The export champion of Turkey in tile ceramics, VitrA Karo made a new plant investment which will be manufacturing big-sized tiles in Bozuyuk. Eczacibasi Chairman of Board of Directors Bulent Eczacibasi said: “We keep on our investments in our 80th year. Our community’s investment this year will go beyond 250 million euros.”
Celebrating its’ 80th year, the Eczacibasi Community is keeping on its’ export-oriented investments contributing to Turkish economy. Serving in construction products being the biggest area of business of Eczacibasi Community, the export champion of Turkey in tile industry, VitrA Karo A.S.’s new plant completed in Bilecik Bozuyuk, has been put into service with a ceremony. Due to the new plant being put into service, The Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Fatih Donmez, Eczacibasi Holding Chairman of Board of Directors Bulent Eczacibasi, Eczacibasi Vice Chairman of Board of Directors Faruk Eczacibasi, Eczacibasi Community CEO Atalay Gumrah, VitrA Karo A.S. CEO Hasan Pehlivan along with Eczacibasi Community employees together with the guests have participated in the ceremony organized in VitrA’s production campus in Bozuyuk.
Having a 3,5 million meter square big-sized tile manufacturing capacity with its’ new plant, VitrA Karo will also increase the energy efficiency, prevent wastage and enhance its’ contribution to sustainability. With its’ export-oriented, comprehensive new plant carrying out data-based production management with Industry 4.0 practices, VitrA Karo will also speed up its’ growth in European market. VitrA Karo is planning to complete its’ investment of this year worth a 25,5 million Euros in total towards plant, efficiency and modernization.
250 million Euros investment in 2022
Eczacibasi Holding Chairman of Board of Directors Bulent Eczacibasi has emphasized in his speech in the opening ceremony that they are continuing investments in every area with faith and persistence in Community’s 80th year to improve their global competitive power and said: “Eczacibasi Community is carrying the flag of modern, quality and healthy life in Turkey for 80 years. Our Community is active in more than 120 markets with its’ 46 establishments and 39 production plants today. In this journey of 80 years, we first have been a part of Turkey’s industrialization story and then gone beyond the borders of Turkey with the brands we created and became an international player brought into life by our 12 thousand mates producing in 3 continents today. We continue our investments in every area we serve in to improve our competitive power. We planned a total investment of over 250 million euros in 2022. We’re putting the VitrA Karo’s new plant into service today which is a part of these investments. And soon after that, we will be completing the investment of our fifth plant in Bozuyuk for the ceramic sanitaryware production.”
Stating that construction products is making the biggest area of business of Eczacibasi Community, Bulent Eczacibasi spoke as follows: “We make more than 50 percent of our country’s ceramic sanitaryware export; and ranked at first with our tile products in the export made to EU countries. We have the competency to design all the products used in a bathroom. And with our tile products, we carry this competency to the spaces out of bathroom. We take our capacity one step further with the new plant we put into service in VitrA Karo.“
Will provide increase in capacity and employment
While VitrA Karo’s production capacity in the Bozuyuk campus raises from 22 million meter squares to 25,5 million meter squares with the new plant investment, it’s total capacity reached to 30 million meter square all together with the investments made abroad. And as the new plant provides an employment for 83 the total number of employees in VitrA Karo’s Bozuyuk campus reached to 1080.
VitrA Karo is at the leading position in luxury segment in Turkey with its’ brands VitrA, Villeroy & Boch premium. The big sized tile that’s began to be manufactured in VitrA Karo’s new plant, takes place in the tile ceramics category which shows a significant growth in Europe in recent years. And VitrA Karo realized its’ new plant investment based on three amin goals as realizing inspiring modern designs in the growing market and growing category, increasing energy efficiency regarding sustainability and reducing the wastage.
Wastage prevented with artificial intelligence
VitrA Karo CEO Hasan Pehlivan said: “We increase our big sized porcelain tile production competency and capacity with our new plant. This is a significantly growing category in our European target market. The goal is not only the size. The products which will be obtained as a result of the investment, will be the products which we will be combining also the digital technical applications that give the surface feeling of materials like natural stone and marble and will be bringing our designs into life in a more realistic way. We will have a greater design bet. Besides all these, sustainability is also very important for us. We provide record high energy efficiency in the production phase in our new plant. Energy consumption in this line got lower by 15 percent compared to normal lines. And we also prevent the tail which we call wastage. We minimize the products with flaws through using artificial intelligence with the data flow we enabled with digital sensors. We first reduced down the average tail of 8 percent first to 4,5 percent in 2017. Thanks to the solutions we developed in collaboration with the Eczacibasi Community’s unit that conducts artificial intelligence and data analysis, we recently succeed at reducing down the 4,5 percent of wastrel to 3,5 percent. And we endeavor to reduce down this ratio lower. We’re planning to generalize the Industry 4.0 and above practices in all of our production lines.”
Whole campus will contribute in sustainability
There are also renovation, efficiency and modernization investments in VitrA Karo’s Bozuyuk campus. An average of 4 percent energy efficiency has been provided in some of the kilns to increase efficiency within the framework of their own innovative processes. The first 2 kilns installed in the campus will be removed from the production process and taken into service again with the most efficient technology after their infrastructures are renewed and this way sustainability activities will gain a pace. Focusing attention green energy to reduce the carbon footprint and obtaining the license to install solar energy on the roof of the new plant, VitrA Karo will turn the 7 percent of the energy it uses into green energy with the investment to be completed in autumn.
PRODUCTS BEING SOLD IN 75 COUNTRIES
Ranked at the top in the export made from our country to EU, VitrA Karo has begun production in Istanbul Tuzla in 1991 and in Bilecik Bozuyuk in 1992. Having abroad production plants in Germany and Russia, VitrA Karo products is being put on the market in 75 countries with Turkey and Germany being at the first place. Export sales comprise more than 80 percent of VitrA Karo’s sales. VitrA’s tiles with the “TSE Double Star” Certificate, is also carrying the first eco-label of the sector which’s given by the European Union to a ceramic company from Turkey. The exhaust heat recovery project developed by VitrA Karo in its’ production plants, has taken place in Turkey’s National Report which’s presented in United Nation’s Sustainable Development Conference “Rio+20” in 2012. With this project, the exhaust heat generated in the kilns are used in spray dryers and this way natural gas consumption and CO2 emission are reduced.
