German machine tool industry sends a prestigious delegation to Istanbul

Turkey ranks among the top growth markets

On 26 and 27 November 2013, the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders’ Association) from Frankfurt hosted a German Technology Symposium in Istanbul, inviting industry representatives and production experts. Under the title of “Machine Tools and Production Systems from Germany”, 27 German manufacturers showcased their products, their solutions and their services for efficient, modern-day production operations. The event was attended by 340 customers from prestigious companies in the Turkish automotive industry and its component suppliers, the mechanical engineering sector in general, the metalworking industry and aircraft manufacturers. From the German side, the companies participating were Alzmetall, Benzinger, Chiron, DMG MORI SEIKI, STARRAG Group, EMAG, Gleason-Pfauter Group, Hamuel, Heller, Hermle, Index/Traub, Kapp/Niles, UNITED GRINDING GROUP, Leistritz, MAG IAS, Mauser, Peiseler, Power Automation, Profiroll, Samag, Schiess, Schütte, SHW Werkzeugmaschinen, Siemens, Schwäbische Werkzeugmaschinen, Waldrich Coburg and Weisser.

“The Turkish economy is characterised by stable growth, and needs sophisticated production technology to upgrade and expand its high-tech production technology”, says Klaus-Peter Kuhnmünch, responsible at VDW for organising the symposium. “This is the domain of German manufacturers, as those attending the symposium could verify for themselves”, adds Kuhnmünch. In addition, he continues, German vendors are valuable partners for Turkey’s industrial sector, because they possess abundant experience on the global market in an enormous range of different user sectors. “Manufacturing parts for diesel and petrol injection is being progressively outsourced in Turkey. We are able to offer Turkish companies attractive production solutions”, confirms Ulf Flinspach, Sales Manager Multi-Spindle Automatic Lathes at Schütte GmbH in Cologne.

German machine tools enjoy a fine reputation
Turkey’s machine tool market is characterised by dynamic growth, and is already worth more than a billion euros, with imports accounting for 80 per cent of it. With a share of 18.5 per cent, Germany is the second-most-important supplier for Turkey’s industrial sector. German exports had already reached a record level back in 2011. In 2012, they rose by another 7 per cent. In the first half of 2013, too, business was holding up very well: Turkey ranks 10^th among the sector’s most important markets.

“For decades now, the Turkish market has ranked among our most important export markets”, affirms Norbert Schlenker, Divisional Manager Sales at J.G. Weisser Söhne Werkzeugmaschinenfabrik in St. Georgen. “The Turkish piston manufacturers, in particular, trust our top-quality products, and are keen to have premium manufacturers as partners and vendors. For the future, we are expecting business to develop auspiciously, since the component suppliers to the European automotive industry are upsizing their investments here”, adds Schlenker. Yavuz Demir at Ford Otosan in Inonu/Eskisehir contributes a customer’s viewpoint: “Our vendors are 100 per cent leading machine tool manufacturers from Germany, who produce and deliver a level of quality second to none.” 

According to calculations from the research economists at Oxford Economics, the major customers for German machine tools in Turkey intend to increase their investments by 7.8 per cent next year, and their machine tool consumption by 7.6 per cent. The Turkish mechanical engineering sector is overproportionally active, as are the manufacturers of metal products. Mehmet Tiryaki, Chairman of the Tiryakiler Group in Kisim, a leading component supplier to the automotive industry, says: “German machine tools are characterised by superlative quality, and are of vital importance to our company.” 

It was not only the daytime hours of the event that were brim-full of information: the VDW’s evening reception, too, proved ideal for informal exchanges of news and views between the participants from the German delegation and the Turkish customers. Yavuz Demir from Ford commented: “It’s unique to hear so many presentations focused on the Turkish market from leading German vendors in a compressed timeframe of just two days, and to have an opportunity to enjoy a professional dialogue with the specialists from Germany. The added value from the event was immense.”

The cooperation partner for organising the German Technology Symposium was Hanover Fair Istanbul, which afterwards circulated information to the potential Turkish customers who were unable to attend the event in person. In the VDW Newsroom of the CNC-Arena, all the presentations by the German vendors are available for downloading under www.vdw.cnc-arena.com/en. Any Turkish companies interested can then get in touch directly with the speakers at the VDW’s symposium.