Fatih TRABZON
General Manager – Mechanical Eng.
“The biggest added value that FTR Makina brings to the industry of this country is the design, manufacture, and export of gas cooling systems under the Cooling Control® brand. There are only a few manufacturers of this product range in the world and the products we offer under the Cooling Control® brand are world leaders.”
Could you give us information about the establishment process of FTR Makina and the stages it has gone through until today?
FTR Makina is a company founded in 2003 and initially started its business life on a representative basis. In the following years, we made distributorship agreements for some industrial products. And for the last 4 years, we have been supplying our customers from our existing Mersin warehouse. Currently, the construction of a new warehouse of 4,000 m² in Sakarya is ongoing.
To which sectors and what kind of products does FTR Makina mainly supply? Can you give us information about your company’s products, brands, and services?
FTR Makina offers its product range, for which it acts as a distributor, to mines, coal-fired power plants, and port facilities, mainly in the cement sector, on a representative basis. We continue to work actively in all branches of industry.
Our company manufactures all engineering design, calculations and production of the “gas conditioning systems” that it manufactures under the Cooling Control® brand and offers those to Turkey and the whole world.
In addition to that, under the trade name FTRsteel®, the company is the distributor of high chromium grinding balls, mainly used in the cement and mining industries, in Turkey and other countries in the region.
With the license agreement that we acted with Magotteaux in 2015, we manufacture ball sorting and ball loading machines under the name “Magotteauxby FTR”.
Could you inform us about your after-sales services?
Our after-sales services can be categorized under 2 main headings. After-sales services of the machines and systems manufactured by FTR are provided by the FTR team. On the other hand, the after-sales services of the products brought to Turkey on a representative basis are generally carried out by the expert engineers of those companies with the support of FTR.
What is your 2023 growth objective? Do you have investment plans for the coming periods, and if so, what are they?
Due to the effects of the years passed with pandemic and disruptions in the supply chain, there has been an increase in current domestic demand and exports. The same momentum is expected to continue in both domestic and export markets in 2023 and the following 3 years. We will continue to be at the service of our enduser customers from our Mersin and Sakarya warehouses in order to meet that.
Furthermore, we can also say that we feel the welldeserved pride of keeping the promise we made in our interview 4 years ago. With our high chrome ball stocks, we continue to attain our objectives with the motto of delivery from stock in 24 hours.
Could you tell us about FTR Makina’s activities in international markets and in Turkey?
The biggest added value that FTR Makina brings to the industry of this country is the design, manufacture, and export of gas cooling systems under the Cooling Control® brand. There are only a few manufacturers of this product range in the world and the products we offer under the Cooling Control® brand are world leaders. At this point, our CycloneCool product in particular is able to offer a wide range of benefits, ranging from significant capacity increases in cement plants with the right planning.
What are the points where you, as FTR Makina, make a difference in the sector?
Our primary difference is that all our team members at FTR are highly knowledgeable, honest, and solution- and cooperation-oriented. This stems from the significant positive synergy within the company. Another undeniable point is that our high number of employees compared to similar organizations and the new technical understanding that we bring to sales / marketing strategies are applied only by FTR Makina in our country.
Can you tell us about your environmental policy and sustainability approach?
At FTR, our manufacturing range is limited but environmentally friendly. In addition to that, since 2008, FTR has organized a tree planting campaign under the title “500 Years of Oxygen” as a social responsibility project.
What advice would you give to SMEs that want to expand to world markets?
Opening up to world markets is not as difficult as one might think. However, before entering these markets, it should be ensured that the service or product to be provided is at a good level in terms of both quality and price. Turkey is better than many other countries in terms of the quality and cost of production. On should embark on this path by considering the rules of the game based on international norms, not national ones.
We can also say that we feel the well-deserved pride of keeping the promise we made in our interview 4 years ago. With our high chrome ball stocks, we continue to attain our objectives with the motto of delivery from stock in 24 hours.
