Evaluating the year 2017 for Turkish Textile Machinery Manufacturers' to the Textile World Publishing Group, Adil Nalbant, Chairman of Textile Machinery and Accessories Industry Association (TEMSAD), stresses the studies conducted for the purpose of supporting domestic machinery production.
What is your opinion about the position and market dominance of Turkish Textile Machinery and Accessories Manufacturers in the world?
Our textile machinery and accessories producers are consolidating their place in the world day by day. We can infer it from increasing export figures, entering different markets in the world and increasing their product range every day.
As you know, we hold a prominent position both in the production of textile machines and in the field of paint finishing machines . This has enabled our textile dyeing and finishing machinery to become a recognised brand in the world as well. We can sell these machines smoothly to all over the world. We can compete with global brands in terms of quality and price. I think we will reinforce our position in this segment globally more and more in the course of time.
How did 2017 go for Turkish Textile Machinery and Accessories Manufacturers? How high was the demand for domestic textile machinery and accessories?
After 2016, which was relatively stagnant in the domestic market, the economy's locomotive, that is textile sector, became more active and responded to the stagnation in the sector. As we have experienced it in every year, we increased our exports in 2017. When we look at it proportionally, we think our export of 512 million dollars last year will be over 550 million dollars at the end of this year and this will increase by about 10 percent. We are sure we will further reduce the foreign trade deficit we have brought down to under $ 1 billion.
Has 2017 met the expectations of Turkish producers particularly in exports?
Our machinery manufacturers want to export more machines, get more share from the market. They have worked devotedly to make it happen. From Latin America to North America, from the Far East to the West, we have participated in fairs everywhere in the world, sometimes with the support of our association and sometimes with our own personal efforts. Therefore, I think our producers in the sector did their part and there is no problem in foreign markets. However, especially the Western countries have a negative attitude towards our country, which, unfortunately also affected our sector.
How has this attitude affected you?
With this attitude, we can say they have implemented some hidden embargoes on our country. For instance, we have seen some of the raw materials have demonstrated resistance in their deliveries. So delivery times are delayed, orders are missing, etc. I came across such incidents. Still, I think such embargoes, in a certain proportion, are useful in terms of changing both sectoral and management strategies. Because at this point, we are beginning to support our own producers. Such small embargoes can be a trigger for us to focus on the production of our own machines. For example, we wish we could produce a weaving loom, a spinning machine, or an open end machine in our land instead of importing such machines.
Why are we still not be able to produce such machines?
The main reason we still cannot produce such machines is the marketing problem. Today, producing machines is not as difficult as it was before, yet the important factor is to be able to market them. Let us assume the number of machines Turkey buy for weaving sector, yet there is a fact that there is a weaving machine export reaching up to 60-70 thousand except for China and India. We need to trust our domestic producers to get a share from this market. The technology required to produce these machines is not that difficult. Hence, I think our government should support the people who will produce these machines with incentives just as the incentives they have provided for the automotive industry.
What is your expectation on this issue?
Our state should encourage the domestic machinery industry to produce. In order to produce this machine, domestic producers must be supported and provide attractive incentives to the textile industry to purchase such machines. In this way, we turn the competition into an advantageous aspect for the domestic market. For the textile machines to be constructed, the most preferred models for import can be taken as a model in the beginning, to determine which machines have been used for synthetic yarn, for cotton yarn, and which machines have been preferred for weaving such materials? A priority order is determined accordingly. Then the relevant companies are invited and asked to produce such machines. The industry can produce these machines by creating their own know-how. As a matter of fact, the industrial revolution started with textile machines. First, textile machines were produced,which led to the production of war machines and planes. If you are not able to produce a weaving machine, how can you make production in the automotive or in the aircraft industry?
Additional quotes are applied for cotton fabric. Is it not possible to apply such method in textile machines too in order to get ahead of imports?
Similarly, the measures taken by our shoe manufacturers in order to protect their own sectors have been very successful in terms of putting additional quota in exports, which our textile producers have carried led by İsmail Gülle, Chairman of ITHIB. First of all, the people in that sector continued to invest in their businesses because our state supports domestic production. We, as machinery producers, founded 17 Federation of Machinery Manufacturing Industry Associations (MAKFED). We have always been keeping this issue on the agenda together with the Federation for the development of machinery industry in Turkey, yet a hidden hand does not want the machinery industry of Turkey to be developed. For instance, when you want to protect a fabric, world trade allows you to do this, but when the machine is concerned, you cannot set such a quota since the largest market for the western machine manufacturers is Turkey.
There is also a price issue. Western manufacturers are able to move second-hand machines to Turkey market at half the price. They purchase a EUR 80,000 worth machine at half price to Turkey and you cannot beat this number with your own production. Unfortunately, this is the biggest problem we have experienced not only in textile machines but also in machinery tools. Especially customs procedures should be carried out more dominantly. Since customs procedures are subject to certain conditions in second-hand machines, we come across various tricks during the custom clearance. Should the machines are produced in Turkey, VAT discount must be applied, even if such machines are provided with incentives.
What strategy have you determined as Textile Machinery and Accessories Industrialists’ Association (TEMSAD) for 2018?
As TEMSAD, we plan to carry out effective works in international and regional fairs in order to promote our industry in 2018. Our members will participate DTG Fair in Bangladesh, Indointertex Fair in Indonesia, VTG Fair in Vietnam, and ITM 2018 in Istanbul. Besides, we will work in close cooperation with Uzbekistan within our contacts. We will also work on the problems of our producers of textile machinery and accessories on the agenda, to get more public support on behalf of our industry, and to have our friends from the industry take part in the chamber and union elections to be held in April.
What are the specific target markets set for 2018? Will there be any special studies for such markets?
Interest in Turkish textile machinery and accessories producers in the world market is increasing day by day. Among the niche markets we are targeting in 2018 are the Turkic Republics. Especially in Uzbekistan, we see that there is an interest in Turkish textile producers and Turkish machinery producers. We will evaluate this on site. Additionally, there are important markets in Africa, namely and particularly Ethiopia. Meanwhile, Syria, Iraq and Egypt are closely following developments in the situation they are in. As you know, 65 percent of the machines used by paint finishing plants in Syria were Turkish machines. Once the war in Syria is over, I think there will be a great market potential here, and the sector will have important roles in the restructuring of the country.
