two product types, we started producing plug-in cable as the component product in our product range. Stating that our area of specialization is silicon cable, silicon cable group and silicon furnace door gasgets; we can say that we are not very assertive about plug-in cable. We are one of the three companies in Turkey, specializing in silicon-based products.

Elcab Grew 25 % in 2017

SUBCONTURKEY: How was 2017? What are your goals for 2018? Do you have investment plans?

Nejdet Tıskaoğlu: Although it was a difficult year, 2017 was quite successful for Elcab, which grew 25 % and reached its targets. With our 10 million Euros of turnover, we reached our targeted figures. We became a company increasing its share in customers in the group A in the white goods sector, and we developed in terms of both turnover and volume.

Elcab Has Established a Factory in South Africa 

We aim at growing 60 % in 2018. We would like to reach this goal by increasing our share in the domestic market and our investment made abroad. We will open the factory, and start producing all the products, which we currently produce in Turkey; thus, we will put our investment in South Africa into use during the first three months of 2018. We have completed most of the investment. We have founded a factory with 5500 meter squares of indoor area. We will start with 1.500.000 dollars of investment, but we will continue our machinery investments gradually. A technical team including 6-7 people, who currently work in our factory in Turkey, will work in our factory in South Africa for some time in order to teach the production process to the local employees. Firstly, we will start manufacturing with the team of 60 people. We plan to increase this number to 150 later.

Defy, producing 500.000 pieces of cookers per year, is one of the largest companies in South Africa. South Africa is a very large and virgin market. On the other hand, it is a difficult market, because the workers are inactive and non-practical, and they have the different mentality of working in terms of discipline and security weakness. However; there is no company producing silicon cable in this country, and we are the first company to produce silicon cable here; so, we are in an extremely advantaged situation. When we start operating, we will supply our products only for Arçelik during the first two years. In the following years, we aim at selling our products to the other companies in the country and exporting. As a member of BESYAD, and as the first company investing in South Africa in the white goods subsidiary industry, we will supply products for the cooling groups, and we feel the right pride of this.

SUBCONTURKEY: Will you participate in exhibitions during 2018?

Nejdet Tıskaoğlu: As Elcab, we attach a great importance to exhibitions and foreign trips. As a result of this importance, we export to more than 40 countries today. Because we are aware that the Canton Exhibition, held in Guangzhou/China as two phases every year, is very important; we can say that this exhibition is at the top of the list of the exhibitions we are planning to participate in 2018. In addition, we are planning to participate in HEFI, which will be held in June in our country, and is not only very important for our sector but also constitutes a brand value for our country. Considering Germany, we can see that this country is very successful in exhibitions, and gets a large commercial earning in this field. As Turkey, we are able to contribute to both the economy of our country and the development of the white goods sector by holding a good exhibition. It is necessary to look at the exhibitions from this aspect, and comprehend the importance of the exhibitions in terms of the sector.

SUBCONTURKEY: Are there risks in the cable sector? What kind of precautions do you take for these risks?

Nejdet Tıskaoğlu: There has been an invisible pressure on Turkey for one year, which decreases our competition power in both import and export. There have been very serious fluctuations especially in silicon cable for the last 5 months. There are problems in not only raw material supply but also prices. The price of silicon has increased 100 % in 5-6 months. This affects us, and decreases our competition power abroad. Because we have to implement this price for our customers in the domestic market, this reflected to the white goods sector. In general, there is an invisible but a very serious pressure on the country in terms of import.

SUBCONTURKEY: What would you like to say about the future of the white goods sector?

Nejdet Tıskaoğlu: Many years ago, Italy was the production base for the key and subsidiary industries of white goods. Later, Turkey became the leader in white goods key and subsidiary industries. However, I see this as a risk in the medium term; because I think the leadership will transfer to another country, and different locations. We will understand this better in the medium term. We are able to make correct movements without losing the share. Turkey must not repeat the mistakes that caused Italy to lose the leadership in the white goods key and subsidiary industries. The white goods sector is a leading sector in Turkey. It goes well, but we may experience problems in medium term if we do not make the correct movements. We need to maintain our leadership. The white goods sector is developing in the countries such as Iran, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Romania and Poland. We need to maintain our leadership in white goods with correct strategies and moves.

There is a very hard pressure on Turkey. We can improve the situation of our country by working correctly with correct moves. As Elcab, we continued growing by making correct movements in spite of these pressures. I think, as the country, we can continue growing if the companies invest their profits in R & D and innovation works.

I wish 2018 to bring peace to the whole world. I wish for all of us to live in tranquility. I wish to have a year full of peace, without war.

08.05.2018