Can we start our interviewing by know about you?
Having graduated from Koç University Department of Business Administration, I started to work in AR-GE Consulting as a Management Consultant by 2004. I still work as a Executive Committee Member in Batı Anadolu Group in which I finished by 10th professional year by September. We are all attempting to make Batı Anadolu Group, engaging in social industrialism and granting what it acquires from these territories again in these territories, beneficial for the country and a place enjoyable to work in with all our team members.
Please inform me about your production capacity?
Batıçim has an annual clinker production capacity equal to 1.400.000 tons and cement production capacity equal to 1.800.000 tons. Batısöke has an annual clinker production capacity equal to 2.400.000 tons and cement production capacity equal to 2.750.000 tons.
Batıbeton significantly contributes in region’s economy and employment by performing production with ready- mixed concrete plants number of which has reached to 23 in total at İzmir, Manisa, Aydın, Balıkesir, Muğla and Denizli cities and their districts. We have concrete plants having the latest technology and producing with 2500 m3/ hours annual installed capacity.
Batıenerji provides electricity energy to 3000 subscribers in 81 cities by generating 150 million kWh/year totally from renewable resources; Batılimanise provides 10 million tons/year handling service.
How do you evaluate today’s cement sector both for Turkey and global aspect?
If we evaluate in general, we believe that the growth in the sector will be higher than the economic growth of Turkey within the subsequent 5-10 years period particularly along with the process of urban transformation, implementation of the new satellite towns and the projects to be implemented in transportation network.
In global aspect, we think that the supply and demand equilibrium shall not be achieved before 2018 in the sector that is growing in 2-3 percent range every year; therefore excess supply shall continue for a period.
Have the objectives you had set for 2016 been achieved? What do you predict about 2017?
We have achieved +-10% margin objective for 2016. The amount of our investments which have been made and still ongoing during 2013 – 2017 is equal to 1 billion TRY. We are currently performing clinker and cement production in two locations including Bornova-İZMİR and Söke-AYDIN. We sell our production both at domestic and foreign markets.
The investment in the second production line with a daily capacity of 5500 tons is still ongoing in addition to Söke plant. By completion of this line, total clinker production capacity shall reach up to 2.400.000 tons annually.
We have been exporting to Europe predominantly since our foundation but Africa and South America are among the regions we target for the upcoming years.
The vessel length of Batıliman shall increase from 186 m to 290 m, the total berthing area shall increase from 750 m to 918 m and the total annual handling capacity shall increase from 6 million to 10 million tons with the ongoing landing stage extension, expansion and warehouse investment amounting to 45 million TRY.
Although we think we will pass through a difficult period during 2017, we believe that we will start reaping the fruits of the investments recently performed after the end of 2017.
You perform boron cement production in your Batıçim plant. You draw attention that boron cement shall greatly contribute in the country economy in the future by emphasizing that boron-doped cement is much safer and durable and more environmental-friendly. What do you want to tell us about this issue?
Boron cement is a strategic product for Turkey. The heat, water and gas transmission released by boron cement during the course of application is low, and it is impermeable against chemicals, thus we think that it shall have significant implementation fields in building and construction sector.
The low level of heat released during the time of application significantly reduce the requirement for cooling especially in mass concretes. This is the cement particularly preferred in manufacturing dam embankments by reason of this plus and long-year endurance. Moreover, viaduct, tunnel, bridge constructions, concrete roads, dock and coast concretes are the most ideal application areas. It ensures safety as a radiation shielding in x-ray rooms and waste storage areas of hospitals. This is also the most ideal cement to ensure a nuclear power plant having safe standards.
In addition to all these, the concrete made of boron cement shall be hardly broken or become deformed compare to normal concrete for the long term, by this way it is highly suitable for construction of high- rise buildings. Both boron and normal cement may be manufactured by utilization of boron wastes. By this means, it becomes not only possible to produce low cost cement by utilization of waste raw materials but also to contribute in country economy by turning the wastes into an industrial product.
Additionally, the quantity of carbon dioxide oscillating to the atmosphere is lower to a ratio about 25-30 percent in boron cement manufacturing.
The projects based on “Concrete Roads” have gathered pace and project studies and site analyses have been performed in recent times. What is your opinion about concrete roads?
Concrete roads is a sustainable solution that has a higher strength and bearing capacity compare to alternative roads. Alternative roads require maintenance after the 3rd year in average; while the concrete roads start requiring maintenance-repair mostly after 15th year even under heavy traffic load. Besides, some maintenance- repair expenses are made for alternative roads equal to road construction cost in 5 years. The service life of concrete roads may reach to 50 years unlike the alternative roads having maximum 20 years lifetime. As a consequence, the lifetime of concrete roads is a few times higher than the alternative roads.
Another significant issue is that we are able to utilize equities of Turkey that is at the top in cement production when we prefer concrete roads in addition to being long-lasting and financial advantages. The raw material of asphalt roads is petroleum product and we can supply petroleum just from other countries.
Therefore, one of the main solutions which would contribute in reduction of the current deficit as one of the most important indicators of country economy shall be orient towards concrete roads.
Moreover the construction cost of concrete roads was higher compare to its alternative in the past but the costs declined by the development in construction technique throughout the world in time, but the perception of expensiveness was not broken down. The main reason underlying this is the deficiency in publicity.
Consequently, the main issue needed to be emphasized is to publicize concrete roads.
The cement factories have invested at the point of utilizing “Alternative Fuels” particularly in recent year. Can you please tell us the works and investment planning you have done as Batıçim?
As Batı Anadolu Group, we keep performing and increasing our investments in environment and energy efficiency in our Batıçim and Batısöke cement plants in direction of the principles of “continuous improvement and ongoing development” as the prerequisite for the industry.
“CEM I 42,5 R” grade cement had been mostly used in ready- mixed concrete productions in the past years, while the use of “CEMII/B-M(L-W)42,5 R” has been started especially for the last five years as a result of new products and product development efforts. The ratio of replacement of additive in cement with the clinker in cements being produced in our cement plants is continuously increasing. The reduction of the additive ratio means a decrease in clinker added in unit cement and reduction in the quantity of carbon oscillating because of unit cement production. The energy ratio consumed during clinker and cement production tends to decrease continuously by means of the modernization efforts we take to make our production processes more efficient and environment-friendly. We believe that the implementation of improvements highly significant for our sector such as clinker production and energy consumption is the important steps taken to protect the environment.
Within the framework of collaboration with İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, we dispose dried treatment sludge formed in Çiğli Waste Water Treatment Plant owned by İZSU (İzmir Water And Sewerage Administration) by using them as additional fuel in our plant. By this way, we contribute in the economy by decreasing our coal consumption as one of our main inputs. We also reduce carbon emission based on the decrease in natural resources consumption.
Having adopted the aim of environmental sustainability, our firm takes place as a pilot company in the European Union assisted “Environmental Footprint for Business World” project in direction of this mentality. Carbon footprint calculations and Eco-Labeling system shall be carried out based on the standards in scope of the project to be performed in collaboration with Aegean Forestry Foundation, Life Long Learning Occupational Training and Development Association and Britain based The Carbon Trust.
In the project with a budget amounting to 175 thousand 739 Euro and to continue for 12 months, the studies and best practices performed in EU member countries shall be conveyed with respect to formation and certification of environmental footprint and preparation of product labels about this for the products especially oriented for export in Turkey.
What are the most common problems in utilization of “Alternative Fuels”? Can you please share your experiences with us in this subject as Batıçim?
The most common problem being encountered is the inability of finding desired quantity of fuel.
A fuel must firstly satisfy the fuel standards used by the plan in order to consider this as an alternative fuel. The characteristic we require to consider a fuel as substitute of the fuels we currently use is mainly the calorific value, moisture content and continuity of waste supply. We attach importance to these three requirements in large amount wastes, while calorie and moisture are the main acceptance criteria in small amount wastes.
Once a furnace starts being fed with wastes, it reacts to newly coming fuel and makes some changes in its structure and then wishes to preserve this condition. However, the fluctuation in fuel occurred as a result of continuous fuel replacement, namely the case of giving al alternative fuel and then interrupting this, disturbs the regime of the furnace and negatively affects the production quality. Disrupted regime damages the refractors and shortens the lifetime of refractors significantly. This is not a desired situation in a furnace primarily aiming clinker production in certain quality standards.
When we look at our region, there are significant industrial plants. If we consider industrial plants rising from such plants and wishing to send waste to our plant and the real demands coming to us from the plants which can treat wastes as fuel, we see that the quantity of waste occurred does not cover the quantities we require yet; but it corresponds to just a small quantity. We believe that the waste quantity received by us shall increase and reach to desired ratios.
Improvement in the environmental legislation practice from day to day, the increase in waste awareness in the industry and the increase in supply by considering wastes as a value and treating them as fuel point out that we will overcome the problems in the upcoming period.
If we talk about the climate and environment subtitles under the headline of sustainability, can you please tells your objectives to be added in your existing works on the following subjects; reduction in emissions (CO2 oscillation, reduction in dust and gas emissions), increase in the use of alternative fuel and raw materials, provision of energy efficiency, waste, Biodiversity, Water management?
Sustainability is one of the most essential factors of environmental policies and activities. Therefore prioritize the concept of sustainability in every step we take.
The implementation of environmental product labels has started to become compulsory already now in some sectors such as construction products in EU countries as the most significant export market of Turkey. Eco-labels shall take place to a greater extent also in products being manufactured in Turkey. We will declare the quantity of carbon per product we manufacture in the packages and make some improvements by decreasing this quantity in the upcoming periods in scope of the efforts with respect to carbon emission in our plant. Using alternative fuel and raw materials, increasing the quantity of waste received, reducing the fuel quantity we consume, substituting clinker with additives and improving the processes to ensure energy efficiency are among the significant titles we can apply in our plant to reduce carbon emission.
We aim to serve as a model by contributing in protection of the environment and natural resources through all these investments we perform and the eco-labeling system to be established to reduce carbon emissions and water usage in our products as one of the pilot companies of “Environmental Footprint for Business World”. We believe that we contribute in development of this awareness with the environmental policies we carry out and environmental products we provide.
When we look at the point of energy saving in cement factories, we see that not only alternative fuel usage but also strong saving is achieved by being supported with auxiliary groups. We also see that some saving is acquired in directly proportional with the practices which support automation and energy efficiency. Can you please talk about the planning and efforts you performed as Batıçim?
The activities we performed in direction of our responsibility of protecting the environment include reducing the wastes formed during clinker and cement production made in accordance with the international standards in cement plants at source and recycling and regaining these wastes into the economy in every possible situation.
We ensure considerable saving in electricity consumption by means of our plant for energy recovery from waste heat. Moreover, some amount of greenhouse gas emission is inhibited as equivalent to planting hundreds of trees every month by disposal of dangerous wastes in rotary furnaces, minimum emission is generated during all these processes and these emissions are continuously monitored and recorded by the Ministry of Environment.
Additionally, BATIÇİM and BATISÖKE rehabilitate the mine sites they used at the end of each operation and enable plant and animal living again. As a result of all these efforts, the number of saplings having been planted is approximately 46 thousand by means of rehabilitation studies performed at the stages limestone quarries located at Belkahve Region having 16.5 km grade length in an area of almost 44.5 hectare as of 2015.
Do you have social responsibility efforts? Can you please tell our readers about your efforts in this field.
With the social responsibility project we fulfilled in scope of 50th foundation anniversary of Batı Anadolu Group, “Have a Nice Sunday” we aim to contribute in adoption of the of healthy nutrition and regular exercising habits in order to ensure both adults and children to have a qualified and healthy life.
In scope of the project of “Have a Nice Sunday” both supported by Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health, İzmir Provincial Directorate Of Health, we made 75 visits with a mobile vehicle in more than 20 traditional bazaars of Aegean region throughout the year; we directly contacted our people young and old alike in the project full off dietitian conversations, body analyses, informative publications and award winning entertaining activities. We accessed almost 30 thousand people as a result of our visits. We feel proud and happiness for witnessing the success of the project upon the interest and nice responses we received in the bazaars. We wish to keep doing the project in the upcoming years.
We have contributed in archeological excavations of Magnesia Antique City having been performed by Prof. Dr. Orhan Bingöl since 1984 by the permission and supports of the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate Of Cultural Heritage And Museums for 20 years. Magnesia Antique city is known as one of the most significant antique cities of the Western Anatolia region with its 30 thousand capacity stadium in which combined ticket system is used and its theater that describes the construction technique of its era.
Another social responsibility project of us is the Internal Business Administration (MBA) Program we have carried out for our staff members as Batı Anadolu Group since 2013 within the framework of university – industry collaboration protocol signed between Batıçim and Ege University. The number of employees who received MBA certificate has reached to 39 if we include the graduates of this year.
Moreover, 1.000 trees in 10 different species have been planted orienting to improve plant curtaining in Batıçim Bornova Cement Plant through the protocol signed between Batıçim and Ege University Faculty of Agriculture.
